• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
  • Services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veterans Benefits
  • Seminars
  • Areas We Serve
    • Ballwin
    • Chesterfield
    • Clayton
    • Creve Couer
    • Des Peres
    • Edwardsville
    • Fenton
    • Glen Carbon
    • Glendale
    • Kirkwood
    • Maryland Heights
    • Oakland
    • Sappington
    • St. Louis
    • Sunset Hills
    • Valley Park
    • Webster Groves
  • Resources
    • Asset Protection Worksheet
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Chesterfield Elder Law
      • Fenton Elder Law
      • Kirkwood Elder Law
      • Sunset Hills Elder Law
      • St. Louis Elder Law
      • St. Peters Elder Law
      • Webster Groves Elder Law
    • FREE Estate Planning Seminars
    • FREE Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Estate Planning
      • Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Trust Administration & Probate
    • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
    • Medicaid Resources
    • Multimedia
    • Newsletters
    • Presentations
    • Pre Consultation Form
    • Probate Checklist
    • Probate Resources
    • Retirement Planning Checklist
    • Special Reports
      • Advanced Estate Planning
      • Basic Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning For Niches
      • Trust Administration
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

Amen, Gantner & Capriano | Your Estate Matters, L.L.C.

St. Louis Estate Planning & Elder Law Attorneys

Logo
CONNECT WITH US TODAY (314) 966-8077
ATTEND A FREE WEBINAR
Home / Trusts / Why Keep Assets in a Trust Instead of Gifting Them Outright?

Why Keep Assets in a Trust Instead of Gifting Them Outright?

January 18, 2016

Trusts

Keep Assets in a TrustWhen the subject of estate planning comes up you may hear people discussing a trust they created as part of their plan. Your estate planning attorney may also suggest that you use a trust agreement in your own estate plan. If you have never made use of a trust agreement before you likely have a number of important questions. For starters, you probably want to know why you should put assets in a trust instead of gift them in a Will. There are actually several reasons why gifting assets through a trust often makes more sense than gifting those same assets in your Last Will and Testament. Although your reasons for using a trust in lieu of your Will to pass down assets will be as unique and individual as you are, some of the most common reasons include probate avoidance, retained control over estate assets, tax benefits, and assets protection.

Without a doubt, probate avoidance is among the most common reasons for using a trust in lieu of a Will to pass down assets. Probate is the legal process that follows the death of an individual. The purpose of probate is to ensure that all of the decedent’s assets are identified, located, valued, and eventually passed down to the intended beneficiaries or legal heirs. Probate can take months, even year, to complete and can cost the estate a significant amount of money. Assets in a trust, however, do not have to go through the probate process, making them available to beneficiaries much sooner and saving the estate money.

The desire to retain control over estate assets is another common reason for using a trust instead of a Will to pass down assets. When you gift assets using your Will you lose all control over the asset after it is transferred to the beneficiary. With a trust, however, you can effectively retain a certain degree of control over the asset after it has changed hands and even after your own death. The trust terms can be used to decide things such as when the beneficiary can receive distributions from the trust and how much those distributions will be (including the use of staggered distributions as the beneficiary ages). You can even use trust terms to decide how the trust assets can be used. For example, you might limit the assets to being used only for educational purposes.

The right type of trust can also help shelter estate assets from federal gift and estate taxes. Furthermore, appreciable assets, when transferred into a properly drafted trust can grow in value without incurring additional tax liabilities. Finally, assets held by the right type of trust are also protected from creditors of both the estate and the beneficiaries as well as being protected from spendthrift beneficiaries themselves.

If you have additional questions regarding the use of a trust in lieu of a Last Will and Testament to pass down estate assets, contact the experienced Missouri estate planning attorneys at Amen, Gantner & Capriano, Your Estate Matters, LLC by calling (314) 966-8077 to schedule an appointment.

 

 

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Jacquelynn Capriano
Latest posts by Jacquelynn Capriano (see all)
  • The Importance of Having an Estate Plan - February 15, 2023
  • Tis the Season for Giving - February 8, 2023
  • Tax Planning for 2023 - February 1, 2023

Filed Under: Trusts

Other Articles You May Find Useful

administrator of a trust
What Is an Administrator of the Trust?
St. Louis living trust lawyers
5 Reasons to Include a Living Trust in Your Estate Plan
Kirkwood estate planning lawyers
Kirkwood Estate Planning Lawyers Explain How to Protect Your Beloved Pet
Kirkwood living trust lawyer
Kirkwood Living Trust Lawyer Explains Trust Administration
Kirkwood Living Trust Attorneys
Kirkwood Living Trust Attorneys — How Does a Living Trust Work?
Living trust lawyer
How Can a Living Trust Lawyer Help Me?

Primary Sidebar

Download our free Estate Planning Worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • youtube

Blog Subscription

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Where We Are

Amen, Gantner & Capriano
10733 Sunset Office Drive, Suite 425
St. Louis, MO 63127

See Larger MapGet directions

Office Hours

Monday8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:30 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Map

map for Amen, Gantner & Capriano Your Estate Matters office
  • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
  • About The American Academy
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Contact Us

Footer

Connect to us

  • Facebook
  • twitter
  • linkedin
  • youtube
footer-logo

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.

Amen, Gantner & Capriano,
Your Estate Matters, LLC

Attorney Advertisement