If you’re looking for an experienced attorney in NY 10012 to help you create your wills and trusts, give us a call.
Our estate planning attorneys have served the five boroughs of New York for years and know how best to design your wills and trusts to offer you the best benefits. Whether you require tax savings, probate minimization or avoidance, or asset protection, we will ensure your estate planning documents are strategically designed to perform these objectives.
Give us a call to get assistance from a wills and trusts attorney near you 10012.
Last Will and Testament for asset transfer
A last will and testament, simply called a will, is a basic estate planning document on which you express your wishes concerning how you want your assets distributed when you pass away.
While you can download will templates online, it is important you use only a New York will if you live in New York. There are also several things to consider when drafting your will. It’s not all about allocating assets to beneficiaries. If you own property in multiple states, own a complex estate, are in a blended family, or look to avoid taxes, there are strategies an experienced estate planning lawyer in New York will employ to help you achieve your goals.
If you find yourself in any of the following situations, it’s best to have an experienced lawyer customize your will:
- You have a large estate that’s subject to huge estate taxes
- You have minors (children below 18 cannot inherit under New York laws)
- You wish to shield your assets from liens, nursing home costs, etc, while qualifying for Medicaid
- You have a child with special needs
- You have property in multiple states
- You have complexly owned assets and are unsure how they will pass on your death.
- You are in a blended family and need assurance that your own kids from the previous marriage get a share in your inheritance when you pass away
- Incapacity can happen at anytime, and we need to plan for your care and asset management
- Your debts are heavy and would drain your estate significantly if they are to be paid
Trusts
While every will is subject to probate, a complex and expensive court process that takes place after you pass away, trusts avoid this process. Your beneficiaries can therefore inherit quickly and cost-effectively if you use a living trust to bequeath assets to them.
Since trusts are complex estate planning instruments, it’s crucial you seek assistance from an estate planning lawyer near you.
There are different kinds of trusts, including:
- Revocable trust (also called a living trust or revocable living trust)
- Irrevocable trust
- Special needs trust (or supplemental needs trust)
- Charity trust
- Pooled income trust
Notably, our estate planning lawyers will always assess your situation to determine what kind of trust to establish as each type comes with its unique benefits.
Your Do-it-yourself wills and trusts may be inadequate
It is true that you can get New York estate documents online, print, and fill them out yourself. But there are problems with using these documents yourself:
- Documents you get online are stereotypical, typically handling only one estate.
- You would not have anyone to advise or you on what to do and explain things you don’t understand.
- You may make mistakes which may prove costly to amend.
- You may makes mistakes in your will no one would know about until you pass away. Then there would no longer be any chance to rectify things.
What assets can you pass with your will in New York, NY?
Only assets held in your name only can go in your will. These assets are called probate assets.
Your real property jointly owned with your spouse, properties titled in a trust, life insurance proceeds and transfer-on-death accounts (all of these already have beneficiaries named in the documents) cannot go in a will because they already have their own designated beneficiaries.
Why do I have to hire a Wills and Trusts attorney near 10012?
Each estate planning document have their legal requirements for validity. For example, you cannot appoint a non-NY resident as your executor or attorney-in-fact. And there are family members not allowed to take up some of these positions. A local attorney would know the laws and ensure your documents are properly established.
In addition, an estate planning attorney near you in NYC 10012 would have garnered experience on typical issues clients face in NYC and so would help you avoid them.
Call us to get in touch with an expert attorney near you.
