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Are you are planning to leave property or other assets to heirs by using a trust? If so, one of the key considerations is deciding who will run the trust once you pass on.

This person — called a fiduciary — is responsible for managing the assets in the trust and making distributions to your loved ones in accordance with your desires.

The trustee you name must be willing to act on your wishes no matter his or her personal feelings about them.

In many cases, people choose a family member, close friend or business associate to do the job, which can require a lot of time to do properly. Others prefer to hire a professional, such as a bank or trust company.

The decision on who to pick as a trustee hinges on a number of factors, including the amount of money being managed in the trust, says an article in the Wall Street Journal.

In most cases, trustees get paid a fee, and professional firms may have minimum fees they charge no matter the size of the trust. If the amount in the trust is small, say, under $50,000, it is probably best to choose an individual to do it, since the fee charged by a company would likely be too large for the size of the trust.

But even larger trusts don’t always require professional management.

If the trust is simple without a lot of complicated provisions, it may be best to have a family member or close friend run it. Still, the person you choose must have the skill to do it properly.

If there is bad blood between family members named in the trust, it may be best to hire a professional because the work load can turn out to be very heavy if the beneficiaries do not get along.

If you have questions about setting up a trust or any other aspects of estate planning, feel free to call us for a consultation at (626) 696-3145.

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