How Can You Benefit From a Nevada Trust?
When implementing an estate plan, a Nevada living trust is often the foundation. Living trusts in Nevada, like other states, are used to avoid probate, reduce federal estate taxes, protect beneficiaries from creditors and often from themselves, as well as many other uses.
Establishing a living trust allows you retain control of the trust assets during your lifetime and after your death. A trust is an extremely flexible tool in the estate planning attorney’s toolbox.
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Avoiding Probate
A revocable living trust is a legal document that is a foundational estate planning tool. You fund the trust by transferring ownership of assets to the trust during your lifetime.
Assets held in a properly funded trust do not pass through the probate process upon your death, which can be long and expensive. The trust does not die when you do, so the successor trustee can continue to manage the trust pursuant to the terms of the trust document after you pass away, without probate court involvement.
Distribution of Assets
Setting up a living trust offers you the opportunity to control the distribution of assets to beneficiaries during your lifetime and after death. Control of your assets in a trust is by the trustee of the trust, who will make investment decisions and make distributions of the trust’s assets to beneficiaries as directed by the terms of the trust.
Estate Taxes
For married couples, trusts can be used to effectively double the federal estate tax exemption, thereby allowing you to pass twice as much to your heirs without having to pay the estate tax.
Asset Protection
While revocable living trusts do not protect assets from the trustor’s creditors, a properly drafted trust will provide asset protection for the trustor’s beneficiaries. Protecting assets from a beneficiary’s potential creditors or future ex-spouse is appealing to most people creating trusts.
Can the Living Trusts be changed?
An important feature of the revocable trust is that it can grow and evolve with you. Life is always changing and as circumstances change, the trust may be amended to meet those changes.
Some trusts are irrevocable and generally may not be amended. However, even irrevocable trusts in Nevada may be amended if certain requirements are met using a process called “decanting.”
What Types of Trusts Are There?
When it comes to estate planning options, trusts come in many different shapes and sizes. In addition to the typical revocable living trust, some of the other types of trusts used in estate planning include the following:
Minors Trusts
Trusts are often used to hold assets specifically designed to provide for a child or grandchild’s education or other needs.
Charitable Trusts
Charitable Remainder Trusts and Charitable Lead Trusts are commonly used estate tax planning tools when you have charitable intent and a desire to reduce taxes.
Defective Trusts
While not really “defective,” they are irrevocable grantor trusts that are often used as part of an estate freeze technique to reduce estate taxes.
Asset Protection Trusts
Whether an offshore asset protection trust or a Nevada asset protection trust, such a trust is designed to protect a nest egg of asset from future, unknown creditors. In order to protect assets from your own creditors, you may want to consider a Nevada asset protection trust.
The key is using the right type of trust, whether a revocable living trust or an irrevocable trust, in the right situation. Counseling with an experienced Nevada trust attorney to guide you through the numerous options is important.
What Additional Documents are Needed?
When you create a trust, there are several other documents deeded to create a comprehensive estate plan. These include a last will and testament, a power of attorney for health care decisions, and a durable power of attorney for asset management.
How Much does a Trust Cost?
A revocable living trust in Nevada can cost from $2,500 to $4,500 along with all of the other documents needed for a comprehensive plan. The attorney fees vary depending upon the complexity of your estate and the estate planning strategies being used.
To create a living trust it is recommended that you consult with an experienced estate planning attorney.
Call to schedule your trust consultation. (702) 894-4110