CALL FOR A FREE CONSULTATION

(248) 646-7700

Revocable Living Trust

A Powerful Estate Planning Tool

A Revocable Living Trust lets you control how your assets are managed during your lifetime and distributed after death—without probate.

You typically serve as the trustee while you’re able, and name someone to take over if you become incapacitated or pass away. A Trust must also have at least one beneficiary—and during your lifetime, you are the sole beneficiary.

You can name anyone you wish to receive the Trust property after your death and decide when and how those beneficiaries will receive their inheritance. Because the Trust is revocable, you may amend or revoke it at any time.

To make your Trust effective, your assets must be transferred into it—a process called funding. There’s no one-size-fits-all Trust, and we’ll tailor yours to your assets, family, and goals.

Advantages Of Having A Revocable Trust

Avoids probate, saving time, costs, and stress
Keeps your affairs private
Offers asset protection for your beneficiaries
May reduce income and estate taxes
Ensures someone you trust can manage your affairs if you’re unable

Disadvantages Of Having A Revocable Trust

Request a Consultation

"*" indicates required fields

THE GRANTOR

Any adult can create a Trust—individually or as a couple. Whether to create one joint Trust or separate Trusts depends on your assets and family situation. We help you decide what’s best.

THE TRUSTEE

You choose the person or institution who will manage your Trust, and ideally one or more backups. Your options include family members, professionals like attorneys or accountants, or a bank & trust company. Choosing the right trustee is critical — we’ll guide you based on decades of experience representing trustees who administer trusts for beneficiaries from all walks of life.

You may nominate a single person or institution to serve alone, or two or more people may serve together as co-trustees. You may retain the power to remove a trustee and appoint a new one. Each trustee may be given unique and detailed instructions on how your property will be managed and eventually distributed. How much authority and what limits are placed on the trustee is up to you.

THE BENEFICIARIES

You decide who gets what, when, and how. Distributions can be immediate or delayed, based on age, milestones, or your own guidelines. We’ll help you create practical and meaningful terms that reflect your values.

For example:

You might require the trustee to pay for college only if the beneficiary is applying themselves diligently or maintaining a certain GPA.
You may have the trustee distribute a set amount each year for support, or provide support only until the beneficiary becomes financially independent.
The trustee may be authorized to assist with a reasonable down payment on a first home or cover the cost of a first wedding.
You can include incentives, such as matching the beneficiary’s earned income with an additional Trust distribution, or offering a bonus distribution upon completing a degree.

There’s no limit to the standards you can include in your Trust, but each provision has different implications for the beneficiary, trustee, and Trust itself.

We have extensive experience working with Trust beneficiaries and can guide you in creating thoughtful and effective terms for your plan.

FUNDING THE TRUST

Setting up the Trust is step one. Step two is making sure your assets are properly titled to the Trust. This may include real estate, financial accounts, retirement plans, and life insurance. Funding is critical—and we handle the details to make sure it’s done right.

For example:

Stocks, mutual funds, and other securities should typically be re-titled in the name of your Trust, which may require opening a new account.
IRAs, 401(k)s, and other retirement accounts must be handled carefully. Married couples usually name each other as primary beneficiaries. If you want the funds managed until younger beneficiaries reach a certain age, consider naming your Trust as the contingent beneficiary — though this can have income tax consequences.
Real estate is generally titled in the name of your Trust, but this should be done carefully to avoid issues with mortgage lenders or local tax authorities. We often use “Ladybird” deeds to accomplish funding goals with real property, but sometimes other options are more effective.
Life insurance policies should generally name your Trust as the beneficiary.

Funding your Trust will involve a certain amount of time, patience, diligence, and should always be overseen by a qualified attorney to ensure that the changes made are consistent with your estate planning documents and objectives.

Estate Planning

A good estate plan helps you avoid probate, minimize taxes, protect your assets, and ensure your wishes are followed. It usually includes documents like a Last Will, Power of Attorney, Patient Advocate

Read More

Last Will

A Last Will and Testament is a key part of your estate plan. If you don’t have a Trust, you Will contains the provisions directing who gets your assets when you die, and if you have minor or disabled children who are

Read More

Financial Power of Attorney

A Financial Power of Attorney is a written document in which you give another person authority to handle your financial affairs if you become incapacitated (i.e., you are mentally and

Read More

Patient Advocate Designation

If you have a major health event, you may not be able to communicate your medical wishes. While no one likes to think about such situations, they’re more common than you might expect. A

Read More

Special Needs Trust

If you want to leave an inheritance to someone with a disability, careful planning is essential. A direct gift could disqualify them from receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid. To avoid

Read More

Get Your Questions Answered Now

Our Advice Is Backed By 25 Years Of Experience.

CALL FOR A FREE CONSULTATION

(248) 646-7700

Get Your Questions Answered Now

Our advice is backed by 25 years of experience and based on over 2,000 client engagements.

“
July 30, 2024
William Gaggos is extremely professional and well connected. Mr. Gaggos listens to his clients and is focused on achieving their desired legal outcomes.

