Trusts

When making an estate plan, you can use a trust to protect your assets from disputes, probate and debt collectors. A trust is a legal arrangement that distributes trust funds and assets to beneficiaries. A trust is managed by a trustee, who is legally bound to act in...

Parents and successful professionals with dependent spouses often invest in life insurance coverage. They want to ensure that their loved ones can fulfill their financial obligations and maintain a baseline standard of living after their passing. Unfortunately, some...

Most adults know that they should have an estate plan in place so that their loved ones have a road map to follow when they pass away. One of the primary purposes of an estate plan is to outline where assets will go when the creator dies. There are different ways to...

There are many potential ways to use a trust, incorporating it into your estate plan. One of the benefits of a trust is that it helps to retain control over your assets, even after you pass away. You can give the trustee explicit instructions for how you want the...

It can be difficult for people with certain medical conditions to care for themselves. In some cases, they may need services that require them to prove they don’t have the means to pay for care themselves. These include programs like Supplemental Security Income or...

Charitable remainder trusts (CRTs) are often misunderstood as tools used solely for giving back to charitable organizations. Of course, judging from their name, philanthropy is an important component of CRTs.  However, they offer many other advantages that make them...

If you would like to balance your philanthropic goals with long-term financial planning, a charitable remainder trust (CRT) is worth looking into. A CRT lets you support one or more charities while providing an income for yourself or loved ones with the same assets....

A special needs trust, which is sometimes called a supplemental needs trust, is a legal tool that can help to provide for someone who has a disability without putting needs-based benefits at risk. These trusts are commonly used in estate planning by family members,...

A person who drafts a trust (a grantor) can specify under which conditions assets should be distributed to a beneficiary. Regardless of the conditions you want to include in your trust, you should ensure it remains lawful and not contrary to public policy, according...

If you are setting up a trust, one of the most important decisions you will make is who to name as your trustee. A trustee is the person or institution responsible for managing the assets you place in the trust and following the instructions you outline in the trust...