Writing a Trust in Florida: Tips to keep it Easy

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Writing trusts, in general, isn’t a walk in the park. There’s a lot of legal talk involved and considerations to be factored into the writing to ensure that the documents stay valid upon scrutiny of the court. And if you’re writing a trust for your real estate properties which are governed by your state’s property laws, you have to add to the factors the provisions in your state’s laws as well. If you’re particularly writing a trust involving your Florida properties and assets, there are some unique legal clauses that you have to incorporate in your writing, especially about real estate provisions. To get a better idea of the things you have to keep in mind when writing a trust in Florida, here are five of the most important pointers:

1)   You would surely need a lawyer.Writing a trust in Floridais a legal matter and though you can surely accomplish the forms generally, there are clauses and decisions involved that will entail the help of someone more knowledgeable about the law. Seeking validity of the trust from the Florida courts is also best done by a lawyer as they will know how to make their way through the legal maze more successfully.

2) You have to have a clear idea of the kind of trust that you intend to file. There are different types of trusts available, depending on your intended purpose. Generally, however, there are two categories: the revocable living trust and the non-revocable one.
The former, as the name implies, is terminable upon the request of the trust grantor. This usually works for disinheritance or business assets transfers. The main use of this type of trust is to avoid probation by court of the assets in case of the sudden death of the grantor. As you probably know, putting your assets under control of the probate court (This happens in case of your untimely death where you didn’t leave any will.) can be messy with all the costs, fees, and probing involved. If you want to save your heirs from all this trouble, setting up an irrevocable trust is a very advisable move.Non-revocable ones, on the other hand, are used for transferring of your assets to someone, such as your heirs, throughout your lifetime. This is mostly used to provide income to your heirs while you’re still alive. As the name implies, however, there’s no way to terminate the trust. In case of your heir’s death, however, the assets will be forwarded to a charity by the court.

3)  You have to ensure that you will be able to supply all the needed legal documents for the   certification of your accomplished trust form. These usually include:

a. Listing of the legal names of your trustees

b. All the necessary statements and agreements that you want to include, such as limitations to the powers of your trustees (especially if it’s a non-revocable trust). Most grantors often commit the common mistake of thinking that all work stops once you’re donewriting a trust in Florida and have completed the draft. Your trust form wouldn’t stand scrutiny in court if the supplemental documents are not in order.

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