How does a living trust avoid probate?
With a Living Trust you transfer all of your property from your individual name to the name of your trust, which you control – such as from “John and Mary Smith, husband and wife” to “First Community Trust, Trustee for the John and Mary Smith Trust dated May 3, 2001. Legally you no longer own anything (everything now belongs to your trust), so there is nothing to probate when you die. While the concept is simple, this is what keeps your assets out of probate.
You create a living trust during your lifetime and transfer the title of your assets to your trust. Since you no longer technically own your assets as an individual, your beneficiaries no longer have to go through probate court to transfer title in the assets when you die, as the title was already transferred to the trust, which passes directly to your beneficiaries.
Property you transfer into a living trust before your death doesnt go through probate. The successor trustee, the person you appoint to handle the trust after your death, simply transfers ownership to the beneficiaries you name in the trust. In many cases, the whole process takes only a few weeks, and there are no lawyer or court fees to pay. When all of the property has been transferred to the beneficiaries, the living trust ceases to exist.
Property you transfer into a living trust before your death doesn’t go through probate. The successor trustee — the person you appoint to handle the trust after your death — simply transfers ownership to the beneficiaries you named in the trust. In many cases, the whole process takes only a few weeks, and there are no lawyer or court fees to pay. When all of the property has been transferred to the beneficiaries, the living trust ceases to exist.Is it expensive to create a living trust? A basic living trust isn’t much more complicated than a will, and you probably won’t need to hire a lawyer. With a good self-help book or software program, you can create a valid Declaration of Trust (the document that creates a trust) yourself. If you run into questions that a self-help publication doesn’t answer, you may need to consult a lawyer, but you probably won’t need to turn the whole job over to an expensive expert.Is it a hassle to hold property in a living trust? Making a living trust work
The person you appoint to handle the trust after your death the successor trustee – simply transfers ownership to the beneficiaries you named in the trust. Much of the time, this can be accomplished in a few weeks. When all of the property has been transferred to the beneficiaries, the living trust ceases to exist.
