What other probate avoiding techniques are there in addition to revocable living trusts?
Transcript
It’s a great question. Trusts are an alternative to probate. A lot of people like them, but I think a better choice if you can use it whenever possible is to name beneficiaries on accounts. Assets that have beneficiaries will be immediately distributed to the beneficiaries without any creditor claims, without any attorney involvement, without any court involvement, typically within matter of a month or even less than a month. That’s a great way to distribute assets if the distribution is just a simple outright distribution to your children, for example. Just name them as beneficiaries on the account.
Another alternative that I like to use for real estate is a Lady Bird deed. A Lady Bird deed allows you to retain the use of the property as long as you’re alive and at death you’ve already recorded a deed that has the remainder interest in your children. All they have to do is record a couple of documents and they own the property free and clear. It’s not subject to probate, it’s very quick, it’s very simple.