How to Create a Living Trust in Mississippi

In Mississippi, individuals can use living trusts as an estate planning solution. A living trust lets you retain control of your assets during your lifetime while ensuring a smooth transfer to your beneficiaries after death, often avoiding the delays and costs of probate. Whether your estate is small or substantial, establishing a living trust can give you greater control over your legacy and added peace of mind for the future.

A financial advisor could help you set up an estate plan for your family’s needs and goals.

What Is a Living Trust?

Like a will, a living trust is a legal document in which you (the trust creator or grantor) state how you want your estate to be distributed when you die. Unlike a will, a living trust is also an entity that holds your assets while you are alive.

The primary purpose of a living trust is to avoid probate, the court process that validates a will. With a revocable living trust, you can name yourself as the trustee (you must name someone else with an irrevocable trust) and maintain control of the estate. When you die, the successor trustee will have a fiduciary responsibility to manage your trust as you directed and in the best interests of your beneficiaries.

You can fund a living trust with many assets and property, including:

• Bank deposit accounts such as savings and money market accounts
• Investments such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds
• Certificates of deposit (CDs)
• Real estate
• Physical property such as vehicles, fine art and jewelry

Creating a Living Trust in Mississippi

Living trusts are popular estate planning tools because they help individuals avoid probate, maintain privacy, and ensure a smoother transfer of property to beneficiaries. Unlike a will, a living trust becomes effective immediately upon creation and can be managed or amended as your circumstances change. If you want to create a living trust in Mississippi, the following six steps can help you set one up:

• Choose the type of trust: Most people prefer revocable living trusts (as opposed to irrevocable ones). This is because they can maintain control of their estate, remove assets at any time and cancel the entire trust if they wish. If you’re married, you’ll likely want a joint trust. However, if it’s a marriage from later in life and you have separate assets, two single trusts may be preferable.
  
• Determine which assets you want to put in the living trust: For many people, it’s mainly property and business interests they want to protect from probate. Things such as bank accounts and life insurance policies can also go into trusts, but they don’t have to in order to avoid probate. Designating your beneficiaries on the accounts makes them transferable on death.
  
• Decide who will manage assets in the trust as a trustee: You can appoint yourself (and your spouse as a co-trustee for joint trusts). If you do, you’ll also have to name a successor trustee to manage the trust should you become incapacitated or pass away.
  
• Create a trust document: You can use online software or with the assistance of a lawyer.
  
• Sign the trust: You must do this in front of a notary public.
  
• Fund the trust by transferring your property into it: You can do this on your own, but the paperwork can be tricky, so you might want to get a lawyer to help you.

A financial advisor can also help you determine if a living trust is right for you.

How Much Does It Cost to Create a Living Trust in Mississippi?

The cost of creating a living trust in Mississippi can vary widely depending on the complexity of your estate and the method you choose to set it up. For individuals with relatively simple needs, online legal services and do-it-yourself trust creation software can cost as little as $50 to $150. While affordable, these tools may not account for state-specific legal nuances or the unique aspects of your estate. This can potentially lead to complications down the road.

For more comprehensive and customized estate planning, hiring an attorney can be helpful. This is especially true for those with significant assets, blended families, or complex financial holdings. Attorney fees for creating a living trust generally range from $1,000 to $3,000 or more, depending on the attorney’s experience and the scope of your estate.

In addition to legal fees, you may also incur costs related to transferring ownership of assets into the trust. This process, known as “funding the trust,” may involve deed preparation fees, recording fees for real estate, or title changes for financial accounts and vehicles.

If you have a sizable estate, working with a financial advisor alongside an attorney can be especially beneficial. A financial advisor can help evaluate which assets are best suited for transfer to the trust and ensure your broader financial goals, such as tax efficiency and retirement planning, are aligned with your estate plan.

Living Trusts and Taxes in Mississippi

A living trust will have no impact on the Mississippi estate tax or inheritance tax, since the state does not levy either kind. There are benefits at the federal level, but only if you are leaving a very large estate behind. The federal estate tax (also called the death tax) only kicks in after the exemption of $13.99 million for individuals and $27.98 million for couples in 2025 is reached.

Living Trusts vs. Wills

Trusts can serve as solid estate planning tools. But wills are always recommended in conjunction with trusts to cover what was left out, either by choice or accident. Wills also allow you to do such things as name an executor (as opposed to the court appointing someone), instruct how taxes and debts are to be paid and state your preferred guardian for children who are minors.

This chart highlights the differences between living trusts and wills:

Living Trusts vs. Wills

Why Get a Living Trust in Mississippi?

Most people who set up a living trust want to help their heirs avoid the expense and delays of probate. Skipping the court process in Mississippi makes sense since the state has not adopted the Uniform Probate Code, and so probate is considered lengthy. With estates that are clear-cut and simple, probate takes at least four to six months. It also comes with the cost of attorney fees, as the state requires that probate attorneys represent estates (a layperson can’t do it).

A living trust offers a level of privacy that a will cannot. Probate records are public, meaning anyone can access details about your estate and beneficiaries. In contrast, the terms of a living trust remain confidential, protecting your family’s privacy. Additionally, you retain control over your assets while you are alive, with the flexibility to amend or revoke the trust as your circumstances change.

Another significant benefit of a living trust is its ability to provide for your care if you become incapacitated. By naming a successor trustee, you ensure that someone you trust can manage your financial affairs without the need for court intervention. This can spare your family the stress and expense of seeking guardianship or conservatorship. It also ensures your wishes are respected even if you are unable to communicate them yourself.

Who Should Get a Living Trust in Mississippi?

Living trusts are not just for the wealthy. If your heirs will have trouble paying the bills on your estate while it is frozen in probate, you could consider setting up a living trust so they can receive the estate right away. Or if you just want them to receive their inheritance without the interference of the court system, you could set up a living trust.

That said, if your estate is small, a living trust is probably unnecessary. In Mississippi, there is a simplified process for estates worth less than $50,000.

Additionally, trusts are a good choice for people who want to provide for someone who is disabled. Or who want to delay the distribution of their estate until heirs are a certain age. A living trust is also recommended if you are disinheriting someone or giving less to someone than the person might expect. (A living trust is harder to contest than a will.)

Bottom Line

Since Mississippi has a simplified process for small estates, a living trust makes sense for estates larger than $50,000. It is especially recommended if your estate is complicated, if you want to delay the distribution of your assets or if you want to provide for someone who is disabled. Mississippi does not use the Uniform Probate Code, so probate takes time and can be costly.

Estate Planning Tips

• A financial advisor could help you create an estate plan for your needs and goals. Finding a financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with vetted financial advisors who serve your area. You can have a free introductory call with your advisor matches to decide which one you feel is right for you. If you’re ready to find an advisor who can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
• A living trust is just one type of estate planning tool. Here are five must-have tools that wealthy investors should consider.

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