In Sugarcreek, Pennsylvania, a trust is a setup under which property is possessed by one individual or entity, to be utilized for the benefit of another.

A trust can be set up for just about any reason. One of the most frequent reasons is to ensure that a person consistently has enough money to avoid going broke, but not enough that they can avoid getting a job, or spend all of the money on things they don't need. This can be accomplished by drafting a trust agreement so that only authorizes the beneficiary to access a limited portion of the money per week, or per month.

If you are a trustee, you can authorize the beneficiary to access the trust under any conditions you see fit (or make it unconditional, if you want). The point is that, if you make sure the trust agreement is well-constructed, you can help the beneficiary in any way you like, secure in the knowledge that they won't be able (or will find it very challenging) to spend it on things you don't approve of.

A trust could, of course, be much more permissive, if the creator of the trust wants it to be. You could set up a trust permitting the beneficiary to spend as much of the money in it as they like, on anything. Of course, in such a case, the trust fund might not last very long, particularly if the beneficiary is a younger person.

What to Include in Any Sugarcreek, PA Trust

To set up a legitimate trust in Sugarcreek, Pennsylvania, 4 elements are necessary. First, the trust must have a stated purpose, and this purpose must be precisely laid out in the documents that implement the trust.

Second, the trust must further name a trustee. The trustee is the person who is really going to administer the trust, and has possession and control of the property while it is the subject of the trust.

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

Lastly, and perhaps most notably, the trust requires a "body." The body of a trust is the thing (normally, but not always, money) that is really being held in trust, and therefore overseen by the trustee, and utilized to help the beneficiary.

Can A Sugarcreek, Pennsylvania Trust Drafting Attorney Help?

While its' easy to list the basic elements that need to be present for a trust to be valid, the actual process of setting up a trust can be a little difficult. For that reason, seeking the counsel of a seasoned Sugarcreek, Pennsylvania attorney to help you set up a trust is probably a good idea.