3 Reasons to Seriously Consider Using a Living Trust to Pass an Inheritance to Your Family

This article is intended for educational purposes only and is not legal advice. For guidance on your personal situation, please contact a lawyer.

If you have a family, you may be inclined to take certain steps to protect them financially. One of those might be buying life insurance. Another might involve coming up with a plan to pass your assets on to your heirs as smoothly as possible.

To that end, you may want to consider using a living trust instead of simply writing a will. Here are a few reasons why a living trust might be a great solution for you.

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1. You want to maintain control of your assets while you're still alive

Moving assets into a living trust allows you to pass them on to your loved ones seamlessly. The trust becomes the owner of the assets you place in it, but you as the grantor have control of it, so you're also allowed to change your mind along the way about how those assets are managed, and who the beneficiaries should be, among other things. The beauty of a living trust is that you maintain control of your assets and the trust itself while you're still alive, so you're not locked into the decisions you make at any specific point in time.

2. You want to spare your loved ones from going through probate

When you use a will to pass along your assets, your heirs are put through a notoriously painful process called probate, which is a court system's way of proving that will's validity. That could result in it taking longer for your heirs to inherit the assets you're passing on. It could also be a stressful thing for them to deal with at a time when they're also trying to process their grief. A living trust isn't subject to probate, so your loved ones are spared that ordeal.

3. You value your privacy -- and that of your family

When a will is subject to probate, it becomes a matter of public record. To put it another way, if you leave $2 million to your heirs in a will, other people have the potential to find out about that. So if you're someone who values your privacy and wants to extend that privacy to your loved ones, then a living trust may be a better bet.

One reason you may not want a living trust

At this point, a living trust is probably sounding like a pretty decent alternative to writing a will and calling it a day. But one thing you should know is that setting up a living trust can be more costly and complex than crafting a standard will. So you'll need to weigh that drawback against the benefits. But if you're looking to pass on a substantial amount of money, then it may be more than worth the time and expense.

Even if you have modest assets, a living trust could still be a better solution for you than a regular will. Living trusts aren't just for the wealthy.

Either way, if you're not sure what to do (which is completely understandable), your best bet would be to consult an attorney who focuses on estate planning . They should be able to walk you through the pros and cons of a living trust versus a will. And if you decide to move forward with a living trust, they should be able to help put one in place so you get the peace of mind you deserve.

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