When people talk about trusts, they can seem complex and expensive, perhaps potentially only for the super-rich. The reality is they don’t have to be. Put simply, a trust is a vehicle to protect your assets and to guarantee your loved ones financial stability in the future – something we all want to achieve after building a nest egg.

There are many reasons to consider placing assets in to a trust and the main concerns people come to us with where a trust could help include:

• A desire to avoid substantial inheritance tax.  

• Future-proofing to ensure wealth is passed to the right beneficiaries.

• Seeking to reduce the amount of money lost to care fees.

A trust can be set up during your lifetime, where you can act as a trustee and control what happens to the assets you have gifted within the trust. This protects your assets from inheritance tax by progressively moving them out of your estate.

There is also the option to set up a trust in your Will which deals with the protection of assets after your death. These are commonly used where you may be worried about the impact of care home fees, the divorce of a child or the protection of disabled or vulnerable members of your family.

Unlike a Will, you are able to be very specific about what happens to assets within the trust. An example of this would be stipulating that one beneficiary can live in a property but once it is sold, the money should go to a different beneficiary.   

There are many types of trust, each with slightly different features. The main thing to remember is that there is usually one suitable for everyone as part of a balanced financial plan.

We can talk through this with you (and your family if you wish) and how different trusts may be appropriate for different situations or scenarios you may be concerned about.

Please call 0117 363 6212 or email office@haroldstephens.co.uk to book your complimentary financial review, we’re happy to help.