There are many types of legacy gifts that are simply a matter of filling out your provider’s paperwork.  Here’s the list:

The key to setting up these gifts is contacting the institution that holds your asset. Ask them for a beneficiary form. Some firms refer to them as a designation form. Yet others as a “payment on death” form.

It’s important to remember that when you fill out the form, and you also have language in your will or living trust about the same asset, if there is a discrepancy, the form takes precedence over the will or trust. This is because you have a contract with the firm, and that form fits within the scope of the contract. The will or trust does not.

For more information, contact: Michael DeLapa.

Chris Fitz has been involved with LandWatch for more than two decades. Read why he has chosen to remember LandWatch with a legacy gift through his retirement savings.