My husband does not have a living trust, nor am I on his bank accounts as a beneficiary. I’m also not on the title of our home that we have lived in for the past 30+ years. What are the repercussions that I may run into should he perish before me? All I have is a statement written that says he'll leave me all his assets. I am 69 years old. – Jan The state you live in matters a great deal here. Nine U.S. states follow community property law, meaning each spouse owns half of all the assets acquired during th ...

SmartAsset and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below. What is the benefit of having a trust versus a will? We own our home, have a rental property and we have no debt.  My husband and I are retired and both have IRAs, over $500,000 in the stock market and approximately $100,000 in CDs. We have three grown children – one is a stepchild. We currently have a will but are wondering if a trust is a better option. – Judith This is a good question that many people d ...