Will or trust? Which is right for me?

So you’ve decided to make an estate plan: now, it’s time for you to decide if your plan will center around a will or a trust. Wills and trusts are the two main vehicles for a tailored estate plan, and either one will do the job of conveying your wishes and distributing your assets to your desired heirs. The choice typically comes down to several other factors surrounding your estate planning goals, the most important of which is usually whether the client wants to avoid probate proceedings.

Remember, an estate usually goes through a state’s probate proceedings unless the testator (the now-deceased owner of the property) has planned for his assets to pass outside of probate. The most common way to avoid probate is to prepare a living trust with instructions for how property in the trust should be inherited. Probate courts take a state-mandated fee out of each estate they process, which can quickly amount to tens of thousands of dollars, not including any associated attorneys’ fees. For this reason, many clients find it more cost-effective to prepare a trust to avoid probate fees entirely. Wills alone do not allow assets to pass outside of probate.

Depending on your specific situation, there may be other factors that influence your decision on whether a will or trust is best suited for you. Though the decision-making process is different for each individual, we find that most clients prefer the following documents in these situations:

Most clients prefer to use a trust because it avoids probate and provides greater flexibility in how and when your beneficiaries receive their inheritances. The more complex your estate or estate planning goals, the more likely it is that a trust will best suit your needs. Please feel free to contact us if you would like further consultation on whether a will or trust is right for you.