Protecting Your Children's Future with a Living Trust
“You can’t give that to your mother for a Christmas present!” teased my daughter’s college roommate. I was warned before opening. After a recent conversation about preparing a will or trust, my daughter was prompted to buy me Living Trusts for Everyone-Why a Will Is Not the Way to Avoid Probate, Protect Heirs, and Settle Estates. It was actually a great gift and we had a good laugh when I opened it!
The author, Ronald Farrington Sharp, began practicing law in 1975. He has decades of experience and has prepared more than three thousand trusts and estate plans. I consumed the book over the next two days. The book helped to establish a foundation for understanding the topic and equip me with enough knowledge to ask good questions when visiting an attorney.
Unfortunately, like many people, my husband and I at present, do not have a legal will or trust. Whenever we travel, I work feverishly to “get things in order” and leave written instructions with my children or friend with the latest changes to our wishes, notarized. It has provided some peace of mind and a hope that the document would suffice in protecting our children's future in the event of an emergency. Truth is, it would not.
This book establishes the distinctions between a will and a trust, and makes a clear case for having a living trust. The author uses simple language, examples of client experiences, and honest analysis in explaining how trusts work and the reason most of us need one. According to Sharp (2017), the primary reason people have a will is to avoid the time and cost of probate. However, the court cost involved in probate is minimal compared to the hourly rate the attorney receives for his services. Sharp (2017) warns against abuse by some lawyers in administrating wills.
A living trust on the other hand, is often a flat fee, paid to the attorney when it is established. Thereafter, it can be managed by you or reviewed by an attorney at your request. A pour-over will can be included in the estate plan to catch the assets that may not have been placed in the trust. Naming the guardian for your minor children can also be placed in the pour-over will. Read six surprising facts about a living revocable trust.
Although there are many reason for protecting your assets through estate planning, the most compelling as a parent, is to ensure that your children are taken care of in the event of your untimely death. Sharp (2017) makes the claim that “you must have a trust if” you have minor children or disabled beneficiaries to ensure they receive the inheritance at the proper time. For some children, receiving a large sum of money at 18 would be detrimental. An estate plan with a trust and pour-over will, allows you to determine when someone will inherit and how often the inheritance is paid out.
Another important issue for parents, is naming the guardian for their minor children. Some parents may want their children raised by a friend who shares their faith, rather than a family member. Documenting those wishes will provide direction and assurance to those settling your affairs, if needed. Estate planning is essential if you want your assets to benefit certain individuals or ministries. Without a trust or will, the court determines who will receive your investments, bank account, house, car, and retirement funds, and who will raise your children. Usually, assets are divided equally between children or closest family members. The managing of the estate is done by a court appointed individual and comes with a price tag. Additionally, if you have minor children, the execution of the estate can span decades.
Protect your children’s future with a living trust. Don’t put estate planning off any longer. The New Year is upon us. Time to clean, reorganize, and check items off your to do list. One item on my list is creating a living trust. I recommend you read this book 
if you do not have estate plans. Perhaps it will motivate you, like me, to make an appointment to see an attorney who specializes in estate planning and get it done!
Sharp, R. F. (2017). Living trusts for everyone: Why a will is not the way to avoid probate, protect heirs and settle estates. New York, NY: Allworth Press