Anncr: I’m with Aesha Patel from Cohen Highley. Aesha, can parents with minor children control when their children receive their inheritance?
Aesha: Yes. Including a Trust in your will lets you establish timeframes for your beneficiaries to receive their inheritance after your death.
Anncr: Is there a common timeframe that parents use?
Aesha: Many parents wait until their child is 18 or 21 before they receive their inheritance. It’s also common to include a fractional distribution, where the child receives a portion of their inheritance at 21 and the remainder when they turn 25, for example.
Anncr: What if the child needs money before the designated age?
Aesha: Wills can be drafted to allow the Trustee discretion to offer the child financial assistance as needed for expenses such as post-secondary education, rent, or other reasonable expenses prior to attaining the requisite age.
