Probate Preservation Plus Trust (PPPT)
For many families, the family home is their most valuable asset and often represents a lifetime of hard work, sacrifice and financial planning. Understandably, many people want to ensure that their home ultimately passes to the people they love whilst remaining protected from future risks and uncertainties.
A Probate Preservation Plus Trust (PPPT) is a sophisticated estate planning solution designed to help protect your home and preserve family wealth for future generations, whilst allowing you to continue living in and enjoying your property throughout your lifetime.
At Lionbridge Wealth Management, we work with individuals and families who wish to take a proactive approach to estate planning, asset protection and succession planning. A PPPT can often form an important part of that strategy.
What Is a Probate Preservation Plus Trust?
A Probate Preservation Plus Trust is a lifetime trust designed to hold your main residence whilst allowing you to retain the right to occupy and enjoy the property during your lifetime.
The trust is created to provide long-term asset protection, improve succession planning and help ensure that your property ultimately passes in accordance with your wishes.
Unlike simply relying on a Will, a trust can provide an additional layer of protection and flexibility both during your lifetime and after your death.
Key Benefits of a Probate Preservation Plus Trust
One of the primary reasons clients consider a PPPT is to preserve family wealth for future generations.
By placing a property into trust, future inheritance can often be better protected from a range of risks that beneficiaries may face later in life - which may include the below;
Divorce or separation, Relationship breakdown, Bankruptcy, Creditor claims, Financial difficulties, Business failure, Poor financial decisions, Remarriage following bereavement, Family disputes.
A properly structured trust can help ensure that what you intend to leave to your family remains within the family.
Keeping Assets Outside Beneficiaries' Estates
When assets are inherited outright, they often become part of a beneficiary's own estate and may subsequently be subject to inheritance tax when they die.
Trust planning may help prevent inherited assets from unnecessarily increasing the value of future generations' estates, helping preserve wealth and reducing the risk of multiple layers of inheritance tax affecting the same family assets over time.
This can be particularly valuable where children already have significant assets of their own or are likely to build substantial estates during their lifetime.
Maintaining Family Control
A trust allows assets to remain under the oversight of trustees rather than passing outright to individual beneficiaries.
This helps ensure that decisions regarding the trust assets are made with the interests of the family and future generations in mind.
Trustees can manage assets responsibly and exercise discretion where circumstances change, providing a level of flexibility that is not available through an outright inheritance.
Take the Next Step in Protecting Your Estate
Embark on a proactive approach to estate planning with Lionbridge Wealth's Property Protection Trust Service. Our experienced advisers work closely with you to understand your family circumstances, objectives, and long-term wishes, helping you put arrangements in place that safeguard the assets you've worked hard to build.
What sets us apart is our personal approach. We recognise that no two families are the same, which is why we take the time to explain your options clearly and design solutions tailored to your specific needs. Whether your goal is to protect your share of the family home, provide for future generations, or ensure your estate is distributed according to your wishes, we are here to guide you every step of the way.
Transparency is at the heart of everything we do. We believe estate planning should be straightforward and understandable, so we ensure you have a clear understanding of how a Property Protection Trust works, its benefits, and any important considerations. We encourage questions and provide clear, jargon-free advice throughout the process.
At Lionbridge Wealth, our commitment extends beyond simply establishing a trust. We take a holistic view of your financial and estate planning needs, helping to ensure your arrangements complement your wider objectives, including wills, inheritance planning, and the protection of your family's future wealth.
Choose Lionbridge Wealth for Property Protection Trust Advice, where professional guidance, clear communication, and personalised planning combine to help protect what matters most to you and your loved ones.
Potential Probate Advantages
Probate can often be time-consuming, expensive and stressful for families.
Where assets are held within a trust, they are generally not personally owned by you at death.
Depending on the circumstances, this may:
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Reduce delays in estate administration.
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Improve access to assets for beneficiaries.
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Simplify aspects of estate administration.
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Reduce reliance on the probate process.
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Help minimise associated costs.
Every estate is different, and probate requirements will depend on the specific assets held at death.
Potential Protection From Third-Party Claims
A trust structure may provide additional protection against certain third-party claims and challenges.
