In Texas, a will controls assets owned by an estate. A trust controls assets owned by the trust. The will, therefore, does not control accounts or assets that transfer by a beneficiary designation of some kind. The will does not control direct transfers by right of survivorship agreements. Why not, you may ask? Well, [...]
There are several common problems we see with beneficiary designations. First, there is the "unintentional beneficiary". These occur when we are fairly certain that the owner of the account added another person as a convenient signer, but the bank created, without the owner's knowledge, a "joint right of survivorship account." Surely the bank will fix [...]
As our last blog article discussed, there are many types of beneficiary designations or ways to hold assets that avoid probate. Prior to the invention of IRAs and 401Ks, almost all assets were either owned singularly or jointly. In Texas, as a general rule, joint assets do not automatically pass to the other. Singular assets [...]
Beneficiary designations come in many forms. First, you need to know your acronyms: JTROS – Joint with Right of Survivorship POD – Payable on Death TOD – Transfer on death There are also beneficiary designations, alternate beneficiary designations, and joint ownership with (or without) survival benefits. This is a confusing set of similar designations [...]
Herman Moncure - Shareholder | Practice Group Leader – Estate Planning Herman Moncure is a partner at Pyke Balen & Moncure, P.C. and serves as Practice Group Leader for the firm’s Estate Planning practice. His path to estate planning was shaped by personal experience, professional discipline, and a deep understanding of the [...]