• 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    • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?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 / Estate Planning / Save Time & Money With Living Trusts

Save Time & Money With Living Trusts

December 24, 2010

Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts Tagged With: Estate Planning, Inheritance Planning, probate, Will and Trusts

When you retain personal ownership of your property through the time of your death and use a will as your vehicle of transfer your estate is going to have to go through the process of probate. During this period the court will examine your will to determine its validity, and if it was to be contested the probate or surrogate court would be the venue. Any creditors who have claims against the estate must be notified and satisfied, and the assets in the estate must be inventoried and readied for distribution in accordance with your wishes.

Who does all of this? That would be the executor with the assistance of a probate lawyer, and both of them are entitled to a fee. The court itself also charges a fee. Plus, as you might imagine all of this is time consuming. Your heirs may not see their inheritances for months or even years in some cases as the process of probate slowly runs its course.

So there are pitfalls that go along with probate, and the way that many people choose to avoid it is through the creation of revocable living trusts. With these vehicles you place your assets into the trust and initially name yourself as both the trustee and the beneficiary. In this manner you retain control of the resources in the trust throughout your life. You then name a successor trustee, usually a bank or trust company, and a successor beneficiary.

When you pass on, the transfer of the assets in the trust is not subject to the probate process. Your beneficiary will simply receive direct distributions from the trust in the manner that you stipulated when you originally drew up the trust agreement. Many people choose to keep the principal intact and allow for distributions from the earnings of the trust only, prolonging its viability to potentially endure into the third generation.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Paul Gantner
Latest posts by Paul Gantner (see all)
  • Business Succession Planning May Be Easier than You Think - May 26, 2022
  • It Can Be Scary to Die Without an Estate Plan…the HORRORS of Intestacy - December 23, 2021
  • Neither Age Nor Health Determines Whether You Need an Estate Plan - December 21, 2021

Filed Under: Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts Tagged With: Estate Planning, Inheritance Planning, probate, Will and Trusts

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Business Succession Planning May Be Easier than You Think
Just When You Thought You Understood the 10-Year Rule, Think Again
Application of the Transfer for Value Rule to the Sale of Life Insurance
What Estate of Marion Levine Means for Life Insurance
Let’s Talk about Trusts…and Taxation
What Everyone Should Know about the New FDIC Regulations

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

© 2022 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.

Amen, Gantner & Capriano,
Your Estate Matters, LLC

Attorney Advertisement