RICHMOND, Va. -- You’ve heard off wills, trusts and powers of attorney. They are all important documents, but what makes them different from each other? Sarah McCurry, partner at Winslow, McCurry & MacCormac, PLLC, joined us to break it all down.
POWER OF ATTORNEY:
A Power of Attorney is a document that is effective during your lifetime for a named third party (friend, family or business, etc.) to step in and help/handle your financial affairs. It ends at death.
WILL:
A will is a document that names who your Executor will be (the person that will file your last taxes), if you have minor children, names who you would like to be the guardian of your children and handles the disposition of your real and personal estate that doesn't otherwise transfer. For the will to transfer assets, generally the court will want to be involved, and the process to transfer the property and report the transfers to the court is generally known as probate.
TRUST:
A trust is an agreement between its creator (grantor, settlor, trustor) and a trustee (often the same person) agreeing as to how certain assets that are otherwise directed to the trust are to be distributed. The primary benefit of a trust is control and the ability to transfer assets without having to file paperwork with the court (privacy, more efficient).
Winslow, McCurry & MacCormac is located at 1324 Sycamore Square, Midlothian, VA 23113. For more information, give them a call at 804-423-1382, or click here to visit their website.
{*THIS SEGMENT IS SPONSORED BY WINSLOW, MCCURRY & MACCORMAC, PLLC*}
