Yes, trusts can typically avoid probate in Alabama. The primary reason many people establish trusts is indeed to avoid the probate process, which can be time-consuming and expensive. When you create a trust, you're transferring ownership of your assets to the trust and, upon your death, the assets held in the trust are no longer part of your personal estate and aren't subject to probate.
In Alabama, the average costs for a basic Revocable Living Trust ranges from $1,000 to $3,000. More complex trusts could cost several thousand dollars more. Snug serves as a budget-friendly option by offering an accessible online platform for creating both wills and trusts at a lower price than traditional legal services. Our clear pricing structure ensures clients receive quality estate planning services without the high costs associated with traditional legal services.
The overall cost of estate planning in Alabama tends to go up to around $4,250.
When most people setup a trust, they are setting up a Revocable Living Trust. These trusts can be altered or canceled during your lifetime. They are flexible and offer control over the assets during your lifetime, and they can help avoid probate. There are many other types of trusts designed for specific situations, like Charitable Trusts or Special Needs Trusts.
Funding a trust in Alabama involves transferring ownership of your assets into the trust. For real estate, this means preparing a new deed for the property in the name of the trust. For bank accounts, you would need to contact your bank to have them change the account holder to the trust. Other types of assets, like vehicles, personal property, stocks, business interests, bonds, etc., would also need to be formally transferred to the trust.
Adding a house to a trust in Alabama can be a little more complex — the state has specific rules and regulations about it.
In Alabama, any individual who is at least 19 years old and mentally competent can serve as a trustee. Additionally, Alabama law allows for corporations, such as banks or trust companies, to serve as a trustee if they are authorized to exercise trust powers in the state. Trustees must be able to handle and take care of property, and they can't have been found guilty of serious crimes, including felonies or crimes that involve dishonest or immoral behavior.
In Alabama, to change your living trust, you need to draft an amendment to the original trust document. It’s crucial to clearly state in the amendment the changes you want to make, such as adding or removing beneficiaries, changing trustees, or modifying distribution instructions. Ensure you include the date, your name, the name of the trust, and the date the trust was created. Like the original trust document, your amendment should be signed in the presence of a notary public. If you want to make extensive changes to your living trust, it might be easier to create a restatement of the trust. A restatement allows you to rewrite the entire trust, while maintaining the original date and title of the trust, which can be beneficial for avoiding retitling assets. In the restatement, you would include all the changes you want to make, and the new provisions will replace the old ones entirely.
