What is a Living Trust Scam?
published 3/17/2016
Unfortunately, while there are plenty of legitimate living trusts and elder law planning attorneys in Ohio who help put them together, far too many seniors across the country fall victim to scammers who intimidate and scare their victims into purchasing unnecessary or worthless trusts. If you put together a living trust, work directly with an experienced Ohio estate planning attorney you can rely on.
Living trusts are usually put together in order to avoid going through the probate process and they can be powerful tools. Going through probate can be burdensome for your beneficiaries and the estate tax, for example, could also greatly diminish the wealth of your estate. It does not necessarily mean, however, that everyone should try to use estate planning tools design to avoid the estate tax since estates under $5.4 million are not subject to estate tax in Ohio.
The majority of less complicated and smaller estates will have very little problems with probate or can easily avoid probate with up to date beneficiary and transfer-on-death designations. Despite these facts, some scam companies are trying to scare seniors into purchasing living trusts. The inflated horrors of the probate and estate tax encourage seniors to participate in these programs. Seniors who purchase these products may find out down the road that they are actually meaningless and do not perform as claimed. Some of the guidelines in order to avoid problems in this situation include:
- If you are unable to understand terminology listed in the document, you should never sign it.
- Pressure tactics like numerous phone calls on limited time offers should leave you feeling vary about an opportunity.
There are many other legitimate reasons for using a trust such as concerns about the disability of a child, creditors or divorce, second marriages, minor children or children who are just not financially responsible. However, there are many people who do not have those concerns and are essentially sold something they do not need.
If you are concerned about estate taxes or other elder law and planning issues in Ohio, consult with a knowledgeable elder law planning attorney as soon as possible. An attorney with a solid reputation and history helping others put together legitimate estate planning documents can help you achieve your goals.