In Burien, Washington, a trust is a particular method of managing property for the benefit of another person. A trustee is able to possess and, to some extent, control the property. Nonetheless, the property is owned by the beneficiary, the person for whose benefit the property is being used.

Trusts serve a variety of purposes. For instance, they can be set up to ensure that the beneficiary (say, a child) will consistently have enough money to live off of, but will be unable to spend it all on frivolities.

A trust can make as many or as few allowances as the person creating it wants. For instance, a trust could be set up which authorizes the beneficiary to spend the money on educational expenses, and nothing else.

Because you, as the trustee, can decide the rules under which the trust operates, you could give the beneficiary the right to access the fund at any time, for any reason, basically letting them do whatever they want with the money, if that's what you want to do.

What to Include in Any Burien, WA Trust

There are 4 distinct elements that must be present for any trust to be legitimate in Burien, Washington. The first element is the purpose - in drafting a trust document, the purpose that the trust is serving must be stated.

Second, the trust needs a trustee. The trustee will have possession of the property or money that is being held in trust, and will be accountable for putting it to the use that the creator of the trust intended.

Third, the trust needs to have a named beneficiary. The beneficiary is the individual who benefits from the trust.

Lastly, the trust needs to have a corpus, or body. The "body" of the trust is the property that benefits the beneficiary, and that the trustee oversees. Obviously, there can be no trust without something being held in trust.

Can A Burien, Washington Trust Drafting Attorney Help?

While the elements of a valid trust are fairly simple and easy to remember, drafting a trust that is sure to be carried out according to the wishes of the person making it can still be complex. For that reason, a good Burien, Washington attorney experienced in estate planning and the drafting trusts may prove invaluable.