I mentioned a few simple ways to avoid probate in the previous article. You'll find some more tactics for bypassing probate court listed below:

Other Property Issues: In the previous article I mentioned that you could share property through joint ownership, whether legally married or not. There are other ways to transfer any type of property upon an owner's death, and each method is subject to state laws.

You can establish "joint tenancy with right of survivorship" in some instances, an easy solution for passing on property after your death, but only in some states. Another method, "tenancy by the entirety," is very similar to joint tenancy, but can be used only by married couples in some states. Same-sex partners who have registered with the state can use this method to avoid probate; but, once again, this solution is only available in a few states.

Finally, if you are married and live in or own property in some states, you can co-own property with your spouse in a "community property with right of survivorship." You share the title and when you die your spouse retains ownership. California allows registered domestic partners to use this method to avoid probate.

Right of survivorship documents make a designated beneficiary more obvious than in a simple joint ownership, as the title states that the surviving joint owner is, indeed, the full owner upon the owner's death. To establish joint ownership in any form, you usually need to record new real estate deeds, titles for your car or boat, stock and bond certificates, statements of account for mutual funds, registration cards for your bank accounts, etc.

While this effort costs little and you can avoid a lawyer in most instances, I can't repeat enough that the new joint owner has immediate access to your property. While this may be your wish, whether dead or alive, you may not know enough about that partner's past to realize that partner's liabilities. A partner's creditor (such as the IRS) could walk away with half your property before you know what hit you.

Revocable Living Trusts: This trust, also known as an "Inter Vivos" trust, is flexible and can include almost any asset that you own. You act as trustee while you're living, and you can add or remove property within this trust as you see fit. You can also end or amend the trust at anytime. Before you die, you name a successor trustee who distributes the trust assets to beneficiaries according to the trust agreement. Also, if you should become ill or incapacitated, the successor trustee can continue to administer the trust to the benefit of the grantor.

The upside to this trust is that it is completely confidential, whereas a will is entirely public. The downside to this probate-avoidance solution is that this trust often involves a huge amount of paperwork, it's expensive to create, and you need an attorney to draw up the legal documents. However, you might want to measure this trust's initial costs against what probate may cost. If you value confidentiality and if you want to avoid probate at all costs, then this venue might fit your purposes. Just remember that this trust doesn't shield your estate from creditors or estate taxes.

Lifetime Gifts: This method to avoid probate is perfect for individuals who also want to avoid gift and estate taxes on relatively simple estates. Gifts to your spouse, qualified charities, gifts that total $12,000 or less per person per year (double that amount if your spouse can split the gift with you), tuition payments on behalf of an individual made directly to an educational institution, and medical care expenses paid directly to the provider on behalf of an individual all represent ways to slide by probate.

You might want to check with a financial advisor to determine how to file this gift and to learn about any limitations in your particular case.

Other Solutions: The following remaining solutions for probate avoidance are, again, subject to your domicile state's laws:

• IRA or other Retirement Account: As with a P.O.D. or a TOD (see previous article), you can designate a beneficiary for these accounts. That beneficiary can claim remaining funds in these accounts through an account custodian. If you're single, choose whomever you want as beneficiary. If you're married (or if your partner can claim domestic partnership upon your death), your partner may have rights to some or all funds.
  
  
• Small Estate: If you can work out lifetime gifts to reduce your estate, or if you simply never accumulated a large estate during your lifetime, you can avoid probate. State guidelines apply, but in most cases your beneficiaries can claim your assets, usually with the presentation of a notarized affidavit and a death certificate. Almost fifty percent of states set a $10,000 to $20,000 limit on qualified estate value (which is one reason why estates are appraised after a death). Some states, however, allow up to $100,000 to be disseminated outside probate court.
  
  You can determine your estate value when you deduct final estate expenses from your estate value to determine final worth. Taxes, debts, loans, plus assets that can pass outside probate (such as jointly owned assets) can be deducted in most cases. Just know that although your beneficiaries can avoid probate with this process, it still can take up to three months to finalize, and the survivors may require an attorney to iron out details.
  
  
• Finally, your named Executor or Executrix can file a document for summary, or a simplified probate (see California for one example). This method doesn't require an attorney, but states vary widely on the allowable size of the estate for this method.

If nothing else, you can create a P.O.D. bank account so that your family can access those funds immediately after your death. Or, you can tie up your estate for years. When you think about it, the only thing you can control about your death is the availability of your assets after you're gone.

Until Next Week,
Linda Goin