What Assets Can Avoid Probate?

Your loved ones may already be reeling from the news that you are no longer with them. At this very delicate time, the last thing you may want for them is to take on the stressful burden of probate. However, if you plan your estate administration accordingly, there may be a way in which you can have most or all of your assets avoid the probate process altogether. Follow along to find out the types of assets that typically avoid probate and how one of the proficient Putnam County probate attorneys at the Law Office of Andres D. Gil, PLLC can help you be strategic with your estate plan.

What types of assets typically avoid probate?

Essentially, the main part of the probate process has the New York State Surrogate’s Court oversee the process of locating, assessing, and distributing your assets according to the state’s intestacy laws or your will’s terms and conditions.

However, this process is only for assets with a title in solely your name. This is because the court may have the exclusive authority over taking your name off the title and putting someone else’s name on it. Therefore, one strategy to avoid probate is to retitle your assets to include your loved one’s name as well (i.e., make them joint-owned assets). This way, upon your passing, the ownership transfer may go to the surviving owner. Then, the surviving owner may retitle it to include the name of someone they wish to inherit the asset upon their subsequent passing, and so on and so forth.

In a similar vein, you may transfer your assets to your established revocable living trust. With this, you must similarly retitle your assets. But this time, you must change it from your name to your designated trustee’s name. In due time, your trustee may distribute these assets to your beneficiary directly.

Lastly, life insurance policies and retirement accounts almost always play by a different rulebook when it comes to estate administration. So you may be happy to learn that you may make beneficiary designations for these policies and accounts during your lifetime. Hopefully, these funds may then be administered to your beneficiaries seamlessly.

What are the possible benefits of avoiding probate?

You may find it a hassle to go through all this work of retitling your assets and the like. However, your efforts now may save your loved ones from a lot of burdens in the future. This is because the probate process is notoriously time-consuming, financially draining, and emotionally draining. What’s more, your assets may be left vulnerable to federal and state estate taxes when enduring this process. Meaning, your loved ones may not receive the full extent of financial support and protection you intended for them.

For this, we strongly encourage you to retain the services of a talented Putnam County estate planning attorney. You may do so by scheduling an initial consultation with the Law Office of Andres D. Gil, PLLC today.