Sterling
“
March 16, 2024
After my husband's unexpected passing early this year, I hired Mr. Gaggos to advise me and provide legal counsel with respect to a slightly unusual probate issue regarding my husband's estate. Throughout this process his handling has been on point in every way - timely, appropriate and with professional skill. Not being a lawyer myself, from time to time I asked questions about process and terms which he answered patiently and to my full satisfaction. I would definitely recommend Mr. Gaggos to anyone seeking legal counsel in his specialty.

Joanne
“
October 21, 2022
William Gaggos provided expert legal assistance in settling the estate and expediting the Revocable Trust of my recently departed spouse. His services included the resolution of numerous financial and legal items in a professional manner and in an efficient timeframe. Mr. Gaggos made this necessary task more bearable by handling all the details with very little effort on my part, including the efficient use of emails with minimal office visits necessary.

Rick
“
January 31, 2023
Bill Gaggos has been my estate planning attorney for over ten years. Bill has guided my wife and I, and other family members in planning and revising our will and trusts. He listens and asks questions in order to provide us with the best options/services that our tailored to our individual requirements. I would highly recommend Bill to anyone looking for an estate planning attorney.

Leonard
“
May 20, 2023
Excellent estate lawyer, helped us though everything in great detail. It truly appeared he know his stuff.

Deborah
“
December 31, 2021
I was referred to Attorney Gaggos by my banker in order to update my living will. He is extremely knowledgeable and professional. He took care of things quickly and anticipated any problems before they happened. I would highly recommend him and his staff.

Mark
“
August 19, 2023
We hired Bill Gaggos for our estate planning, and we couldn't be happier with our choice! Bill addressed all of our concerns and brought up issues we never thought of. We feel very confident and secure that our estate planning is in good hands!

Shelly
“
October 12, 2024
My wife and I met with Mr. William (Bill) Gaggos on a few occasions to develop estate planning documents. Our first introduction was by phone. He was very cordial and professional on our call. We decided to move ahead and work with Bill to develop a comprehensive estate plan. We were extremely satisfied with the results of our engagement. I would use Bill's services in the future and recommend him to anyone who is interested in developing an estate plan.

Frank
“
April 12, 2024
Bill exceeded my expectations on my father’s estate planning. It was a very difficult time for me, Bill took the time to walk me through the process. He was very knowledgeable, professional and most important responsive. Billing was accurate, precise and reasonable. I will be using Bill for all of my future estate and legal business matters moving forward. I consider him a friend.

Christopher Maiberger
“
December 16, 2024
Excellent Trust and Estate Attorney
Bill is extremely patient and thorough. He followed up with my wife and I and also with our financial institutions. He is also beginning to be proficient in international estate issues.

George
“
November 5, 2024
Bill really helped us navigate our parents estates.
When our mom passed, we contacted Bill. He had set up a trust for our parents. But they went to another attorney after that who revised the trust and left it in a real mess. Bill helped us navigate that and other legal tasks that needed to be addressed. He was kind and straightforward, guiding us to do what we could on our own and stepping in as we needed or wanted. We really appreciated his support during a difficult time.

Susan
“
August 18, 2023
Easy to work with. Thanks for the help!

Tim Patton
“
September 10, 2024
Very helpful, efficient and always responded to any query I had. Very pleased I chose Mr Gaggos it was quick and effortless..

Shanen O’Neil
“
August 26, 2022
Bill was very easy to work with getting together a new trust since our previous one was out of date. He is accommodating and makes it convenient not challenging.

Walter Goodman
“
December 8, 2024
Bill Gaggos recently updated my trust, will, and other legal documents.
He very quickly understood who I am and what I’d like. He made great suggestions that I didn’t even know to ask for.
He worked efficiently and quickly.
I am extremely satisfied.

Linda Lloyd
“
March 23, 2024
Bill is awesome to work with. He offers important different perspectives to consider, communicates very well, has great attention to details, is easy to reach and expedient in his response times.

Bradley Sierens
“
November 16, 2023
Bill Gaggos has been amazingly helpful creating an estate plan for me. I have some special circumstances and he talked me through several options until we settled on the one that best fit my needs. I always felt my best interest was his goal. I will recommend Bill to all my friends and family.

Ed Quisenberry
“
January 10, 2025
Bill knows his stuff. He is well organized and follows through with what he says he'll do. He sizes up people quickly and makes recommendations from solid judgement.

Ed Broutin
“
February 18, 2025
We have used Bill for our estate planning and updates. He does a great job, but what I like most is his help with deciding on how we need to plan our estate when we were unsure. I highly recommend him!

Kris Stanford
“
February 6, 2025
My wife and I had an absolutely incredible experience working with Bill Gaggos to get our initial estate plan created and completed. My wife and I had no idea where to start, what questions to ask and Bill walked us through the process and was very thorough and prompt to get this process finished and finalized. I would recommend anyone I know to work with Bill and his team on anything related to estate planning. Top notch!

Mike Koleno
“
April 5, 2025
Bill was very helpful and responsive in putting together our estate plan. He was able to meet right away online and meetings were reasonably timed. He walked us through helpful scenarios and guided us towards a plan that made sense for us. Would recommend him to anyone!

James Wroblewski III