When many people pass away, they do not just want to leave something behind for friends and family members. Some also have a few charitable causes that they support and they actually want to be sure that their assets can continue to support such causes once they have passed away. This is where a Woodland Hills charitable planning attorney could be of assistance. Our law firm has plenty of experience helping people find the best ways to support important causes and charities with assets from their estates.
What Are Some Popular Charitable Planning Options?
There are a few different ways to approach charitable planning and different options for dividing up your assets. There are also ways to set up your estate so that it gives to your charities automatically while you are alive and after you have passed.
We can take a look at your assets and help you figure out a good way to support some important causes. You may want to make use of:
Family foundations: We can help you establish a family foundation that would focus on charitable giving. You could set this up to support multiple charitable causes and choose someone to run it for you once you have passed away. This setup can also offer tax benefits.
Life insurance policies: The payout from a life insurance policy can also be used for charitable giving. If you have already selected other assets that can be passed down to other beneficiaries and you do not believe that anyone would need your insurance policy’s payout, this is a simple way to make a significant, one-time gift to a charity of choice.
Trusts: These are common tools in charitable planning. Some types of trusts can pay out at the end of each annuity term to distribute assets to you, your beneficiaries, and charitable causes. A charitable lead trust pays charities first, while charitable remainder trusts donate what is left over after you and/or your beneficiaries receive a payout.
Should I Work with an Estate Planning Lawyer?
Figuring out any estate plan on your own can be difficult. Even a will that seems simple enough to write has to meet many different standards before it can be considered a legitimate document. Trying to make a more advanced estate plan with more assets to distribute can be even more complex. Then throw charitable planning into things, and it becomes clear that it is a much better idea to consult some professionals.
Schedule a Consultation
If you want to learn more about your charitable planning options, contact the Law Offices of Yacoba Ann Feldman. We will make it easy for you to understand your options and we will take the time to help you find the best way to make use of your estate’s assets.
