Wills

Your will is the official document that states your final wishes. In your will, you can name the executor of your estate, guardians for your children and their property, dictate how debts and taxes will be paid, and detail any other provisions you’d like to be made.

Trusts

A trust is a fiduciary agreement that appoints a trustee to hold assets on behalf of one or more beneficiaries. Trusts are often used as a means to minimize estate taxes. Trusts have flexible structures to allow individuals to control their wealth very specifically, designating when and to whom distributions may be made.

Health Care Directives

Also called a “living will” or “advance decision,” this is a legal document that specifies what should be done medically in the event that you’re no longer able to make decisions on your own. Your health care directive can authorize another individual to make decisions on your behalf when you’re incapacitated, called a “health care proxy.”

Durable Financial Power of Attorney

A document that names the individual you’ve chosen to make financial decisions for you when you become unable. This document can also designate when the terms go into effect; some couples have financial power of attorney documents that go into effect immediately so that they can make decisions for each other at any time. Alternatively, you can specify that your power of attorney cannot go into effect until you’ve been medically certified as incapacitated. Many states require that your financial power of attorney be specified as “durable,” otherwise it may become void if you become incapacitated.

Beneficiaries

You’ll have to name beneficiaries for a variety of things, including bank accounts, retirement plans, and life insurance policies. You can name one, two, or more people, a trust, a charity, or your estate as the beneficiary of your death benefits.

Life Insurance

This is a contract with an insurance company that states that in exchange for the premiums that you pay over a certain duration of time, the insurance company will provide a death benefit (in a lump-sum payment) to your beneficiaries upon your death.

Trust Services

A trust, which is ordinarily used to transfer wealth to heirs or charitable organizations, is a fiduciary arrangement in which a trustee manages assets for the benefit of third parties.

Trusts are a key element in a comprehensive estate and wealth transfer plan. Trusts are a primary vehicle used to direct how a person’s legacy is managed and distributed after death. Trusts may be established for minor children, the disabled, or to place conditions on how an inheritance can be spent.

Our Trust Services Include:

• Will and Trust Review
• Business Valuations
• Fiduciary Return Preparation
• Estate Planning (Pre and Post-Mortem)

Insurance products, such as life insurance policies, annuity contracts and disability policies, may be used to fund trusts after death. Flexible and customizable, trusts may be drafted to meet the specific intent of the individuals who created the trust and tailored towards the specific needs of trust beneficiaries. They may also be used to minimize estate taxes.

At DeFreitas & Minsky, LLP, we are available to provide trust services tailored towards the specific needs of you and your beneficiaries. By combining our qualified accounting expertise with a commitment to personal service, we can help you make important decisions at an important time.