Yes, it is possible to delay when someone receives an inheritance. But you likely need to take steps to do this well in advance.
After all, most people can directly inherit assets as soon as they turn 18 and become legal adults. If you leave $100,000 to a grandchild who turns 18 before you pass away, they are going to get the full amount as soon as your will goes through probate. Your estate plan simply specifies who should receive the funds, and the estate executor will ensure that they do.
However, you may think that they do not need to have that much money at 18 and that it would be best for them to get access to the funds at a later date. To do this, you generally need to set up a trust.
Specifying certain ages for distribution
A trust does not necessarily have to be complicated. The benefit is just that the trust owns the assets, so you can set up certain rules for how long they should be held before the beneficiary is allowed to access them.
You may even want to pick specific ages. For instance, you could put the money into a trust and state that the beneficiary gets the first $25,000 when they turn 21. At 25, they get another $25,000. Only when they turn 30 do they get access to the final $50,000.
By doing this, you help to spread the money out so that they can use it later in their life. This may also give you confidence that they will make better decisions with the money at 30 years old than they would have at 18 years old.
Creating a trust
This is just one of the ways that a trust can give you some control over your estate plan. Make sure you know what legal steps to take to set up a trust that focuses on your family’s needs.
