Once you are familiar with the concepts used in providing for your estate, you still need to construct an effective and personal strategy for your own estate. The techniques commonly used are wills, trusts, durable powers of attorney and gifting.

You will implement these various strategies in a way that will help you satisfy your needs and accomplish your goals.

Wills
Everyone should have a will. Doing so helps ensure property is distributed according to your wishes. A will can save administrative costs and provide direction for your executor. It should be reviewed periodically, especially after a major life event, to verify that it still reflects your goals.

Trusts
The reasons people use trusts are many. A trust is a three-party arrangement involving a grantor, trustee and beneficiary. Trusts can consolidate assets, provide tax-planning alternatives and deal with issues of incapacity among others. In essence, a trust establishes an agreement where a grantor transfers ownership of property to a trustee, who holds it for a beneficiary.

Durable Power of Attorney
The intention of a durable power of attorney arrangement is to ensure that in case you lose the capacity to manage your legal and financial affairs your intentions will still be carried out. A durable power of attorney can be established at any time, for any length of time, and usually terminates upon the death of the person who created it.

Gift Giving
You can give up to $12,000 per year (2007 figure), per recipient to anyone (although you would likely choose family members) without having to file a gift tax return, without paying gift tax or using any of the $1 million gift tax exemption.

Charitable giving offers a different tax benefit. Outright transfers of property to qualified organizations are completely exempt from gift tax.