"What about living trusts?  I want to avoid probate!"  Despite what the "experts" on the bestseller list say, establishing a "living trust" may or may not be right for you.  Don't listen to any attorney's ADVICE unless the attorney is familiar with your particular financial and personal information!  AND practices law in your state!

What is a living trust?  A "revocable" trust (means you can change the trust/get the money back) that you "fund" during life by transferring most or all of your assets into the name of a trustee (even if the trustee is you). The trustee agrees to carry out the terms of the "trust agreement" document (if you're the trustee, this might be a "declaration of trust").  When you die, the trust document spells out what happens to the assets -- whether they are given to beneficiaries or continue to be held by the trustee.  You may have such a document included in your estate plan as a "pour-over," named as beneficiary of your will, IRA, or other accounts, but which you did not actually intend to "fund," put assets into, during life.  In this situation, the trust might be empty until you die.  This type of "pour-over" trust document is especially useful if you foresee assets being held in trust for other people after you die, such as disabled beneficiaries.  But if you do put assets in the trust's name while you are living, if you do "fund" it while living, we call it a "living trust."   

Advantages of living trusts during lifetime:

May be easier to revise then a will -- especially with respect to your "stuff" (and a will can't make your "memo" detailing who gets what legally binding -- but a trust may be able to do so);

If you need help with managing your property, and have trouble getting banks, etc. to honor a power of attorney, you can have your "trustee" do that;

Helps avoid conservatorship or other probate court procedures if you are unable to handle your financial affairs;  and

If SOMEONE ELSE is trustee, might protect you from pressure of those who are after your property -- you can say you have no control and that it is up to the trustee.  (Your creditors may still get at the funds in the living trust if they sue you, although there are special asset-protection trusts for that if you're in a risky profession an want to try it.)

More importantly, the advantage of living trusts at death:

A living trust allows you to "avoid probate" at death -- but a living trust does NOT help you avoid the Connecticut "probate fee" (see below).  Sure beneficiaries may be able to do that, too, but that can be a clumsy solution unless your plans are very simple and all your money is supposed to go to the same beneficiaries, or at least, the same beneficiaries as those who inherit your house.

Avoiding probate in CT means:

Avoiding the CT probate requirement that the will itself be sent to your heirs -- those who would inherit if you didn't have one  -- so avoiding the problems created by heirs you cannot locate or who are troublemakers;

Minimizing the likelihood of any "will contest" or challenge to your executor choice;

No delay between death and appointment of someone to handle your "estate" -- usually a few weeks, occasionally a few months;

No 5-month delay (minimum) in disposing of assets as required under probate rules in most cases;

No out-of-state probate proceedings if your out-of-state real estate is held in a living trust, even if that is the only reason for having the trust (this may not escape tax in that state, however);

Avoiding probate gives you more privacy (a probated Will is a public document, a trust document generally  is not);

In Connecticut, avoiding probate means protection from statutory claims against your "estate" that may be made by a spouse, or on behalf of a spouse by third parties (such as the State, if the spouse is receiving Medicaid benefits); and

In Connecticut, the trust avoids claims by the State for benefits your received during lifetime; not so in some other states. 

In Connecticut, if you leave assets to beneficiaries through a living trust instead of probate, the state can't make any claim against the beneficiary's "inheritance" (although since 2022, there aren't many situations where this will happen any more -- the state primarily will come after unpaid child support or care in a state mental institution or possibly for prison time).

But:

You "avoid probate" completely ONLY if nothing is forgotten.  If you set up the trust but fail to transfer property to the trustee, creating the trust document alone provides few of these benefits.  Even if you transfer property to the trust, if later you acquire new property that is not transferred (and has no beneficiary), you do not avoid probate of that property.  (It's different in California!!!) True, there is a simplified process if you only "leave out" assets under $40,000 (not real estate), but unless the assets are LESS than the expenses paid, there may still be notice to all of your "heirs" in order to dispose of those few assets.  See my article about this. 

In Connecticut, your estate will still have to pay a so-called probate fees (up to 0.5% of your total estate) WHETHER OR NOT your estate passes through probate, and this fee is based on ALL assets including those in the trust.  See my article about this.

A living trust does NOT save death taxes.  (If you're married, trust documents may be used to include provisions that minimize death taxes, but few pay them anyway and that doesn't mean making it a "living" trust anyway.)

A living trust does NOT ensure Title 19 (Medicaid) eligibility or protect assets from having to be "spent down" to qualify for Medicaid.  Even worse, in Connecticut, payments from a living trust that disinherit a spouse applying for Title 19 (Medicaid) may have disastrous consequences.  And your home may not be exempt if owned in a living trust.

New CT laws in effect since 2020 require Trustees to send information and annual reports to ALL trust beneficiaries (in some cases the document can override this, but not entirely) - so it is not as "private" as you might think.

It is sometimes important to have an "executor" appointed to make claims against insurance companies, talk to the IRS, deal with difficult out-of-state banks, or bring lawsuits, and this is not  possible without probate. 

In some states (not CT) a spouse's statutory rights against estates apply even if there is no estate and all property is held in a living trust. 

After you die, probate oversight may be appropriate to ensure that your wishes are carried out unless you have complete confidence in the trustee you select. 

If you are the trustee of your living trust, and you get dementia or even a temporarily disability, for example, you are unconscious in the hospital, your power of attorney may not be able to access trust funds.  You may have to include special language so that your power of attorney can access funds and/or a mechanism to force resignation and get the successor in place.

A good living trust costs money!  With a living trust, you pay now vs. your heirs pay later.  The idea of the trust is to save expenses for your beneficiaries, BUT you have to pay an attorney to (1) prepare the trust; (2) possibly prepare deeds transferring real estate to the trust. And there is a lot of work for you to do, putting assets into the trust.  It may not save your beneficiaries' money if in fact more deeds are required after your death or if they have to go through probate anyway.

So -- should you have a living trust? 

It depends on YOUR PARTICULAR SITUATION.  Don't listen to any attorney's advice unless the attorney is familiar with your particular financial and personal information. 

You can always mix and match -- use a living trust for your securities if you can't conveniently name beneficiaries on the account out of concern for what happens if a beneficiary predeceases you, etc.; use beneficiaries for things like IRAs where simplicity can be important and you're pretty sure your beneficiaries will out live you, or for things like your car (you can name a beneficiary in CT on the back of the registration form); but still assume that your will is going to dispose of some of the bank accounts, tax refunds, and odds and ends. 

And don't forget that you need a will as well.  You never know.  I'm still getting notices about unclaimed property, tax refunds, etc. that pop up years later not to mention wrongful death actions and royalties everyone forgot about.