Probate Avoidance
Denver Probate Lawyer
What is Probate?
Probate is a court procedure for settling the estate of a deceased person. The procedure is designed to insure that creditor claims and taxes are paid and that any remaining assets are transferred to the beneficiaries according to the terms of the deceased person's
Will or
Revocable Living Trust. If the deceased died without a Will or Trust, he is said to "have died intestate" in which case his estate is distributed to his closest living relatives.
Under Colorado law a person's estate is subject to probate if he dies owning: (1) titled personal property with an aggregate value of $63,000 or more; or (2) real estate of any value. While probate in Colorado is less complicated and less expensive than in many states, it typically costs 2-5% of probate assets and takes a minimum of one year to complete. As a result, many of us are interested in developing an estate plan that circumvents probate.
Assets that are not subject to Probate include the following:
- Gifts made prior to death
- Assets held by a Living Revocable Trust
- Pension Plans or IRA's with a named beneficiary
- Life Insurance and Annuities with a named beneficiary
- Bank Accounts with a Payable On Death (POD) designation
- Brokerage Accounts with a Transfer on Death (TOD) designation
- Real or Personal Property held in Joint Tenancy with another person
- Titled Personal Property with an Aggregate value of less than $63,000
- Real Property transferred to beneficiaries via a Life Estate Deed or Beneficiary Deed
Contact a Denver Probate Attorney
today for advice about your probate matter.