Many people in Illinois draft wills so that they maintain a certain degree of control over what happens to their legacy when they die, but there are limits to what a will does. A trust is another type of estate planning document that offers a number of key benefits a will does not. While different types of trusts exist to help you accomplish different things, all trusts involve the person who creates them, or the settlor, putting assets in the hands of another trusted individual, known as the trustee.
Kiplinger reports that many people choose to place assets into trusts for similar reasons. You may find it useful to create one if any of the following holds true.
You want protection from a beneficiary’s creditors
You may want to leave a certain amount to a child or another loved one, but you may question whether this is the right move if that beneficiary has creditors who might come looking to collect. A trust safeguards the assets inside from creditors, helping preserve your assets for the person you intend to have them.
You want to restrict spending
If you have beneficiaries who may not be the most financially responsible, you may want to limit when and how they gain access to the legacy you leave behind for them. When you create a trust, you may instruct the trustee on exactly when and under what conditions he or she may make distributions from the trust. For example, maybe you want the trustee to wait until the beneficiary marries, graduates or what have you.
These are just a few of the reasons you may want to consider creating a trust to include in your estate plan.
