Tag Archives: assets

Asset Protection

Important Facts About Offshore Trusts

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If you are interested in protecting your assets, you may want to consider establishing an offshore trust. Offshore trusts allow you to transfer your property and assets into the trust and the trustee becomes the party responsible for managing the assets and distributing them to beneficiaries as set forth in the trust document.

Assets You Can Transfer Into an Offshore Trust

There are a wide variety of types of assets that can be held be an offshore trust, including:

  • Funds deposited in bank accounts
  • Investments
  • Real property
  • Intellectual property
  • Life insurance policies issued on your life
  • Most other types of assets

Advantages of an offshore trust

Offshore trusts offer numerous benefits. They are an effective tool for wealth protection, they offer privacy, and they can be tailored to meet the specific needs of your family. Offshore trusts are recognized in most jurisdictions and they be an important tool in estate tax planning.

In determining if an offshore trust is the best solution for you, we can review your individual circumstances and help you understand all of your options. In general, an offshore trust benefits individuals who want to protect their wealth against uncertainty in the economy or within their own family. It can help you distribute your property and assets to your heirs in a tax-efficient manner and in a way that minimizes estate taxes. An offshore trust also allows you to consolidate the ownership of assets that may be located in a variety of locations (including on different continents) in one place.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

Your Estate Planning Attorney

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When you are ready to create your estate plan, it is important to work with an attorney that you trust. Estate planning is a private matter that requires you to have confidence in your lawyer, so you should be careful in whom you choose. It can be helpful to obtain referrals from family and friends. You should also contact your local bar association to further investigate the attorney’s qualifications.

Once you have scheduled your initial consultation with your attorney, you should take steps to prepare for the appointment. This includes writing down all of your questions and organizing your records. Additionally, you should start preparing to answer the questions your attorney is likely to ask you, including:

  • What is your approximate net worth?
  • Who do you want to appoint as the personal representative or trustee of your estate?
  • What are your most significant assets (real property, businesses, investments, etc.)?
  • Who will you name as your beneficiaries?
  • Are you going to specifically disinherit anyone?
  • Who will you appoint as the guardian of your minor children?
  • Is there any information about your family or the property you own that will impact the way your estate planning should be handled (such as a special needs child)?

If you are prepared to answer the above questions, it will help your estate planning lawyer get started on creating an estate plan that will effectively meet all of your needs and goals. Contact us today to schedule your initial consultation with an estate planning you can trust.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Asset Protection, Estate Planning

Credit Shelter Trusts

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Many people are surprised to learn that there are a variety of different types of trusts that can be used in estate planning. One type of trust is called the “Credit Shelter Trust,” which is also sometimes referred to as a bypass or family trust. This type of trust permits two parties (typically spouses) to divide their assets between two trusts.

For 2015, the first $5.43 million of an estate is exempt from federal estate taxes. With a Credit Shelter Trust, a married couple could potentially have no estate tax with an estate that is less than $10.86 million. This could potentially double that portion of your children’s inheritance by avoiding estate taxes. Additionally, once assets are put into a Credit Shelter Trust, they are free from estate tax. This is true even if the value of the assets increase. Therefore, if the surviving spouse invests the trust assets wisely and doesn’t need the assets for support, your children’s inheritance can continue to grow, free of any estate tax. As we often tell clients (just to make a point), the Credit Shelter Trust could grow to a BILLION DOLLARS and no estate tax will be paid when they receive their inheritance.

The Credit Shelter Trust also protects your children in the event the surviving spouse remarries. Typically the trust will contain provisions that prohibit its use for anyone except your spouse and your children or grandchildren.

There is another advantage that most people fail to consider. When a Credit Shelter Trust is created, it protects the assets of the trust from the creditors of a surviving spouse. In other words, no matter what happens to the surviving spouse, the nest egg represented by the amount set aside in the Credit Shelter Trust is protected from claims for the life of the surviving spouse.

Typically, when the first spouse dies, the surviving spouse is left a certain amount in trust for their benefit (not to exceed the current federal estate-tax exemption). The remainder of the estate passes to the surviving spouse tax-free through a marital trust or outright bequest (with any remainder to pass to your children upon the death of the surviving spouse). The Internal Revenue Code does not consider the assets in the Credit Shelter Trust as included in the surviving spouse’s estate for the purpose of calculating estate taxes. The theory is that the surviving spouse did not have full ownership of the assets held by the Credit Shelter Trust. The beauty is that they have the benefits and use of the Credit Shelter Trust, but it is asset protected and protected from the estate tax.

