• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia

Long Island Estate Planning Attorneys

ESTATE, TRUST PLANNING &
ELDER LAW INFORMATION CENTER

Call Now: (800) 295.1917

  • Attend Our Free Webinars
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Client Testimonials
    • Meet Our Team
  • Services
    • Blended Family Planning
    • Elder Law
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Guardianship
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Nursing Home Planning
  • Resources
    • Articles
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Commack Elder Law
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Harrison Elder Law
      • Hauppauge Elder Law
      • Rockville Centre Elder Law
      • White Plains Elder Law
    • Estate Planning Definitions
    • FREE Estate Planning Worksheet
    • FREE Seminars
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Elder Law
      • Estate Planning
      • Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Is My Estate Plan Outdated?
    • Legacy Wealth Planning Consultation Form
    • Medicaid Resources
    • Probate Resources
      • Harrison Probate
      • Hauppauge Probate
      • Long Island Probate
    • Probate Checklist
    • Special Reports
      • Advanced Estate Planning
      • Basic Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning for Niches
      • Trust Administration
    • Top Estate Planning Techniques
  • Communities We Serve
    • Nassau County
      • Garden City
      • Lynbrook
      • Malverne
      • Rockville Centre
    • Suffolk County
      • Commack
      • Dix Hills
      • Hauppauge
      • Nesconset
      • Smithtown
    • Westchester County
      • Harrison
      • Mamaroneck
      • Rye Brook
      • White Plains
  • Webinars
  • BLOG
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • Contact Us
Home » Trusts » How Do I Create an Estate Plan that Avoids Probate?

How Do I Create an Estate Plan that Avoids Probate?

September 6, 2018 by Anthony Moccia

probate lawyersWhether you have experienced first-hand how cumbersome the probate process can be, or you have simply been warned about it, you may now be determined to keep your estate’s exposure to probate to a minimum.  To help you better understand how your estate can reach your probate avoidance goal, the probate lawyers at the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia discuss the purpose of probate and how careful estate planning can significantly contribute to your probate avoidance goal.

What Is Probate and Why Is Avoiding Probate Desirable?

Most people leave behind an estate when they die. That estate consists of all assets owned by the decedent at the time of death, including real and personal property as well as intangible and tangible assets. Probate serves several important purposes, including:

  • Identifying, locating, securing, and valuing all assets owned by you at the time of your death.
  • Notifying creditors and offering them the ability to file claims against your estate.
  • Authenticating your Last Will and Testament
  • Litigating any challenges to your Will
  • Identifying and notifying beneficiaries and/or heirs of the estate
  • Ensuring that federal (and in sometimes state) gift and estate taxes are paid if owed
  • Effectuating the transfer or the remaining estate assets to the new owners

Probate avoidance is among the most popular of all estate planning goals in large part because formal probate is costly, both in terms of time and money. In the State of New York, it will take at least eight months to probate even a relatively simple estate because creditors have seven months from the date the Surrogate Court issues letters to file a claim against the estate. Often, formal probate can take considerably longer than eight months. In addition, the longer it takes to probate an estate, the more expensive it will likely be because everyone involved (Executor, attorney, appraiser, accountant) is entitled to a fee for their services. The good news is that careful estate planning can minimize, if not completely avoid, your estate’s exposure to probate.

Estate Planning Tips for Avoiding Probate

Working with an experienced probate lawyer is the best way to achieve your probate avoidance goal. There are, however, some common strategies and/or tools that you may wish to incorporate into your overall estate plan to help your estate avoid probate, such as:

  1. Using a revocable living trust as your primary method by which your estate assets are distributed. Not all assets are required to go through probate. Assets held by a trust, for example, bypass the probate process altogether and can be distributed to beneficiaries as soon after your death as you wish. Using a trust to distribute assets offers other benefits as well, such as the ability to stagger an inheritance instead of leaving a lump sum to a young beneficiary.
  2. Titling assets and accounts so that they pass to the new owner outside of probate. The manner in which assets are titled can also be used to avoid probate. Real property, for example, can be held jointly with rights of survivorship, allowing your interest in the property to pass directly to the co-owner upon your death without first going through probate. Certain accounts can also be designated as “Payable on Death (POD)” or “Transfer on Death (TOD)” accounts which allows you to designate a beneficiary who will automatically become the owner of the assets held in the account upon your death. Unlike jointly held assets, however, a beneficiary of a POD or TOD account has no ownership interest in the asset while you are alive.
  3. Gifting while you are alive. Only assets owned by you at the time of your death are relevant for probate purposes. Making lifetime gifts diminishes the value of the estate you leave behind, thereby increasing the likelihood that your estate can avoid probate. Lifetime gifting can also offer other benefits, such as tax avoidance, if gifts are carefully planned.

Contact New York Probate Lawyers

Please feel free to download our FREE estate planning worksheet. If you have questions or concerns about how your estate plan can help your estate avoid probate, contact the New York probate lawyers at the Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia by calling 800-295-1917 to schedule your appointment.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Anthony Moccia
Anthony Moccia
Anthony Moccia is an attorney and partner at The Law Offices of Kobrick & Moccia.His practice focuses on estate planning and elder law.He is a member of the New York State and Nassau County Bar Associations.He frequently presents free seminars on wills & living trusts to area residents and his seminars are said to be “informative, entertaining & easy to understand.”
Anthony Moccia
Latest posts by Anthony Moccia (see all)
  • Do I Need a “Durable” Power of Attorney? - April 2, 2020
  • Joint Tenancy Pros and Cons - March 31, 2020
  • Planning for the Sandwich Generation - March 26, 2020

Filed Under: Trusts

Other Articles You May Find Useful

Hauppauge living trust attorneys
Why Would I Want to Make My Trust Irrevocable?
Harrison inheritance planning
Should I Leave My Children an Equal Inheritance?
Hauppauge revocable trusts
How Do I Know When to Use a Revocable Trust?
QTIP trust requirements
QTIP Trust Requirements
Hauppauge living trust attorneys
Why Might I Need a Living Trust?
Harrison living trust lawyers
Incentive Trusts

Primary Sidebar

Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia

Download our free estate planning worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Blog Subscription

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

GARDEN CITY

1305 Franklin Avenue Suite 170
Garden City, NY 11530
United States (US)
Phone: (516) 248-9500
Fax: (516) 248-7606

HAUPPAUGE

150 Motor Parkway Suite 401 (Regus)
Hauppauge, NY 11788
United States (US)
Phone: (631) 941-3400
Fax: (516) 248-7606

HARRISON

600 Mamaroneck Avenue, 4th Floor
Harrison, NY 10528
United States (US)
Phone: (914) 701-0777
Fax: (516) 248-7606

MAP

kobrick_sidbr_map

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

The information on this Attorneys & Lawyers / Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. The information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

Kobrick and Moccia, Attorneys at Law. Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

Law Offices of Kobrick and Moccia
Attorney Advertisement
© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.