Your assets may be subject to probate if you fail to properly “fund” your trust. Funding a trust is the process of transferring the legal title of assets from your name, individually, into the name of your trust.
An un-funded trust is like an empty bank account. If a person fails to deposit money into the account, it is impossible to use that account to make distributions. In this case, your trust is the “bank account” and the assets you title into the name of the trust are your “deposits.” For the trust to serve its purpose, you must comb through your assets and properly transfer title from your name into the name of the trust.
Some assets you may put into a trust include:
- bank accounts;
- life insurance beneficiaries;
- real estate;
- personal property; and
- business interests.
There may be special circumstances that prohibit you from transferring an asset to your trust. An experienced Estate Planning attorney at Lavender Greenberg can help you identify and work through these issues.