Estate planning San Diego is an important step in protecting your loved ones after you’re gone, but often it ends up as one of those chores that we put off until later when it’s too late to do any good. Luckily, there are ways to incorporate estate planning into your daily life so that you can avoid the lengthy and expensive probate process while still leaving behind a will that protects your loved ones and your assets.

What is a Probate?

In estate planning, probate is a process in which a court determines how your assets are distributed upon your death. Probate is necessary when someone dies because there must be an executor of their estate who can legally take control of their possessions. The probate process can be time-consuming and expensive. If you pass away without a will, or if your heirs do not know about one, then a court will determine how all of your possessions should be disbursed.

Do You Have to Go Through Probate If You Have a Will?

A will is a document that states how you would like your assets distributed upon your death. To be valid, a will must meet certain legal requirements and must be signed by two witnesses and your signature notarized. If there is no will (also known as dying intestate), then assets are distributed according to your state’s laws of intestacy.

Tips to Avoid a Probate Process

If you have assets and want to pass on your estate to your beneficiaries without any hassle, it’s important that you avoid probate. Unfortunately, if you don’t plan accordingly, probate is inevitable. So, get in touch with a leading estate planning attorney in San Diego to help determine which estate planning strategies are right for you and your loved ones and save you time and money down the road.

Create a Revocable Living Trust: A revocable living trust (RLT) is an estate-planning tool that allows you to avoid probate court and pass assets on to beneficiaries according to your wishes. They have a lot of advantages over traditional will trusts, including flexibility and privacy.

Joint Ownership of Property: If you own assets jointly with someone else, those assets will not be subject to probate and may even pass directly from one owner to another without going through a legal process at all. The downside of joint ownership is that it can lead to conflict if your partner does not share your estate plan or if his or her estate plan is different from yours.

Give Away Your Assets When You are Alive: According to a licensed probate attorney in San Diego, one of the best estate planning tips you can use to avoid probate is all about being able to give away your assets while you are alive. This way, when you are gone, your loved ones don’t have to wait in court while everything gets sorted out. Instead, they inherit those assets right away, with no complications!

Get in touch with the experts to know more about estate planning and trust administration in San Diego.