Bristol Wills & Estate Planning provides a complete range of estate planning products and services, including Wills, Trusts, Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs), Inheritance Tax planning and document storage.
Wills
Ensure that your assets go to the people you intend to benefit from your estate and appoint guardians for children under the age of 18.
Documents range from basic Wills to Wills with Trusts, including:
- Will with Property Protection Trust to protect property
- Will with Flexible Life Interest Trust to protect property and money
- Will with Discretionary Trust to keep things flexible
- Will with Vulnerable Person's Trust to benefit a vulnerable/disabled person.
Lasting powers of attorney (LPAs)
These essential legal documents enable a trusted family member or friend to make decisions on your behalf if you lose the mental capacity to look after yourself and your finances.
We provide both Power of Attorney documents:
- Lasting Power of Attorney for Property and Financial Affairs
- Lasting Power of Attorney for Health and Welfare
Lifetime Trusts
Unlike a Trust in your Will, a Lifetime Trust is up and running whilst you’re alive, providing immediate protection of assets.
A key benefit of Lifetime Trusts is that you can avoid probate for assets held in Trust. If your house is in a Lifetime Trust, for example, your family would not have to wait for months to get a Grant of Probate before they can sell it. The trustees could sell it straight away.
Setting up a Lifetime Trust can also prevent a claim against your estate being successful. Whereas a Will can be challenged under the Inheritance Provision for Family and Dependants Act 1975, a Lifetime Trust cannot.
Lifetime Trusts only provide maximum protection if they’re set up well in advance of unforeseen events. Just as it’s too late to buy an insurance policy if your house is on fire, it’s too late to prevent your assets being eroded by:
- care fees
- divorce
- or bankruptcy
...if any of these events if just around the corner.
Inheritance Tax planning
We can advise on the effect of different types of Will on the tax that your family will have to pay before receiving their inheritance.
We can also suggest ways of reducing your Inheritance Tax liability, including Trusts for rental properties and more bespoke types of planning.
For professional landlords with a portfolio of properties, we bring in trusted partners to provide expert tax planning.
