When it comes to a will and reducing taxes, trusts are very handy legal tools. There are basically two kinds of trusts: A revocable trust and an irrevocable trust. The revocable trust can be changed at any time by the person who has the trust created, also called the Trustmaker. Its advantages are that it avoids probate, keeps details out of the public record, and can pass to a disability trustee if the Trustmaker becomes mentally impaired. However, the revocable trust does not eliminate estate taxes and does not put the estate out of the hands of creditors.



The irrevocable trust cannot be changed once it is created. Its advantages are that it removes the value of the property so that the estate is not taxed, and it keeps the estate out of the hands of creditors. Two types of irrevocable trusts, the Self Settled Trusts and Domestic Asset Protection Trusts, provide protection from creditors and the Trustmaker can still receive benefits of the trust in some states.



For a simple will without tall the legal complexities, it basically determines how your assets will be distributed and to whom. The person who is named as the executor is often a family member or attorney, but does not have to be. The executor, however, should be someone who is reliable and trusted. That person should be provided with a copy of the will and other important documents, such as list of bank and other financial accounts and passwords. The executor should also have access to all important papers, such as deeds, trusts, stocks and bonds. Since these are frequently stored in a safety deposit box, the executor should be given a key.

When you prepare your own will, the final thing you should do is have it checked by a lawyer. Each state is different in what it specifies to be a valid will, and the state statutes that are available online are easy to access and read. They usually specify how to write a simple will very clearly. But anything more complex than a simple will should be carefully examined before death, not after, when will be too late.