A trust is an estate planning strategy. It offers you protection in the event of incapacity and allows for great flexibility with how your property is distributed after the person has passed away. 

A trust is a private document that is not available for non-interested people to access and read. A trust being to protect an individual as soon as the individual signs the trust, not just when the individual passes away.

A trust allows you to have provisions that govern how and when your property is distributed to your descendants. This allows for a continuation of parenting influence and can help descendants continue to reach their potential as they continue through life.

A trust is generally more expensive than a will. While it is an effective tool, it is less affordable for many people than a will.
 
A trust is also more “high maintenance than a will.” For a trust to work best, you have to actively manage ownership of your property for the trust to continually control your property. This process is called “funding.” It is best to counsel with an estate planning attorney to determine the best options to fund your trust.

The decision to have a will or trust is an incredibly personal and unique decision. I advise that you meet with an estate planning attorney to help you understand your options and to help you make the best decision for yourself and your family.

A Trustee is the person who administers your trust. In this sense, a Trustee is similar to the Personal Representative of a will. However, a trust is private, while a will is public.
 
A Trustee also has duties to the trust’s beneficiaries, called fiduciary duties. This means that a Trustee could be found legally liable if the Trustee inadequately administers a trust. I would suggest that a Trustee contact an attorney specializing in Trust Administration for help.

A Standalone Retirement Trust (SRT) is a special type of trust.  A standalone retirement trust, (SRT) for short, is a trust used to provide asset protection and maximized tax deferred growth for spouses, children, and other loved ones. This means more assets go to the people you care about.

The SRT is popular and can benefit you and your loved ones because it:

• Protects inherited retirement accounts from beneficiaries’ creditors as well as predators and lawsuits
• Ensures retirement accounts go to whom you designate – and nobody else
• Allows for experienced management and oversight of assets by a professional trustee
• Prevents beneficiaries from reckless spending or gambling
• Enables proper planning for a special needs beneficiary
• Permits you to name minor beneficiaries as immediate beneficiaries without court-supervised guardianship
• Facilitates generation-skipping transfer tax planning

An irrevocable trust is a type of trust in which assets are transferred out of the your estate into the name of the trust. You, as the person who established the trust, cannot alter, change, modify, or revoke this trust after execution. It’s irrevocable and you usually cannot be in control.  Irrevocable trust assets have increased asset protection and are kept out of the reach of creditors.  Taxes are often reduced because, in most cases, irrevocable trust assets are no longer part of your estate.