In some circumstances, reducing the value of assets held within an individual's estate may lessen the attractiveness of legal claims being brought against the estate.
Continue Living in Your Home
A common concern is whether transferring a property into trust means giving up the right to live in it.
With a Probate Preservation Plus Trust, you can continue to occupy and enjoy your home throughout your lifetime, allowing you to maintain the lifestyle and security you currently enjoy.
The arrangement is specifically designed so that you can remain in your property whilst benefiting from the wider succession planning advantages offered by the trust.
Potential Care Fee Planning Benefits
A PPPT should not be established purely for care fee avoidance and no trust can guarantee protection against local authority assessments.
However, where the trust has been established for genuine estate planning, succession planning and asset protection reasons, it may provide additional protection from certain future third-party risks.
Deliberate deprivation of assets legislation must always be considered and outcomes can never be guaranteed.
Professional advice is therefore essential before proceeding.
Retain the Flexibility to Move Home or Downsize
Many people worry that placing their home into trust might prevent them from moving in the future.
In most cases, this is not the case.
If your circumstances change, the trustees can typically facilitate:
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Selling your existing property.
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Purchasing a replacement property.
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Downsizing.
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Relocating closer to family.
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Moving into retirement accommodation.
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Purchasing a more suitable home due to health or mobility needs.
This means your estate planning arrangements can evolve alongside your lifestyle requirements.
If you are considering selling, remortgaging or releasing equity from the property in the future, trustee involvement will usually be required.
Planning for Loss of Mental Capacity
Many people focus solely on what happens when they die and overlook the possibility of losing mental capacity during their lifetime.
If a property is held in trust, trustees can continue administering and managing trust assets if the settlor loses capacity.
This can reduce practical difficulties and avoid some of the restrictions that may otherwise arise when relying solely on a Lasting Power of Attorney.
For many families, this continuity can provide significant peace of mind.
Greater Succession Planning Flexibility
Tax Efficiency
A Probate Preservation Plus Trust is a highly efficient trust structure and, in many cases:
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No inheritance tax arises when the property enters the trust.
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No ten-year periodic charges arise while the settlor remains alive.
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No exit charges arise while the settlor remains alive.
The precise tax treatment will depend on individual circumstances and current tax legislation.
Our 6-Step Probate Preservation Plus Trust Process
1. Discovery Meeting
We begin with a complimentary consultation to understand your family circumstances, estate planning objectives, concerns around probate, and your wishes for future generations.
2. Suitability Review & Planning
We assess whether a Probate Preservation Plus Trust is appropriate for your circumstances and explain the benefits, considerations, costs and long-term implications of the arrangement.
3. In-House Trust Drafting
Our specialist estate planning team prepares the trust documentation, trustee appointments and supporting paperwork, ensuring the structure is tailored to your specific objectives.
4. Conveyancing & Property Transfer
We work alongside your chosen conveyancer, or one from our professional panel, to complete the legal transfer of your property into the trust and update Land Registry records where required.
5. Trust Implementation
Once the transfer has been completed, the trust becomes fully operational. You continue to live in and enjoy your home as normal, whilst retaining the flexibility to move home or downsize in the future, subject to the trust provisions.
6. Ongoing Support & Family Protection
We remain available to support you and your trustees, helping to ensure the trust continues to meet your objectives and providing ongoing guidance as family circumstances evolve over time.
Ready to Protect Your Property and Your Family's Future?
A properly structured trust can help protect your assets, provide clarity for your family, and support your broader estate planning objectives. Contact Lionbridge Wealth today to arrange a no-obligation consultation with our estate planning team and learn how we can help safeguard your legacy.
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At Lionbridge Wealth, we understand the importance of personalised financial planning. Whether you're looking to secure your financial legacy, optimise investments, or explore tailored mortgage solutions, our team of dedicated experts is here to guide you. Take the first step towards a brighter financial future by scheduling a consultation meeting with Lionbridge Wealth.
We invite you to reach out today to discuss your goals, explore our comprehensive financial services, and embark on a journey towards financial success. Let's shape your dreams into achievable milestones—contact us now to schedule your personalised consultation.