The Power of a Pour-Over Will

You’re probably familiar with wills and trusts as tools for planning your future. But did you know there’s a specific type of will, called a pour-over will, that acts as a safety net for your estate? A pour-over will works in tandem with a Revocable Living Trust, a legal tool that allows you to place your property, money, and other important belongings into a “treasure box” while you’re alive. This trust simplifies the management of your assets and ensures they’re distributed privately after your passing.

A pour-over will ensures that if you forget to include something in your trust or acquire new assets later, those assets are still directed to your trust. This way, everything ends up where it’s supposed to, ensuring your wishes are fully respected and sparing your family from worrying about missed assets.

How Does a Pour-Over Will Work?

Assets covered by the pour-over will may still go through probate, which is the court-supervised process to settle your estate. During probate, details such as the value of assets and who’s inheriting them become public. However, once these assets are transferred into the trust, they’re managed privately according to the instructions you’ve set up. While probate may slightly delay the process, your pour-over will ensures that everything ultimately aligns with your wishes, reducing potential confusion for your loved ones.

Setting Up a Pour-Over Will

Creating a pour-over will is straightforward, but it involves a few steps:

1. Establish a Revocable Living Trust
   Start by setting up a revocable living trust. This foundational step allows you to manage assets and distribute them privately, bypassing probate for items already in the trust.

2. Draft the Pour-Over Will
   After setting up your trust, create the pour-over will. This will name your executor and beneficiaries. Your executor will be responsible for handling estate administration, including identifying, collecting, and valuing all assets, whether they’re already in the trust or not. Beneficiaries are typically the same individuals named in the trust.

3. Sign and Witness
   Once you finalize the details of your pour-over will, sign the document and have it witnessed according to your state’s laws to make it official.

Keeping Your Pour-Over Will Current

A pour-over will and trust should reflect your current life circumstances. As your assets grow or your personal situation changes, reviewing and updating these documents ensures your estate plan continues to align with your wishes. With our Legacy Concierge™ service, you’ll have ongoing support to keep all of your documents up-to-date and in line with your evolving legacy vision. This proactive approach smooths the process for your loved ones and reduces the risk of confusion or disputes later on.

Designing Your Legacy with Purpose

At Roots and Wings Legal, we understand the importance of a complete estate plan that ensures every asset aligns with your intentions. Through our Legacy Engineering™ approach, our Legacy Engineers™ guide you through each step of the pour-over will and trust process, providing clarity and confidence in your estate planning. Whether you’re setting up a new plan or refining an existing one, we’re here to help. Contact us today to book an introductory call, and let’s start designing a legacy that will endure for generations.