You can achieve this by setting up a trust, putting that asset into the trust, getting trustees to run that trust, and making a chosen person the beneficiary under that trust.
A trust is an arrangement whereby property is held by one person (the trustee) for the benefit of another person (the beneficiary). The beneficiary never actually owns the property, and you can dictate who gets to use the property after the present beneficiary's time with the asset is up.
A trust can be set up now while you are alive, or you can include the creation of a trust in your will so that it is set up when you die.
Depending on what you want to achieve, there are different types of trusts. You can leave it to trustees to decide what the beneficiaries get (a Discretionary Trust), or you can set it up so that a beneficiary uses a property until they die and then it passes to someone else (a Life Interest trust). Other types of trusts cater specifically for people who are disabled (to safeguard their assets when it comes to benefits eligibilty) or who have secured large settlements in personal injury claims.
You can see how we have used trusts to help our clients by clicking on "People we have helped”, below.
As well as preserving assets for future generations, there are other benefits to using trusts -
- Tax planning - it may be that by putting certain assets into trusts, you can legitimately avoid paying all the tax that you would otherwise have to pay. You can see more detail on this by looking at our tax planning area - click here.
- Privacy - whilst the terms of your Will become public, the details of a trust that is made in your lifetime do not.
- Vunerable beneficiaries - trusts may be used to protect beneficiaries against their own inability to handle money, for example due to their illness or disability.
- Means-testing - assets or funds that a person is entitled to under certain trusts are not taken into account when they undergo means-tests to see if they are eligible for state benefits or help with the cost of care.
- Waiting until the right time - if children are below the age of 18 (or a later age specified in a Will) when the person making the will dies, the deceased's assets can be held in trust for the children until the required age, though the trust can allow financial assistance to be provided to the young beneficiaries before they reach that required age
- Asset protection - a trust may be advisable on a second marriage, where one person bringing assets to the marriage may wish for a new spouse to benefit from them, whilst preserving them for the benefit of the children from the first marriage.
A trust created by a Will may protect assets from being taken into account when calculating liability to pay care home fees, and indeed such assets can thus be protected from creditors.
If you have any questions, or you would like to know whether the use of a trust could help you to achieve your aims, or you would like us to help you to set up or to run a trust, then please do not hesitate to speak to our specialist lawyers.
We also act as professional trustees - administering trusts and assets fully in accordance with the wishes of the people who set the trust up. We would gladly carry out this role for you.
As we say, we are always there for people and families who are in our PURPLE LEGAL scheme. We invite you to join PURPLE LEGAL now. By joining PURPLE LEGAL, you can have all your legal enquiries answered free of charge by simply booking a SolicitorSlot for a time and date that suits you. Alternatively if you wish to speak to us now, please click on "Please Contact Me Now” or call us on 0845 567 5000. We look forward to always being there for you.
