Kingwood & Houston Trust & Estate Planning Attorney
Popular types of trusts in Texas:
Revocable Trusts:
Revocable trusts, also called living trusts, can be modified or revoked by the grantor during their lifetime. They help avoid probate and maintain privacy but do not protect assets from creditors or estate taxes. The grantor retains full control of assets until death. The benefit of this trust is that it avoids probate and allows the grantor to revoke or modify the trust while alive.
Irrevocable Trusts:
Once established, irrevocable trusts generally cannot be altered by the grantor without beneficiary consent. Assets transferred into these trusts leave the grantor’s taxable estate, offering protection against creditors and potentially reducing estate and gift taxes. The grantor gives up ownership of the assets.
Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts:
Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts allow life insurance to go to the beneficiary without is counting towards your estate value for inheritance tax purposes.
Special Needs Trusts:
Special Needs Trusts allow funds to be placed in trust for the benefit of a person on Medicaid or public benefits and allow them to not lose their benefits.
One of the benefits of all trusts is that if there are assets in states other than where the decedent resided, a probate proceeding in that state is not necessary.
