Under Florida law, when a person passes away with or without a Will, all personal assets become inaccessible. Accessing these assets requires court involvement, the process of which is called “Probate.” This process involves additional time, expense, and possible complications in finalizing the decedent’s personal affairs.
When you place assets into a revocable living trust, they are not part of your probate estate. As a result, the assets are distributed privately, and there is no need to involve the courts. A carefully drafted Florida revocable living trust combined with other estate planning tools will often keep a person’s entire estate out of probate.
As the term “revocable living trust” suggests, these trusts are revocable. This means that if you decide to modify the terms of your trust or get rid of it entirely, you can do so at any time for any reason. This flexibility, combined with the ability to avoid probate, makes the revocable living trust a valuable estate planning tool for those residing in Florida.
Talk to Our Florida Trusts and Estates Lawyers
Learn more about how our Naples estate planning attorneys and Marco Island estate planning attorneys can help you through the Florida legal process. Arrange a consultation by calling Woodward, Pires & Lombardo, P.A. at 239-394-5161 or send us an e-mail today.
Related post: Revocable Living vs. Irrevocable Trusts: Differences that Matter