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What is a spendthrift trust?

A spendthrift trust limits, by either amount or purpose, the way that your money will be given to your surviving offspring. By setting up a spendthrift trust, there will be more money to give for a longer period of time.

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How To Change a Beneficiary on a Life Insurance Policy

A life insurance beneficiary is an assigned person who will receive payment of your life insurance money in the event of your death. In most circumstances, a life insurance beneficiary change is as easy as contacting your agent and filling out a new beneficiary form. However, there are some circumstances when the process can be more involved.

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Payment of Debts after Death

Administering an estate involves collection of assets, payment of debts and estate taxes, and distributions to the beneficiaries. This article discusses payment of debts by the executor of an estate.

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Am I liable for the debts of a deceased parent or spouse?

If your parent or spouse passed away and left any debts, you may be liable for them. In the case of a spouse, it usually depends on whether you shared credit card debt, or have other shared accounts. In the case of a parent, whether or not you have to pay their debts depends on a number of factors such as whether you were a co-signer on a credit account responsible for the debt.

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Family Trusts

Family trusts are designed to provide for or distribute wealth to your surviving family members in the event of your death. Family trust is a generic term used to describe a number of different trusts that provide for minor children, widows and widowers, and surviving adult children.

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What is a pourover trust?

Not to be confused with a pour-over will, a pour over trust is simply a way to plan for incapacity. Unlike a will, the pour over trust is not administered by a court, so its contents and terms are not part of the public record. A pour over trust allows a donor to set up a trust and act as trustee, or manager, during his or her life. Assets can be added to the trust during the trustee’s lifetime. Those assets stay in the trust until the trustee’s death. Sometimes, a person will name him or herself’co-trustee’ with an investment firm or trust company.

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How To Prevent Your Family’s Assets From Being Frozen in Probate

Probate is a long process that publicly sorts through your family’s assets. On average, probate can take anywhere from nine months to two years. During the first period of probate proceedings, your family’s assets will be frozen. This means that none of these assets can be withdrawn, transferred, or sold. If you family requires money to cover living costs, they will have to petition the court for a living allowance. That allowance can be denied by the court, leaving your family without access to your assets for a period of time after you die. If this scenario makes you feel uneasy, there are legal avenues available, but the solution requires action on your part.

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When does a will have to go through probate?

When a person passes away and leaves behind a will, there are certain set procedures and formalities that must be followed in order to legally account for and distribute the estate among beneficiaries. The filing of the will in court, referred to as admitting the will into probate, is a necessary step in almost every case.

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