California | Wills and Trusts
Legal Question
Need trust or not?
My grandmother owns a home that is worth about $300,000 and also has assets worth $300,000 in various bank-type accounts. She has 3 children and wants to leave all that she has to the 3 of them equally. She has written a will stating this and also has all three of them as beneficiaries on all of her accounts. Am I correct in my assumption, that upon her death, her house will have to go through probate? I don't think bank accounts go through probate, right? From the research I've done on the web, I see that the cost could be anywhere from $9,000 and up. She is looking to me for guidance, but she seems hesitant to pay to put her things in a trust. If she puts me on the deed to the house, can I then transfer the ownership to the 3 kids at the time of her death? Would I have to pay any type of taxes or capital gains? She doesn't want to put any of her kids on the deed, because she feels as though they would control any decisions regarding the house, while she is still alive.
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