All of your assets must be re-titled into the name of the trust

Your trust is simply a financial basket that is ready to accept your assets.  If you never put anything in the basket, your trust will be empty when you die, and your heirs will have to go through probate.

Transferring Property and other assets

As part of your estate plan, we will transfer your primary residence into your trust and file your Trust Transfer Deed with the county. The process of re-titling your other assets into the name of your trust is quite easy.  We find that most of our clients prefer to do this themselves, using the detailed Funding Instructions that we provide.  For a small additional fee, we will transfer your assets and other properties for you.

Titling new property and other assets

When you buy new property or establish new financial accounts, you simply title them in the name of your trust, with yourself as trustee.  We provide a Trust Identification Wallet Card, to make it easy for you to have the name of your trust and your trustee title with you when you need it.

Retirement Plans  

Assets held in a qualified retirement plan, such as a 401(k) or an IRA, are not subject to probate, and should not be transferred into your trust.  However, it is important that your beneficiary designations work with your estate plan.  Failure to do so can result in disinheriting an intended beneficiary and leaving the money to unintended persons, as a result of deaths, divorces, and births.  Typically your spouse will be the primary beneficiary and the trust will be the secondary beneficiary of the plan.

Chip Allen helps clients strategize whom the best beneficiary would be, taking into consideration their age, values and goals, and all of the relevant income and estate tax issues.