Trusts provide flexibility in future planning

Trusts have helped many people in South Carolina plan for the future. By creating a trust, people can develop a plan that not only cares for their assets at the present time but can distribute them after death. Trusts give people much greater levels of control and flexibility in determining how their assets will be handled after they pass away. They allow people to make plans for legacies of generational wealth or create a mechanism for charitable giving and philanthropy. In addition, people who create trusts have much higher levels of privacy, as they are not considered public documents and do not go through the probate process.

Trusts also provide a more secure, trustworthy method of passing assets on to minor children. By naming a trustee, parents can ensure that their children have access to funds but will not receive their full inheritance until they are able to handle it. They may also be able to create conditions to give people access to these funds. They can also be very important for family members of people with special needs. Certain types of trusts allow people to pass on assets without hurting their loved ones’ eligibility for key government programs.

At the same time, it is important to ensure that a trust is properly funded. Many trusts fail because the creator never funded them with all of their assets. A pour-over will, which ensures that assets go to the trust upon the testator’s death, can be an important tool to help people ensure that their plans for the future remain intact.

People who are thinking about the future can make use of wills, trusts and other documents to implement their plans. An estate planning attorney can help people execute a comprehensive vision to distribute their assets.