What a trust is

Revocable trusts

allow you to retain as much control as you like over the trust and the assets you place in it. You can serve as trustee of your own revocable trust, change the trust’s terms whenever you like, add or withdraw assets at any time, and name a successor trustee to take over should you no longer wish or be able to serve as trustee.

Your ability to transfer almost any type of asset to the trust, including financial assets, real estate and even private business interests, makes them helpful in consolidating and managing assets.

You can also use a revocable trust to document how you want the assets in the trust to be managed, distributed and used after you are gone. Often, people believe a will is sufficient to handle all their needs. However, it’s important to note that a will only works when you die. A revocable trust provides benefits during your life as well, such as continuity in the event you become incapacitated. Assets in revocable trusts also avoid probate, enabling you to avoid the public disclosure, time and fees associated with it.

Irrevocable trusts

allow you to permanently remove assets from your taxable estate and cannot be changed once executed.

Irrevocable trusts can be used to provide for a spouse and children from a prior relationship, help ensure that your heirs manage and use funds wisely and minimize federal and state wealth transfer taxes.

Revocable living trusts

A solution for today and tomorrow Why should you consider a revocable living trust? A revocable living trust is a flexible estate planning and wealth management tool that enables you to place assets in a trust during your lifetime but maintain as much control over the trust and its assets as you prefer. Almost any type of asset can be transferred to your revocable trust, including cash, stock, bonds, real estate and even business interests. And it can be structured to give you complete freedom to change the trust terms, add or withdraw assets at any time, or replace the trustee. A revocable living trust can be created to help you achieve a number of important estate planning and wealth management, preservation, and transfer goals: • Consolidate your assets in one account, making it easier to manage your own investments or turn responsibility over to someone else. • Provide for you, your family, or others in the event of incapacity. • Ensure that your assets are managed and distributed as you intend. • Keep the assets placed in the trust out of probate — an important issue if you reside in a state with high probate fees, wish to protect your privacy or hold real estate in a state that would require ancillary probate administration. • Minimize estate taxes by creating other trusts upon your death.