Will or Trust? A Simple Guide
Planning for the future is one of the kindest things you can do for your family. A clear plan ensures your hard-earned property passes to your loved ones quickly and easily, allowing them to focus on celebrating your life instead of being weighed down by paperwork. In Vermont, the choice often comes down to a Will or a Trust.
The Power of a Will
A Will is a legal document where you state exactly who should receive your property and who you name to be in charge of the process (your Executor). Wills are straightforward and trusted, and they are the primary way to name a Guardian for minor children. The trade-off is that a Will must go through Probate—a public, court-supervised process. Even a simple case can take many months for the court to finalize before assets can be distributed.
A Will is easy and relatively inexpensive to establish now but more difficult and expensive to deal with later.
What a Trust Does
A Trust (specifically a Revocable Living Trust) acts like a legal container that holds your property while you are alive, and you remain fully in control. The biggest advantage is that property held in a Trust avoids Probate entirely. This means distribution is prompt, private, and your Successor Trustee can manage things immediately after you're gone. This is particularly helpful if you own real estate in multiple states or have many different accounts or beneficiaries. The trade-off is that you need to re-title assets (bank and brokerage accounts, etc.) into the Trust after you create it.
A Trust is more work and more expensive to establish now but easier and less expensive to deal with later.
Which is Right for You?
The best choice depends entirely on your circumstances, assets, and your wishes.
A Will is often the right fit if your assets are simple (like accounts with named beneficiaries), and your beneficiaries can comfortably wait for the probate timeline.
A Trust is typically recommended if you own real estate (especially several parcels or out of state real estate), have substantial wealth, or need complex instructions (like staggered distributions).
The best way to decide is to gather information about your finances and have a simple, confidential conversation with an estate planning professional.
