A guide to QTIP trusts in California

If you are happily married and have substantial wealth in California that could be subject to federal taxes, you may want to consider a QTIP trust for your partner. Here’s what it does. Understanding a QTIP trust and how it works From the basics, trusts are legal arrangements that allow people to transfer their assets...

How to use unit investment trusts (UITs)

The world of trusts in the state of California is a particularly complex one. It often involves dozens of potential considerations and a number of trade-offs. Conflicts over trusts and decisions regarding their implementation can take years. Unit investment trusts (UITs) are one of the many trust types that can be particularly helpful in simplifying...

How does a bypass trust work?

Planning your estate in California is the best way to ensure the smooth transition of your assets. You want to ensure that your surviving spouse and children are cared for. You also want to preserve as much of your holdings as possible. There are several methods that you can adopt if you are married. One...

California wills vs. trusts: What’s the difference?

In California, planning your estate involves important decisions about the best tools to accomplish your objectives. Commonly used tools like wills and trusts govern how your assets get distributed to your beneficiaries, and it is essential that you understand the features of each and how they apply to your case. The following points can highlight...

Defining a spendthrift trust and its benefits

In California, a spendthrift trust is an estate planning tool to help regulate your beneficiaries’ access to the assets or funds held within a trust. By choosing this type of trust, you can maintain control over how your assets get distributed while ensuring that your loved ones have ongoing support. A spendthrift trust has some...

How do life insurance trusts work in California?

California residents setting up their estate plans might be looking into setting up a trust for their loved ones. Trusts give a certain amount of protection from probate and estate taxes and make it easy to pass along assets. Many California residents might turn to a life insurance trust – also known as an Irrevocable...

What are some of the benefits of a trust?

Establishing an estate plan is a good way to be proactive for your California beneficiaries and their future. A trust is one of the most important legal tools you can use. These are some of the major benefits of such a document. Avoiding probate Although having a valid last will and testament as part of...

Special needs trust: an effective estate planning tool

Your child has cerebral palsy and often needs around-the-clock care. As loving parents, you and your spouse have managed this task from day one. The care, the adventures and the memories continue. For all those years, this has been the norm, your world and your child’s world. However, you understand that these sequences cannot continue...

Special needs trusts are a useful estate planning tool

Many people in Redding and other parts of Northern California probably have someone in their family with special needs due to some sort of disability, illness or injury. These special needs can include the need for medical care and other treatments. In some cases, the person with special needs may require assistance going through daily...

What is a spendthrift trust?

While many people think of trusts as a way to avoid probate, there are actually a number of ways by which trusts can benefit a Redding, California resident who is trying to formulate an effective estate plan. For instance, trusts can help with tax-related issues, issues involving eligibility for benefits and the like. They also...

Why it’s important to avoid trust funding missteps

Trusts can be tailored to help with a wide range of estate planning goals. However, there are certain mistakes that could compromise this estate planning tool’s ability to serve its intended purposes. One type of error that can lead to this are missteps in setting up a trust. What terms a trust contains when it...