Are Probate Court Records Public and How Can I Keep My Estate Details Private?
Video Summary
Are probate court records public and how can I keep my estate details private? Yes, probate proceedings are public record. One of the things that is not public record in a probate proceeding is the inventory, so no one can find out what’s in the estate other than the attorneys who represent the personal representative or represent a particular beneficiary. So if that’s the detail you’re concerned about, it is not public record. If you want to keep all the details of your estate private as to who receives it, as well as the assets, you should consider putting your assets in a Trust and executing a Trust document and that way they will not be public records. If you have any questions, give me a call at 727-847-2288.
Probate vs Trust Administration – What’s the Difference in Settling an Estate?
Video Summary
Probate vs Trust administration. What is the difference in settling an estate? Well, let’s define what a probate proceeding is. It is a court proceeding whereby a Will is admitted to probate and which is public record and notice is given to all the beneficiaries. A notice to creditors is sent out for all the creditors to file their claims, and then you go about settling the estate by paying the creditors and making distribution of the estate assets. So that can be accomplished in probably three to six months. If it’s a relatively simple estate, it should be done within one year as far as an estate administration. As far as settling the estate, if all the beneficiaries are in agreement and all the creditors have been paid, you can have all the beneficiaries sign a waiver in consent to the closure of the estate and waive any accountings and agree to the discharge of the personal representative and the estate being closed. With an estate administration, the Trustee undertakes to see that the creditors are paid, files a notice of Trust, and then undertakes to distribute the assets and pay the claims. You don’t have to go to court for any of this and all of this is not in the public records. So that’s the difference between the two as far as settling your estate. If you have any questions, give me a call at 727-847-2288.
What Happens If the Person I Chose as Trustee Can’t Serve or Dies?
Video Summary
What happens if the person I choose as trustee can’t serve or dies? Your trust document should name a successor to the named trustee. If the trust document does not name a successor trustee or all the successor trustees are deceased or not qualified to serve, then the beneficiaries will need to petition the court for the appointment of a successor trustee. If you have any questions concerning this, give me a call at 727-847-2288.
- Published in Estate Planning, Trusts, Videos
How Do I Make Sure All My Assets (Real Estate, Bank Accounts, Investments) Are Properly Transferred into the Trust?
Video Summary
How do I make sure all my assets, real estate, bank accounts, investments are properly transferred into the trust? It’s a common mistake to not fund the trust are improperly fund a trust by simply referring to the trust document as the Roland d Waller Trust dated July the fourth, 2025, and that that’s not the way you titled the assets. You need to title ’em in the name of the trustee, such as Roland D Waller as the trustee of the Roland d Waller Trust dated July the fourth, 2025. And that is for bank accounts and for real estate as how you need to title those assets. And the big thing is to make sure that you know all the assets that you have so that we can properly have them transferred or give you direction on what to do and keeping track of it. Sometimes there’s a problem whenever you’re dealing with a certificate’s deposit that mature well, then you wind up not continuing with it or the maintenance is showing that they are for your name as trustee under your trust rather than putting them in your individual name. So, it’s a question of, first off is identifying all your assets and then working at having them titled in the name of your trustee, which is usually yourself as far as your revocable trust is concerned, and identifying you as the trustee, trustee, and then your trust and the date. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
How Are Taxes Handled with Trusts Will My Beneficiaries Owe Taxes When They Inherit?
Video Summary
How are taxes handled with trust? Will my beneficiary owe taxes when they inherit? First, you need to determine whether you have sufficient assets to be taxed by the federal government. The State of Florida has done away with their estate tax law or estate tax. The federal government has raised the estate tax exemption to a little under $14 million. So if you have assets of less than $14 million, there is no tax federal estate tax. If you have real estate outside the state of Florida, that state may tax your estate upon your death as far as the benefits under your beneficiaries receive the dated death value of your assets, so it limits their tax liability. An example of that is if I purchased a piece of real estate for $200,000 during my lifetime, say in 2000, and then I die in 2025 and the property is worth twice that much or $400,000, well, if my beneficiary sell the property for $400,000, there’s no tax since their basis or step up in basis is $400,000. If they sell it for more than what the date of death value is, they only must pay long-term capital gains. So that’s a huge income tax benefit for inheriting property rather than receiving it during the party’s lifetime. So, if you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.