Do I Need a Will or Living Trust in Florida: Avoiding Conflicts Between Beneficiaries (Part 3 of 3)

Do I Need a Will or a Living Trust

This is the final installment of Wills vs. Living Trusts, which is a three-part series examining whether a Will or a Living Trust is better for you.

The criteria upon which Wills and Living Trusts are being evaluated are:

(1) Probate Avoidance (read the article here)

(2) Taxes (read the article here), and

(3) Avoiding conflicts between beneficiaries (the article you’re currently reading.)

Before starting the discussion, just a quick disclaimer. Trusts & estates laws are state-specific, meaning each state has its own rules, this article’s answers will be based on Florida law.

Will or Living Trust, Communication Is Key!

It might seem like a no-brainer, but you don’t want your death causing a rift or court battles between your loved ones (unless…).

I would be remise if I didn’t say that, regardless of whether you have a will or a living trust, you can help your beneficiaries avoid a great deal of conflict if you tell them your wishes ahead of time.

That’s not enough to make your wishes binding but telling your beneficiaries your wishes will help them manage their expectations now, instead of learning every when you’re gone, and they won’t know what to expect or who is in charge of what.

Wills vs. Living Trusts: Distributing Your Assets

Perhaps you have a feeling that your beneficiaries are going to fight over your belongings. You want to leave a gift to charitable cause you’ve worked with over the years, but you know that your heirs won’t be happy about it. Or there’s a piece of jewelry that a family heirloom and you want to keep it that way.

Wills Override Intestate Succession

The good news is that both a Will and a Living Trust allow you to control where your assets go. In fact, that’s actually what a Will does. A common misconception is that a Will avoids probate, but that’s not true. What a Will does change is the default distribution of you estate. Without a Will, your estate is distributed according to Intestate Succession, which is a law that says how estates should be distributed. By creating a Will, you override Instate Succession with your wishes. Your Personal Representative, who may get to name, makes sure your wishes are carried out.

Living Trusts: Distribute Your Assets Without Probate

A Living Trust also allows you to control where your assets go, but through a different mechanism called a Trust Agreement. In a Trust Agreement, you list where you want your assets to go, you also name your Successor Trustee, who will make sure your wishes are carried out.

As mentioned in Part 1, you want to avoid probate. It’s expensive, lengthy, public, and most importantly, it’s unnecessary. It’s a difficult process that can be complex legally and difficult emotionally.

Going to court is stressful. Most people don’t want to go to court in general. Now, imagine having to do it right after a loved one dies. It’s during that time that they must deal with creditors, grieving heirs, and formalistic timelines & court proceedings. It’s no surprise that many people find it too overwhelming.

In this respect, a Living Trust is better than a Will because it can avoid probate.

In Conclusion

In conclusion, if you want to make sure your passing doesn’t cause conflicts between your beneficiaries there are steps you can take no matter if you have a Will or a Living Trust. Communication is key! Telling your heirs who’s in charge of what and who’s getting what can save them shock later on. And while both a Will and a Living Trust will let you distribute your assets to who you wish, a Living Trust can get it done without taking your heirs through probate.

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