When you create an estate plan, what’s your main goal? If you’re like most people, it’s to protect your loved ones and to provide a lasting legacy after you pass away. But the probate process can eat into the inheritance that your loved ones receive and may keep your loved ones from inheriting the property and funds you leave them for months after your death. Luckily, there are a few ways to avoid probate in Illinois. Your Illinois estate planning attorney explains.
Create a Revocable Living Trust
Revocable living trusts allow you to appoint a legal entity to hold ownership of certain assets while you’re alive. This account is overseen by a trustee who effectively manages your assets. When you pass away, any assets held in the trust can be distributed to your chosen beneficiaries based on the instructions you provide the trustee. Even better, living trusts are private, meaning the assets held in the trust won’t become public knowledge when you pass away.
Establish Joint Ownership With Right of Survivorship
If you’re married or you’re in a committed relationship, you may choose to establish joint ownership with right of survivorship for certain property and assets. Typically, this is applied to assets such as:
- Vehicles
- Real estate
- Bank accounts
- Investment accounts
This agreement allows the joint owner to take full possession of the property when you pass away without having to go through the probate process. Keep in mind that you may need the joint owner’s permission to do anything with those assets while you’re alive. This means you may not be able to sell a jointly owned home without the other party’s permission.
Use Transfer-on-Death (TOD) Deeds and Designations
Transfer on death deeds allow you to direct that ownership of certain assets, like real estate and bank accounts, immediately transfer to your designated beneficiary. This helps you avoid probate entirely and also gives control of those assets to your beneficiary immediately. There’s no delay in their ability to inherit your possessions.
Establish Beneficiaries on Appropriate Accounts
If you have retirement accounts, investment accounts, or life insurance policies, you can appoint beneficiaries on the account to inherit the balances of those accounts when you pass away. By naming beneficiaries, you’ll be able to avoid forcing your loved ones to go through the probate process.
Keep in mind that you may need to update beneficiaries throughout your life as your situation changes. For example, if you get married, you may want to appoint your spouse as a beneficiary. And if you have children, you may want to add them as beneficiaries on certain accounts. Your Illinois estate planning attorney can help you make those changes if you need help.
Let an Illinois Estate Planning Attorney Help
Ultimately, avoiding probate is possible, but it can take a bit more work, and you’ll need to leave your loved ones with more than just a will to determine who inherits what. The easiest way to figure out your best options is to work with an experienced Illinois estate planning attorney. They’ll go over your situation and help you determine the best designations and probate-avoidance methods based on your unique needs.
When you work with an estate planning attorney, you’ll be able to create a comprehensive estate plan that helps you leave a lasting legacy that looks out for the ones you love.
Schedule a Consultation Today
If you’re worried about the probate process and want to learn more about the options you have to help your loved ones avoid probate, the team at Legacy and Life Law Firm can help. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and let our attorneys help you create an estate plan that keeps your loved ones’ best interests in mind.