Do You Need a Living Trust?

It depends. Over the last twenty (20) years, Living Trusts have become much more popular as an Estate Planning tool. Unfortunately, there is a great deal of misinformation about Living Trusts and they are certainly not for everyone.

Fortunately, Pennsylvania has a fairly simple probate process. For this reason, it is not necessary to take extraordinary steps to avoid the probate process in this state. Other states have a much more complex and time consuming probate process. In these states, it may be more advantageous to consider the use of a Living Trust versus a Power of Attorney and standard Last Will and Testament.

It is important to understand that the use of a Living Trust does not reduce Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax. In addition, the use of a Living Trust will generally not reduce the Court fees and/or Attorney fees associated with finalizing the Trust after your passing.

Advantages and Disadvantages of a Living Trust

It is very important to understand both the advantages and disadvantages of setting up a Living Trust, including the responsibilities of maintaining the assets in the Trust after initial set up.

Typically when a Trust is completed, it does require annual review and adjustments. If you have assets set up in a Trust, it is very important that you conduct these annual reviews to make certain that you will obtain the benefits of having the Trust.

If you are considering setting up a Living Trust, please feel free use our online contact form or call our office directly at 724-836-3300 and we will explain both the advantages and disadvantages of the same as it pertains to your particular situation.

After consideration of the facts, a sound decision can be made with respect to moving forward with the Trust or using a more simplistic approach with use of a Last Will and Testament, Power of Attorney and Living Will. Generally, the simplistic approach is much less expensive and easier to manage after implementation.