Misconceptions about Wills and Trusts often create confusion.
TCPalm recently discussed common misconceptions surrounding Wills and Trusts in "Common Misconceptions about Wills and Trusts."
Among the many misconceptions are:
- 1. If your Estate is not large enough to pay Estate Taxes, then you do not need to have a Will or Trust. This is a major falsehood since there are many non-tax related reasons to have a Will or Trust. Among other things, if you do not have a Will, then all of your property will be distributed according to statutory rules instead of how you might have preferred it to be distributed.
- 2. You lose the ability to have any control over your assets by putting them in a Revocable Living Trust . This is also not true. If you are the trustee of your Revocable Trust and the Trust is drafted properly, then you will still be able to do whatever you want with your assets during your lifetime.
- 3. You have to file a separate tax return for your Revocable Trust. Not true, again. As long as your Trust is properly drafted, a Revocable Trust will not be considered a separate legal entity during your lifetime and you will not need to file a separate tax return for it.
An estate planning attorney can guide you through the world of Wills and Trusts and help you put together an estate plan that achieves your goals and addresses your particular circumstances.
Reference: TCPalm (Dec. 2, 2016) "Common misconceptions about wills and trusts."
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