In California, this is the standard “work-horse” of estate planning. Due to the high cost of probate (an estate of $150,000 is a minimum $5,500 probate fee), a Revocable Living Trust is essential for anyone with even a moderate estate, and particularly if you own real estate. The trust, when created properly, avoids probate and provides for a detailed administration of your property in the event of your death or incapacity. A “pour-over” will provides that any assets not already in your trust will be “poured over” into the trust and administered in accordance with the terms of the trust. Thus, your estate plan is also private as only the will, but not the trust, becomes public. 1That’s how all those “wills of the rich and famous” become public—the will has to be filed in the probate court and is subject to review by anyone willing to look.
Revocable Living Trust and Pour-Over Wills
