{"id":49227,"date":"2020-09-05T12:31:43","date_gmt":"2020-09-05T16:31:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bellehlaw.com\/?p=49227"},"modified":"2020-09-05T12:31:43","modified_gmt":"2020-09-05T16:31:43","slug":"3-simple-ways-to-avoid-probate-costs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bellehlaw.com\/3-simple-ways-to-avoid-probate-costs\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Simple Ways to Avoid Probate Costs"},"content":{"rendered":"\"\"

The bad news: When a deceased person\u2019s estate (all of their money and property) has to go through probate (the court-supervised process of distributing a deceased person\u2019s money and property), it can be subject to a variety of costs stemming from attorneys, executors, appraisers, accountants, courts, and state law. Depending on the probate’s complexity, fees can run into tens of thousands of dollars.<\/p>

The good news: Many of these probate costs can be reduced by avoiding probate. It\u2019s really that simple.<\/p>

Here are three simple ways to reduce or eliminate costs by avoiding probate:<\/p>

  1. Name a Beneficiary. <\/strong>The probate process only applies to those accounts or other property that are in your name at your death. By naming a beneficiary, these accounts and other property will be transferred to the named individual without any court involvement. Depending on your states, common beneficiary designation assets include:\u00a0<\/li><\/ol>
    • Life insurance<\/li>
    • Annuities<\/li>
    • Retirement plans<\/li>
    • Real estate<\/li><\/ul>

      Caution:<\/em> When someone is named as a beneficiary of an account or piece of property through the use of a beneficiary designation, he or she will receive that account or property outright, which could subject the account or property to claims asserted by the beneficiary\u2019s creditors.<\/p>

      1. Create and Fund a Revocable Living Trust (RLT). <\/strong>Once the RLT has been created, and you have properly transferred the ownership of your accounts and property to the RLT by re-titling them into the name of the trust, you remain in charge of all legal decisions until your death as the trustee, and you retain the enjoyment of those accounts and property as the current beneficiary. After your death, your named successor trustee will manage and distribute your assets \u2013 according to your<\/em> wishes. A trust works well if it is properly created and funded by an experienced estate planning attorney.<\/li>
      2. Own Property Jointly. <\/strong>Probate can also be avoided if the property you own is held jointly with a right of survivorship. Similarly to a beneficiary designation, joint ownership has the effect of automatically transferring the ownership upon your death. There are several ways that you can establish joint ownership of property, such as:<\/li><\/ol>
        • Joint tenancy with right of survivorship \u2013 ownership simply transfers to other tenants upon your death;<\/li>
        • Tenancy by its entirety \u2013 a form of joint tenancy with a right of survivorship, but only for married couples in some states;<\/li>
        • Community property \u2013 property obtained during a marriage in some states;<\/li><\/ul>

          State laws play an important role here. We can help you determine which form of joint ownership, if any, is a good fit for you.\u00a0<\/p>

          Caution:<\/em> Just as with a beneficiary designation, adding a joint owner to your accounts or property can subject the accounts or property to claims asserted by the new joint owner\u2019s creditors. Moreover, this vulnerability begins the moment they are added. This means that your accounts or property could be seized by your new joint owner\u2019s creditors even while you are still alive.<\/p>

          We Have the Tools to Help You<\/strong><\/p>

          Contact our office today to schedule your appointment. As an added convenience for our clients, we are available to hold our meetings through video conferencing or by phone if you prefer. We are here to help you decide whether it makes sense to avoid probate in your particular case and, if so, the best way to do so.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          The bad news: When a deceased person\u2019s estate (all of their money and property) has to go through probate (the court-supervised process of distributing a deceased person\u2019s money and property), […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n3 Simple Ways to Avoid Probate Costs - The Belleh Law Group, PLLC<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bellehlaw.com\/3-simple-ways-to-avoid-probate-costs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"3 Simple Ways to Avoid Probate Costs - The Belleh Law Group, PLLC\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The bad news: When a deceased person\u2019s estate (all of their money and property) has to go through probate (the court-supervised process of distributing a deceased person\u2019s money and property), […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/bellehlaw.com\/3-simple-ways-to-avoid-probate-costs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Belleh Law Group, PLLC\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-09-05T16:31:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/bellehlaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/father_and_son_hug-300x199.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Owei Z. 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