4Real Forums: Setting up a Will / Trust

Oh, Dearest Mother, Sweetest Virgin of Altagracia, our Patroness. You are our Advocate and to you we recommend our needs. You are our Teacher and like disciples we come to learn from the example of your holy life. You are our Mother, and like children, we come to offer you all of the love of our hearts. Receive, dearest Mother, our offerings and listen attentively to our supplications. Amen.

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Topic: Setting up a Will / Trust

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SuzanneG
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Joined: June 17 2006
Location: Idaho
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Posts: 5465

Posted: Sept 28 2006 at 12:14pm \| IP Logged

My mother is doing her will, etc.

My sister is 28 years old with special needs. She has never been officially "diagnosed"....but was in special ed until 8th grade when she was "main-streamed" for about 50% of her day. She lives at home with my mom, and works at McDonalds (since whe was 17) and is a GREAT worker and they LOVE her. If she has her way, she will work there for the rest of her life.

Anyway, my mom is trying to get information about whether or not to set up a TRUST for her within her will. OR, should she just get the 1/5 of my mom's estate like the rest of us.

Do any of you have any advice/sources on what factors to take into consideration to make this decision? She is just getting blanket statements from people without help as to HOW to make the decision....i don't know if i'm making any sense. I know you can't make RECOMMENDATIONS without more specifics, but things to take into consideration in order to MAKE the decision.

Any thougths, anyone?

Thank You!
Suzanne in WA
mom to 4 girls - 5,4,3, 6 months
Gladdest Hours

hylabrook1
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Joined: July 09 2006
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Posts: 5980

Posted: Sept 28 2006 at 2:28pm \| IP Logged

Suzanne -

What does your sister do with the pay she gets now? Does she know how to budget, manage to pay bills, etc.? Will she ever earn enough to live on her own?

If she really is financially dependent on your mother, getting 1/5 of the estate may not be enough to allow her to live very well. Or will she need to live with one of her siblings? I guess in a round about way I'm asking whether she is more of a child or an adult. To me that would be the basis of deciding whether she will need to rely on a trust set up for her future support. That may mean that the 1/5 (or 1/4) share each of the rest of you gets from your Mom's estate will be less, because what it takes to set up a trust that actually provides for your sister is more than her share would otherwise be. Not that that is necessarily unfair, if she needs the financial help more than the rest of you all do.

To me (a retired attorney), those would be the kinds of questions to ask in figuring out which way to go.

Sometimes senior centers give seminars on Estate Planning, which may be a resource for you in how to think through the decision. I would be willing to answer other questions, but they would need to be pretty general, as I don't know the law in your state and am not licensed to practice at this point.

Peace,
Nancy

SuzanneG
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Joined: June 17 2006
Location: Idaho
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5465

Posted: Sept 29 2006 at 4:44pm \| IP Logged

Thanks, Nancy. That helps.
Suzanne

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