• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
  • Services
    • Asset & Business Planning
    • Dental Practice Law
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Medicaid and Elder Law
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Carmel, Indiana Elder Resources
        • Fishers Indiana Elder Law Resources
        • Greenfield, Indiana Elder Law Resources
        • Greenwood Elder Resources
        • Indianapolis Elder Law Resources
        • Lawrence Elder Law Resources
        • Plainfield Elder Resources
        • Zionsville Elder Law Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
        • Business Succession Planning
      • Elder Abuse
      • Elder Law
        • Medicaid
        • Medicaid Planning
        • Planning for Long-Term Care
      • Estate Planning
        • Avoiding Estate Taxes
        • Estate Planning for Parents
        • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
        • LGBTQ Estate Planning
        • Women and the Need for Estate Planning
      • Financial Planning
      • Incapacity Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Philanthropy in Your Estate Plan
      • Probate
      • Power of Attorney
      • Small Estate Administration
      • Trusts
        • Trust Administration
        • Trust Administration
        • Serving as Executor
      • Understanding Your Social Security Retirement Benefits
      • Wills
        • Contesting a Will
    • Newsletter
    • Pre Consultation Form
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss Of A Loved One
      • Probate Resources
        • Carmel, Indiana Probate Resources
        • Greenfield Probate
        • Greenwood Probate
        • Indianapolis Probate
        • Plainfield Probate
        • Indiana Probate
        • Zionsville Probate
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • Areas We Serve
    • Boone County
      • Lebanon
      • Zionsville
    • Hamilton County
      • Carmel
      • Fishers
    • Hancock County
      • Greenfield
    • Hendricks County
      • Brownsburg
      • Plainfield
    • Johnson County
      • Franklin, Indiana
      • Greenwood
    • Marion County
      • Central Indiana
      • Indianapolis
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law

Indianapolis Estate Planning Attorneys

CONNECT WITH US TODAY(317) 684-1100

Attend a Free Workshop
Home » When Would a Pour-Over Will Be Necessary?

When Would a Pour-Over Will Be Necessary?

April 18, 2016Estate Planning, Wills and Trusts

pour-over will

There are many different legal devices that are used in the field of estate planning. If you execute a particular document, this does not mean that the job is done. A well constructed estate plan will typically include multiple different legally binding documents.

With this in mind, let’s look at the reason why you may want to create a certain type of will, even if you establish a revocable living trust.

Pour-Over Will

If you create a revocable living trust, you convey assets into it. When you are funding the trust, you may not convey everything that you own into it for one reason or another. Plus, over the years, you may acquire additional property that you do not sign over to the trust.

To account for this, you can include a pour-over will when you are planning your estate. This type of will would allow the trust to capture assets that were in your direct personal possession at the time of your passing. When all of the assets are contained within the trust, the consolidation would help to facilitate a smooth trust administration process.

Living Trust Benefits

If you have never considered the possibility of creating a living trust because you assume that a last will would be the right choice, you should understand the benefits. First off, when a will is used to transfer personally held property, it is admitted to probate.

This process will typically take close to a year if there are no particular complications. The heirs to the estate have to wait it out. The executor cannot distribute assets until the estate has been probated and closed by the court.

The time consumption is only part of the problem. Some people who do not consider the possibility of creating a living trust are under the impression that a trust is very expensive to create, but a will is economical. In fact, when a will is admitted to probate, expenses start to pile up.

The court charges a filing fee, and there can be legal and accounting expenses. Since the executor will be putting in a lot of time and effort, he or she is entitled to remuneration. There can be appraisal costs and liquidation expenses as well, and miscellaneous costs will invariably present themselves. All in all, a noticeable portion of the estate could be consumed during probate.

There is another disconcerting prospect to consider if you use a last will. If you maintain direct personal possession of your property throughout your life, and you arrange for its transfer through the terms of a will, you would be allowing for lump sum distributions after your passing. There would be nothing stopping inheritors from squandering their inheritances far too quickly.

All of these pitfalls are avoided if you convey assets that you want to leave to your loved ones into a revocable living trust. You could act as the trustee while you are alive and fully competent, and you name a successor trustee to handle the business of the trust after you pass away. Many people will use a corporate trustee, but you can name someone that you know personally if this is your choice.

The trustee would be able to distribute assets to the beneficiaries after your passing outside of the probate process, so the probate drawbacks would be avoided. Plus, you can include a spendthrift provision.

The trust would become irrevocable at the time of your death, and there would be asset protection for the beneficiaries. In addition to this, when you create the trust declaration, you can instruct the trustee to distribute the resources in a particular manner. For example, you could allow for monthly distributions of the earnings so that the principal can remain intact to produce ongoing income.

This is one example, but the point is that you have control over the way that the assets are distributed. You don’t have to allow for lump sum distributions all at once.

You can also account for incapacitation if you establish a revocable living trust. A successor trustee could be empowered to handle the business of the trust if you ever become unable to make sound decisions on your own.

Attend a Free Seminar

Now that you have a basic understanding of the value of living trusts, you may be interested in the possibility of creating one. If you would like to take the next step, attend one of our free seminars. We frequently offer living trust seminars at various different locations in the greater Indianapolis area. You can visit our seminar schedule page to obtain details and registration information.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Paul Kraft is Co-Founder and the senior Principal of Frank & Kraft, one of the leading law firms in Indiana in the area of estate planning as well as business and tax planning.

Mr. Kraft assists clients primarily in the areas of estate planning and administration, Medicaid planning, federal and state taxation, real estate and corporate law, bringing the added perspective of an accounting background to his work.
Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney
Latest posts by Paul A. Kraft, Estate Planning Attorney (see all)
  • Updated Federal Gift and Estate Tax Figures for 2023 - January 26, 2023
  • Why Estate Planning Is Important for Multi-National Couples - January 24, 2023
  • When Do I Need to Update a Trust Agreement? - January 19, 2023

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Top 10 Estate Planning Tips
Indianapolis estate planning attorneys
The Pros and Cons of Sharing Your Estate Plan with Loved Ones
question mark
Answers to 5 Common Estate Planning Questions
Inheritance and bequest
Is an Inheritance and a Bequest the Same Thing?
estate plan
Why Do I Need an Estate Plan?
LGBT History Month
Reviewing Your Estate Plan for LGBT History Month

Primary Sidebar

Frank & Kraft, Attorneys at Law

Download our free Estate Planning Worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube

Blog Subscription

Where We Are

Frank & Kraft Attorneys at Law
135 N. Pennsylvania Street Suite 1100
Indianapolis, IN 46204-2485
Phone: (317) 684-1100
Fax: (317) 684-6111

See Larger MapGet directions

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Map

frankkraft_sidbr_map

Footer

  • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
  • About The American Academy
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sitemap
  • Contact Us

Connect with Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkdin
  • Youtube
footer-logo

Frank & Kraft Attorneys at Law
Attorney Advertisement

© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.

© 2023 · American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc. | Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Sitemap | Contact Us