The premise of estate planning is pretty gloomy: you are contemplating your own demise. It’s important to plan how your assets will be distributed and perhaps, even the future of your minor children.

Add to this the probate process: in California, when someone dies with or without a will, a judge supervises the settling of an estate. This is not inherently bad, because this process is designed to guarantee that the assets of a decedent are distributed according to that person’s will, or according to the law if they died without a will, and that the decedent’s creditors are paid. The downside is that this process is long (could easily exceed a year for a simple estate) and costly. For example, the probate of a $1 million dollar estate could cost the estate up to $23,000 in attorney fees and $23,000 in executor fees. These are statutory fees, and are a percentage of the estate assets’ fair market value, so they are higher for larger estates. Furthermore, the percentage of the fees is calculated in relation to the gross value of the assets, not the net value. Let’s say the fair market value of your house is $100,000, but you still owe $90,000 on your mortgage. The fees are calculated on the $100,000 value of your home, not on the $10,000 equity you currently have in the house.

By comparison, setting up a living trust costs significantly less, will avoid the probate court, will keep your affairs private since no documents need to be filed with the court. Additionally, you retain the control of your assets during your lifetime, and the living trust is a flexible document, which can be modified during your lifetime as circumstances might change.

My law office is here to walk with you through this process, and help craft the best estate planning solution, tailored for your particular situation. In our initial meeting I will want to hear your goals for estate planning and learn about the specific details. We would also assess your specific need for a living trust. In some circumstances, people may not need a living trust, in which case we can find more simple ways to better achieve your estate planning goals.

• A compilation of legal documents designed to direct where someone’s assets go after they die, to state a person’s last wishes, and to make choices for how their affairs and health care are to be handled should they become incapacitated

• If the Settlors have minor children, dependents with special needs or other particular circumstances, a comprehensive estate plan can include provisions for these circumstances

• Trust Agreement

• Certification of Trust

• Pour over Will

• Property Agreements

• Durable Power of Attorney

• Advance Health Care Directive

• Final Dispositions

• Funding instructions

• It is private

• The Settlors have full control over their assets while they are alive, and they can indicate where their assets will go after their death

• A Living Trust is revocable, which means it can be revoked during the lifetime of the Settlors, or it can be modified

• The Living Trust doesn’t require a separate tax ID or tax return - the IRS views you and your trust as the same person

• The administration of a Living Trust is speedy compared to the probate administration. While a probate administration for a modest estate could last at least one year, the trust administration could be done in a few weeks

• Setting up, maintaining and administration of a Living Trust is much less expensive in comparison to the probate administration. Probate administration could cost at least 20 times more than the cost of setting up a comprehensive estate plan combined with the administration of the trust

• A Comprehensive Estate Plan contains provisions for situations of incapacity, including naming agents empowered to make certain financial or healthcare decision for the incapacitated person

• If you like to save substantial amounts of money from your estate and significant emotional stress on your children or other beneficiaries by avoiding probate, a comprehensive Estate Plan is a good idea if your estate has a fair market value in excess of $184,500 (as of 2023), and if the estate holds any real property, the real property’s fair market value can not exceed $61,500.

• If you have a complex estate (business interests, investment properties, various other types of assets) and a more complex distribution to beneficiaries (various types of beneficiaries, combination of outright distributions and distributions in trust, etc.), The Law Office of Bela I. Ispas might be the perfect place to draft a customized, comprehensive Estate Plan for you.

Estate planning attorney Bela I. Ispas will meet with the clients for an initial, complimentary consultation. The purpose of this initial consultation is to explain what Estate Planning is, the process in detail, and more importantly listen to the clients’ goals with their estate, understand the nature of their assets and their family circumstances.

Once we decide to move forward, Bela will present the clients a timeline of the process with clear steps that clients and the attorney will be taking between signing the letter of engagement and the delivery of the final product.

A commitment to diligent work and communication is paramount in this process. Attorney Bela I. Ispas believes in not only educating his clients in the specifics of Estate Planning in general, but also in explaining all of the options they have so that the clients make an informed decision about all aspects of their Estate Plan.