This quiz is a guide for your information and does not constitute legal advice.
You might want a revocable trust if:
You own real estate in more than one state.
By having a trust, you will avoid your heirs having to deal with probate in multiple states by mail or in person.
You want your assets and will to remain private.
In probate, all your assets and will provisions are open to anyone who decides to request a copy from the Register of Wills Office for a minor fee.
In the event your spouse remarries after your death, you can create a trust so that your children will still receive your assets.
You want to provide asset protection for the money left to your spouse.
The assets that you place in trust cannot be reached by creditors. In addition, the trust is not considered a part of a subsequent marriage in the event your spouse remarries and divorces.
You want to provide a means for a professional to manage the money you leave to your family.
A professional trustee or trust company can pay bills and invest your assets, so your loved ones are taken care of.
You want a backup trustee to step into your shoes and manage your trust assets in the event you become disabled.
This can be particularly helpful for widowed or single people. We file the trust with your bank or brokerage account before anything happens to you, so that there is a clear and legally-sound record that you want the designated person managing your assets.
You expect that all your assets will be worth $5,000,000 or more at the time of your death.
At that level of cost and complexity, it is worth avoiding the government supervision of probate.
As a married couple, you want to use two estate tax exemptions, instead of one.
Maryland tax is 16% on assets exceeding $5 million. The Federal Estate tax is now 40% on assets exceeding $11.4 million in 2019. If your assets exceed these amounts and you create a family trust, you can use one exemption upon the death of the first spouse, and use another exemption when the following spouse dies. In this case, up to $10 million in assets could be exempt from Maryland in taxes, instead of $5 million.