Living Trusts

A living trust is a special kind of trust (a legal entity) that you create during your lifetime to hold your property, money, or other assets for your own benefit. After you have created your living trust, you then change the ownership of your property, assets, bank, and other financial accounts from you as an individual to your living trust. The trustee—probably you—manages your financial affairs, so you retain control over your trust as long as you choose. 

A successor trustee is named, who can step in to manage the trust when you are no longer willing or able. Then, at the end of your lifetime, your successor trustee can quickly and efficiently distribute your money and property, avoiding the potential delay and expense of a court supervised probate. 

How to designate a beneficiary through your trust, you can name Franciscan Missions as a beneficiary in one of the following ways:

• Allocating an exact amount of funds
• Allocating a percentage of the trust
• Allocating the remainder of funds, after all other bequests are distributed

 Other considerations 

• A living trust does not necessarily avoid or reduce estate taxes, and it does not eliminate the need for a will or other estate planning. There are costs and other considerations to weigh as you determine whether or not a living trust is right for you. Good and sound legal advice is essential.