All the Ways You Can (Legally) Avoid Probate

You are receiving this email because you signed up to receive Bob Carlson's free e-letter Retirement Watch Weekly, or you purchased a product or service from its publisher, Eagle Financial Publications. [Carlson's Retirement Watch Weekly] [Retirement Reports](www.retirementwatch.com/retirement-resources/) [Retirement Articles](www.retirementwatch.com/retirement-articles/) Brought to you by Eagle Financial Publications All the Ways You Can (Legally) Avoid Probate by Bob Carlson Editor, [Retirement Watch]( 03/26/2023 SPONSORED [Secure Your Family's Future in 15 Seconds With Gold-IRA]( [image]( We could be facing one of the harshest economic challenges ever experienced thanks to an incompetent government and severe global unrest. If you aren't proactive, you could see yourself and your family become another financial casualty. But, the Inflation Survival Plan has you covered. Learn insider tips and tricks, IRS loopholes and more that will help your finances soar. [Take 15 Seconds to get the FREE Inflation Survival Plan and ensure your family's financial security.]( [CLICK HERE...]( Fellow Investor, [Bob Carlson]Avoiding probate often is a major estate planning goal, but most people don’t learn all the strategies available. In probate, a deceased person’s estate is administered and distributed according to state and local law. The process ensures debts are paid and legal title to assets passes as the decedent wanted, or according to state law if the decedent didn’t have a valid will. There are good reasons people want to avoid probate. Probate can tie up the estate for months or longer and can cause the estate to incur extra expenses. While some states and localities streamlined the process, at least for less valuable estates, for most estates probate still has delays plus extra expenses and work. The estate administrator usually is required to appear before the court or a clerk one or more times unless a local attorney is hired to manage the process. Also, a probated estate is a public record anyone can review. Many people don’t want others to know the details of their estate and how it was distributed. Fortunately, you can structure the estate so that all or most of it passes to your loved ones without probate. Generally, assets whose title passes to the next owner by a contract or operation of law are exempt from probate. The living trust is the most well-known way to avoid probate. All assets owned by the trust are distributed to new owners as described in the trust agreement. The probate court isn’t involved. Retirement accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s, avoid probate. The beneficiary designation form on file with the account administrator or trustee determines who inherits them. Your will and the probate court usually aren’t involved. Life insurance benefits and annuities are distributed to beneficiaries named in the contract. The insurance company pays the benefits after receiving the death certificate and other documents. There’s no involvement of the probate court, unless the estate is a beneficiary. [The Attack on Your Retirement Is Escalating in 2023]( [image]( A crippling law – one that most Americans still haven't heard about – gives Uncle Sam the green light to rob your retirement blind for years and decades – without you even noticing. [Click here]( for retirement whistleblower Bob Carlson's alarming video to learn his full findings... and, most importantly, what you can still do about it. [CLICK HERE...]( Joint accounts and joint title are widely used ways to avoid probate. Married couples can own real estate or financial accounts through joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Some states also allow a tenancy in the entirety for real estate. In either case, the spouses both own the property while both are alive. The surviving spouse automatically takes full title after the other spouse passes away. Joint title to property also can be established between non-spouses. It’s fairly common for an older person to create a joint account with a younger person at a financial institution. The younger person automatically inherits the account when the older person passes away, without the need for probate. In addition, if the older person is unable to manage his or her affairs at some point, the younger person can manage the older person’s finances without the need for a power of attorney. But there are downsides. All joint owners have equal rights to the property. A joint owner can take withdrawals from the account or change how it is invested without the consent of the other owner. Joint accounts are one of the most common means through which financial fraud and abuse are inflicted on older people. Also, once joint title is established you can’t make a change in ownership without the consent of the other joint owner. The person who inherits full title of an account through joint title also might not receive some of the tax benefits, such as increasing the tax basis of assets, available when assets are inherited in other ways. Joint title is the least desirable way to avoid probate when the joint owners aren’t spouses. In next week’s issue of Retirement Watch Weekly, we'll dig a little deeper with some additional ways to avoid probate. To a better retirement, [Bob Carlson] Bob Carlson Editor, Retirement Watch Weekly Editor’s Note: Did you know that Social Security laws are constantly changing, adding more rules each year? Some boost your income... but some can rob you blind. That’s why I created my NEW guide Secrets to Boosting Social Security Benefits. You’ll get the full scoop so you can safely navigate your retirement in these times of volatile markets, raging inflation, and political uncertainty. [Click here to get your copy.]( SPONSORED [Claim Your Seat to the Most Important Active Trading and Investing Event This Spring]( [image]( We hope you’ve cleared your calendar for April 17th through the 22nd because you are invited to join 60+ of the industry’s leading trading and investing minds that week at the Wealth365 Summit as we share our top actionable strategies, market predictions, and unique insights for this spring! If you want to cut through the noise and learn specifically what you need to know to trade or invest this spring, you cannot afford to miss this Summit! Don’t miss out, [reserve your seat here!]( [CLICK HERE...]( Want More Retirement Advice? Check out my website, [RetirementWatch.com](, where you’ll find hundreds of free articles covering every aspect of retirement planning. Popular Posts: [The Overlooked Retirement Time Bomb]( [Understanding Rules of IRA Contributions]( [Strategies to Reduce Alternate Minimum Tax]( [Avoiding Expensive IRA Mistakes]( New to the Retirement Watch Community: SeniorResource.com Thanks to the SECURE Act 2.0 that was passed by Congress last December, there are several new rules that affect required minimum distributions (RMDs) from traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, and other tax-deferred retirement accounts. These changes, which build on the original SECURE Act of 2019, are a benefit to retirees by increasing the RMD age and lowering the penalty for missing a withdrawal. Find out more by [clicking here.]( About Bob Carlson: [Bob Carlson]Robert C. Carlson is the author of the books The New Rules of Retirement and Retirement Tax Guide, editor and investment director of the popular retirement newsletter, Retirement Watch, and editor of the free weekly e-letter, Retirement Watch Weekly. 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