It should also be mentioned that the estate tax is portable between the spouses. In other words, if the first spouse to die does not use all of his or her $5.43 million exemption, the surviving spouse’s estate can take advantage of it. The surviving spouse must make this election on the first spouse’s estate tax return.

In short, the Credit Shelter Trust is beneficial if you want to protect your surviving spouse financially. This type of trust provides your spouse with a source of income if needed, while also protecting him or her from creditors, and protecting your children from loss of inheritance. It’s an excellent planning tool.

To learn more about how a trust can benefit your family, call us today. The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

Should you Use an Online Estate Auction?

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Sadly, when a loved one passes away, it is common for family members to start fighting over the property the deceased left behind. Greed can make people do and say things they otherwise would not do or say. While we all hope our family members will be able to resolve disputes on their own, that often is not the case, especially if you leave a substantial estate with numerous assets to be distributed. In fact, leaving a Will that instructs your loved ones to divide your property in equal shares can also cause issues. How do you equally divide a family heirloom that all of the relatives want?

Because it is often impossible to divide your belongings equally, your loved ones can turn against each other quickly. If you don’t know how to divide your assets in your estate plan, one option for making sure your relatives all have the opportunity to inherit the treasures they want, you can leave instructions to conduct an online auction. For example, there are websites that allow your estate manager to take pictures of the estate assets and place them for sale on a website auction. Using this type of strategy for distributing your assets can ensure that each relative has an equal opportunity to inherit the items they want from your estate. It is an equitable process because each participant is given an equal number of points and whoever bids the most points on an item will “win” it. Your relatives will spend their allotted points on the items that mean the most to them. Once the auction is over, the estate manager can distribute the property of the individuals who won the items.

We have used this same process for many years without the internet, but the internet has made this a much more efficient process.

While the above may seem like an unusual way to distribute your estate, it can be effective for assisting families in avoiding conflict. There is a lot of flexibility in creating an estate plan. Whatever your circumstances, we can help you find a solution that helps not only protects your plan, but keeps the peace.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

Can Probate be a Good Thing?

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You have probably heard that you should avoid probate at all costs. Generally speaking, this is good advice. The probate process can be time-consuming and expensive. It also puts your private affairs out into the public. However, there are certain circumstances where allowing a portion of your estate to go through probate can be helpful.

If there are numerous creditors with claims against the deceased’s estate, probate can be beneficial. The probate process allows you to set a strict deadline for creditors to assert their claims against assets being passed through the deceased’s Will. All creditors who fail to meet the deadline may be barred from seeking to recover the debt owed to them.

If you have created a trust, the assets transferred into the trust do not go through probate. As a result, privacy is maintained. That does not mean creditors can be avoided, but it does create hurdles for them to overcome. Further, if you have a trust, even if some assets have to pass through probate, with a “pour-over Will“, the probate process is much less involved. Without question, trust administration is faster than probate, with less restrictions.

You may want to consider creating a trust to protect the majority of your property, while also leaving certain assets to pass through the Will and through probate. This strategy requires significant planning if you are considering asset protection and avoidance of creditor claims. The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

The Importance of Medicaid Planning

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If you are thinking about your “golden years” and you are worried about ending up in a nursing home and how you will pay for it, it is time to begin Medicaid planning. We can help you create a strategy to protect your assets and to reduce the financial strain of nursing home care. Let us help you obtain the peace of mind knowing that your medical needs are going to be met without depleting your entire estate.

There are a variety of ways people pay for long-term care, including private funds, insurance, veteran’s benefits, Medicaid and Medicare. Individuals can benefit from being qualified for Medicaid because it pays all the expenses associated with qualified nursing homes, assisted living and other long-term care facilities. However, to qualify for Medicaid, you must meet strict requirements, including diminishing most of your financial assets. Because Medicaid pays less than private care, the quality of care may differ for you as an individual. You should carefully consider whether Medicaid eligibility is critical for your estate.

With careful planning, we can legally restructure your assets so you are eligible for Medicaid benefits. Some of the strategies we use include:

  • Gifting assets and money to loved ones (be careful of this. Done improperly, you could deplete your assets and be ineligible for Medicaid!)
  • Transferring property to an irrevocable trust
  • Creating a special needs trust for the benefit of a child with disabilities
  • Establishing a testamentary trust to provide for your surviving spouse
  • Buying annuities
  • Decreasing your wealth by paying your mortgage loan, repairing your home, buying a vehicle and prepaying funeral expenses

The most effective means for protecting your assets is to begin your Medicaid planning as soon as possible. Being proactive allows you to not only ensure you qualify for benefits, but also helps you protect your property and your loved ones. If you plan early, you can avoid Medicaid’s look-back period. It is legal to transfer property in order to qualify for Medicaid, but you want to accomplish this at least five years prior to applying for the benefits. Otherwise, you could incur costly penalties and jeopardize your eligibility.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

Funding a Revocable Trust

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You have probably heard that it is smart to create an estate plan that includes a trust. Having a revocable trust provides a way to avoid probate, but only if the trust is “funded.” In other words, the trust only protects the property that it holds when you die. Property that is not owned by the trust may be subject to the probate process, or worse, it passes outside of the documents you provided because of beneficiary designations.

