Make a Will

When planning the execution of a legal document for the disbursement of assets after you die, your fee to consult a competent attorney, accountant, or other trusted professional will be money well spent. This article is intended to provide a broad overview of the subject so you can be more knowledgeable in preparing your own will, exploring other options, and better prepared if you decide to meet with professional advisors.
A will is a document that outlines the following:

What one wants to happen to their property when they die.

How they want it distributed.

Which persons they want to inherit the property.

Preparing a Legally Valid Will
People can avoid having their probate estate pass on to others via individual state statues. It provides for distribution of the estate in the case of no existing will. It can also cut down on the cost of litigation. Distribution of an estate in the absence of a will is very complex depending, in part, whether there are surviving relatives. Visit What is a will for more information!
To ensure that a will is legally valid, the person preparing the will must follow various formalities and requirements based on individual state laws. There four main criteria are:

Legal Capacity: In most states the age is 18 years of age.

Testamentary Capacity: This basically means that the person must understand that the document they are creating is a will. A person being heavily medicated or mentally disabled at the time they prepared the will can nullify the legality. They must also have an understanding of what property they own and are including in the will and understand who their heirs are.

Testamentary Intent: This means the person preparing the will intends for the document to be their will. For example, if someone writes a letter to a relative asking them to prepare a will, that letter would not meet this requirement because  the letter itself was not intended to be a will, and were only instructions.

Specific Formalities: This refers to the laws of the state depending on the type of will, for example, handwritten, witnessed or verbal.

Getting Started on Making a Will
Make a list of the property you own and want included in your will. Certain types of property such as joint tenancy held with a person such as a spouse cannot be distributed to someone else in your will. You cannot include property that has been transferred to a living trust. Nor, can you include benefits from a life insurance policy, stocks and bonds or pensions that include a previously named beneficiary.
Name the person or persons you want to inherit your property. The will should include alternate beneficiaries in the event those chosen do not survive you.
Choose an Executor. A legal will must include a named person who will serve as an executor, one who will carry out the terms of the will.
Guardianship for minor children. Name an alternative adult you want to raise your children in the event the surviving parent dies or is unable to do so.
Select a person to manage your children’s property. Most parents do not  leave money or property directly to their children. Instead, they leave everything to their spouse, with the understanding that the survivor will care for the children. In the will their children are named as alternate beneficiaries. In the case of a single parent, however, they leave money and property directly to their children. In either case, an adult should be named to manage whatever property the children may inherit, in case they receive it while they're still too young to manage it themselves.
Signing the will. Laws vary from state to state, but most wills require your signature to be witnessed by two people. “Self-providing affidavits” signed by you without witnesses require your signature to be notarized. Make sure to inform relatives or the person you named as your executor where your will is safely kept.
The above article was written by General Knowledge AKA http://www.mayaqa.com/

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How to Prepare a Living Trust vs. a Will

When planning the execution of a legal document for the disbursement of assets after you die, your fee to consult a competent attorney, accountant, or other trusted professional  will be money well spent. This article is only intended to provide a broad overview of the subject, so you can be more knowledgeable in exploring options, and better prepared to meet with professional advisors.

What is a Will from Mayaqa.com, a Will is a written document which leaves the estate of the person who signed the will to named persons or entities (beneficiaries, legatees, divisees) including portions or percentages of the estate, specific gifts, creation of trusts for management and future distribution of all or a portion of the estate (a testamentary trust). A will usually names an executor (and possibly substitute executors) to manage the estate, states the authority and obligations of the executor in the management and distribution of the estate, sometimes gives funeral and/or burial instructions, nominates guardians of minor children and spells out other terms. To be valid the will must be signed by the person who made it (testator), be dated and witnessed by two people (except in Vermont which requires three.) North Hollywood Hospice

Also defined  in  the legal dictionary on Law.com, a Living Trust is created by a declaration of trust executed by the trustor during his/her lifetime, as distinguished from a "testamentary trust," which is created by a will and only comes into force upon the death of the person who wrote the will.

Most commonly, it is a trust in which the trustor receives benefits from the profits of the trust during their lifetimes, followed by a distribution upon the death of the trustor, and the trust continues on for the benefit of others (such as the next generation) with profits distributed to them.

Some Advantages of a Living Trust over a Will.
Many estate planners swear by living trusts; their advantages over wills are many. The problem with a will is that it must be proved valid in probate court. To probate a will, you'll definitely need to hire an attorney and attorney's fees can run into thousands of dollars. There may be executor's commissions and other court costs.
California's probate fees -- set by law -- are about average among states. For an estate of $500,000 (by no means a small or uncommon estate where home prices start around $200,000), the cost of probate in terms of attorney's fees and executor's commissions would range around $22,300. This is a big chunk out of your children's inheritance.
Worse than the financial blow, probate can exact an emotional toll on the surviving family. Your heirs may have to wait several months and sometimes years to collect their inheritances, depending upon the efficiency of the executor, attorney and probate court. Delays of eighteen months to two years are not unusual. Granda Hills Hospice
Probate records are public records and are available to all kinds of salespeople, scrupulous or otherwise. Many a widow has been persuaded to make unwise or unsuitable investments under pressure from fast- talking hucksters.
Living Trusts, on the other hand, require no court proceedings; a successor trustee (who may also be a beneficiary) simply distributes the assets according to the trust's instructions and dissolves the trust. The process is much quicker, cheaper and more private than settling a will.
Few Disadvantages
According to most estate planners living trusts have few disadvantages. Most trust instruments are relatively simple to prepare, and you need to formally transfer the title of various assets to the trust. This requires some paperwork and you will need to contact your banks, brokers, insurance agents, etc. In most cases, they are familiar with living trusts and you should get expert cooperation from them. Once this paperwork is completed, a living trust will not affect the way in which you control or manage your various assets.

Remember, there are many complex issues involved that are not covered here that only a qualified professional can address. Individual state laws vary greatly on a multitude of specifics and have a significant bearing upon the issues and decisions you face.

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