If you’re like most people who have created a living (revocable) trust, you figure that once the trust is created, you’re done. You stick it in the safe deposit box for your successor trustee to open when you’re six-feet under. However, as you’re well aware, circumstances change—that’s part of life. You may have purchased another home since then, or may have tied the knot and now expecting your first child. Accordingly, the trust that you created years ago may now be outdated and in need of a refresh.
What if you put it off? After all, amending the trust costs money…and there’s no easy fool-proof self-help way to amend your trust. One of the dangers of putting it off, though, is that if your assets have changed since then, those assets may be subject to probate later on when your successor trustee goes about distributing them upon your death.
So what’s wrong with probate? Well…for one thing, it costs a lot of money. It might also subject the decedent’s estate to Medi-Cal recovery, and so on and so forth. To avoid the costly probate process, make sure your trust is updated to accurately reflect all of your assets, and how you want them to be handled after your passing. Although there’s no hard and fast rule, reviewing your trust with an experienced trust and estates lawyer every four to five years should save your loved ones a lot of headache down the road.
If you’re looking to amend your trust (or create one altogether), come talk to the experienced lawyers at L&J Legal Services. If you’re a previous client (or referred by one), let us know—we have special rates for our prior clients and for referrals.
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