Failure to properly fund your trust will defeat the purpose of creating it. Thus, as soon as your revocable trust is created, you should start transferring your assets to the trust. We can provide you guidance in how to accomplish this task. For real property, you will need to execute a deed that transfers the property from your individual name to your name as the trustee of the trust. We typically prepare deeds for real property at the same time we execute your trust. Other assets such as your bank accounts and brokerage accounts should also be transferred in the same way. We provide documents to you that give clear instructions to the account holders.

It is also important to remember that any assets or property that is acquired after the revocable trust has been created should be titled in your capacity as the trustee of the trust, not in your individual name. Also, your assets that are currently held jointly with another party or that have a beneficiary designation should be transferred to or payable at death to the revocable trust. If they aren’t, your estate plan has a hole and becomes unpredictable. There are a few exceptions to this rule, but your estate planning attorney should help you figure out the best approach for you.

If you are interested in learning more about creating a revocable trust or you need assistance with funding your trust, contact us for an initial consultation.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Estate Planning

Is Probate Ever a Good Thing?

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When it comes to probate, you typically are advised to avoid it if at all possible. This is true as a general rule because the probate process can be time-consuming, expensive and it opens your private matters up to the public. However, there are certain situations when it may be beneficial to allow some of your estate to go through probate.

If the estate has a large number of creditors, a probate may be helpful. When a probate case is filed, creditors are then given notice of the filing for probate and a deadline for asserting their claims against the estate. Thus, if the deceased owed large sums of money at the time of his or her death, it can be beneficial to have a time limit for creditors to file their claims. If a creditor fails to properly assert a claim, it can be barred from asserting its rights to collect the debt at a later date.

In comparison, if you have placed your assets into a trust to avoid the probate procedure, creditors are not limited by the probate law and the deadlines provided therein. However, in Utah there is a method provided for Trusts to do a similar procedure to limit claims against the decedent’s trust. With proper planning, it is possible to take advantage of a trust while also using the probate process for protection. This strategy requires advance planning and the assistance of an experienced estate planning attorney. Once the creditor’s notices are finished, your estate should be secure. Your family has the comfort of knowing that the remaining property held is protected from future claims of your creditors.

The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.

Asset Protection

Asset Protection with Generation-Skipping Trusts

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Couple giving two young children piggyback rides smilingIf you have worked hard all your life to accumulate your wealth, whether it is a small amount or a significant amount, it is important to protect your assets. Estate planning is a critical element of asset protection efforts. In order for estate planning to be effective, you should try to identify all of the potential “threats” to your assets. Common examples include taxes, the expenses associated with probate actions, former spouses, and creditors.

There are numerous ways we can help you avoid certain threats that could negatively impact or deplete your assets. One option to consider is placing your assets into a generation-skipping trust. As indicated by the name, you skip a generation when naming beneficiaries. In other words, you name your grandchildren as the final beneficiaries instead of your children. This may sound shocking, but there is a twist to this arrangement. Your children can be life beneficiaries, with the Trustee having the discretion to distribute income or principal of the trust to your children during their lifetime.

As a result, because your children do not own or have the right to assets in the trust, the assets are not available to attack by their creditors. The remaining trust assets left after your children die are transferred to your grandchildren. In sum, a generation-skipping trust impacts ownership, not the benefits received or the ability to use trust assets.

The generation skipping type of trust benefits your children and grandchildren, but not necessarily you as the Grantor. If you are working to protect assets for your benefit, there are other strategies such as use of Family Limited Liability Companies (“FLLC”), or Domestic Asset Protection Trusts, or even more complicated arrangements using Off-Shore Trust arrangements.

Generation skipping trusts are just one example of how you can protect your assets. Let us review your individual circumstances and help you understand your options for asset protection and tax advantages for your family. The Astill Law Office has provided high quality legal services for over 30 years. We specialize in wills, trusts, estate planning, and asset protection. If you have any questions about creating a Trust, Will, or estate planning in general, contact The Astill Law Office at 801-438-8698.