Estate Planning Overview:
Traditionally an Estate Plan is the total property,
real and personal, owned by an individual prior to distribution
through a trust or will. Real property is real estate and personal
property includes everything else. Some example would be cars,
household items, and bank accounts. Estate planning distributes
the real and personal property to an individual's heirs.
Estate Planning is the process by which an individual
or family arranges the transfer of assets in anticipation of death.
An estate plan aims to preserve the maximum amount of wealth possible
for the intended beneficiaries and flexibility for the individual
prior to death. The concerns that are raised for drafters of estate
plans is federal and state tax law.
Trusts and Wills are common ways in which individuals dispose
of their wealth. Trusts, unlike wills, have the benefit of avoiding
probate, a lengthy and costly legal process that oversees the
transfer of assets. Sometimes, though, it will be useful to make
inter vivos gifts (gifts made while the donor is alive) in order
to minimize taxes.
Learn More About The Estate Plan Components:
-Tax Law
-Trusts
-Wills
-Probate
