How Do I Fund a Trust Once It Is Created?

You may assume your job is done once you take the proper steps to incorporate a trust into your estate plan. However, arguably the most important initiative you must take is to fund this trust with actual assets. Otherwise, it defeats the whole point of creating one in the first place. Without further delay, please read on to discover how to fund a trust once you have already established it and how one of the seasoned Butler County trust attorneys at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC can walk you through all of its procedures.

How am I supposed to fund a trust once it is created?

Put in the easiest way possible, to fund your trust, you may need to transfer the legal ownership over certain assets from your name to the name of the trust. Before you initiate this major transfer, you should thoroughly think it through. This is specifically if you created an irrevocable trust for your estate plan, as this means you generally cannot remove or take back assets for the rest of your lifetime. This may be unless you go through complicated legal procedures, but even then you may not get court approval.

What is the process of funding a trust for different assets?

Grantors of trusts typically fund them with liquid assets, such as cash. Doing so is fairly straightforward, as you may simply open a bank account in the name of the trust. You may then transfer cash into this bank account through online banking, wire transfers, or gifting. Nonetheless, the financial institution where this bank account is held may be able to assist you without any unprecedented troubles. There are probably standard forms that they will ask you to fill out, while also requesting a copy of the trust for additional context. However, you must remember that many different asset types may be used to fund a trust. The processes for funding a trust with them may vary, and some examples read as follows:

• To fund a trust with real estate property: you must sign a deed that transfers your interest in the property to the trust.
• To fund a trust with personal property: you must sign a general transfer document that states the property is now owned by the trust.
• To fund a trust with life insurance: you must list the trust as the designated beneficiary so that it receives your policy’s proceeds upon your death.
• To fund a trust with retirement accounts: you must list the trust as the primary or alternate beneficiary so it receives the proceeds at your death.

All of this to say, the time to act is now. Please pick up the phone or message us at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC. Surely, one of the competent Butler County estate planning & probate attorneys on our team will be the perfect fit for your upcoming estate planning.