Revocable Living Trust Save PPR For Free

A revocable living trust is a trust document created by an individual that can be changed over time. Revocable living trusts are used to avoid probate and to protect the privacy of the trust owner and beneficiaries of the trust as well as minimize estate taxes.

Everyone needs a living revocable trust, says Suze Orman."A living revocable trust serves as far more than just where assets are to go upon your death and it does that in an efficient way," she said. Unlike a will, a living trust also covers you while you are still alive, Orman noted.

An irrevocable trust cannot be modified or terminated without permission of the beneficiary. Once the grantor transfers the assets into the irrevocable trust, he or she removes all rights of ownership to the trust and assets, Orman explained.

A revocable living trust will not protect your assets from a nursing home. This is because the assets in a revocable trust are still under the control of the owner. To shield your assets from the spend-down before you qualify for Medicaid, you will need to create an irrevocable trust.

The living trust does not pay income tax on income that is distributed to the trust beneficiaries during the tax year. The beneficiaries pay income tax on the income they receive from the trust. If the living trust does not distribute all of its income, it must pay income tax on the undistributed income.

Some of the Cons of a Revocable Trust Shifting assets into a revocable trust won't save income or estate taxes. No asset protection. Although assets held in an irrevocable trust are generally beyond the reach of creditors, that's not true with a revocable trust.

As far as the Internal Revenue Service is concerned, trust property belongs to the grantor. The grantor names a trustee to manage the assets, but during their lifetime, most people name themselves in this position. A successor trustee is named to carry on when the grantor dies or becomes incapacitated.