Articles Tagged with Inheritance Planning

Dogs whisperCreating a tool to keep a trust secret from an heir may be considered a "first world" problem, but it is a problem nonetheless. Wealthy families who value their accomplishments are concerned that heirs who know that they are going to receive large amounts of wealth through a trust may not be motivated to establish their own careers or take their studies seriously.

One way to help avoid this is to create a trust that does not give anything to the beneficiaries until they reach an age where they will have settled into their adult lives. However, there still might be a fear that if a beneficiary knows that a large inheritance is eventually coming through the trust, they will not be as motivated to earn their own money as they otherwise would be.

A recent article by Financial Planning, "How Silent Trusts Can Help Your Clients," discusses a type of trust that can be used to keep beneficiaries in the dark about their trusts.

Couple holding handsWhen most people think of wills and estate plans, they usually think about the primary function of distributing assets to children. The natural next thought is, if they have no children, then they don't need a will. But estate plans, and especially wills, actually serve a number of important purposes, only one of which is conveying assets to children.

As U.S. News & World Report points out in, "No Kids? You Still Need an Estate Plan," people without children need, at the very least, to have a will if they want to have a say in who gets their assets after they pass away.

People who pass away without a will are said to have died intestate. Every state has a law that determines who gets the assets of people who die intestate. The laws all operate similarly, in that the assets are given to the person's closest living relatives.

Hand with cashUltimately, the decision about whether to leave your children money now or later depends entirely on your financial and family circumstances.

Deciding whether or not to leave an inheritance is only part of the equation. When should you give it – now or later?

Forbes recently tackled this difficult issue a short while ago in an article titled “Should I Gift Money To My Children Now Or Later?

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