FREE CHECKLIST

Living Trust Starter Checklist

Signing a trust is half the job. This checklist helps you fund it. Tick each box as you go.

Step 1: Get organized

Get a copy of your signed trust. Write down the exact name of the trust and the trustee.List every asset: bank accounts, cash, real estate, vehicles, insurance, stocks and bonds, valuables, and debts and loans.Mark how each is titled now: sole name, joint, or with a beneficiary.

A living trust only controls property that has been formally moved into it. The CFPB says a living trust “is ineffective unless” money or property is put into it.

Step 2: Move the assets in (this is “funding”)

Contact each bank or brokerage. Ask for their trust retitling forms.Real estate: ask an estate attorney about the title paperwork for your state.Have a mortgage? Call your loan servicer before changing the title. Federal rule 12 CFR 191.5 limits due-on-sale enforcement when you move an owner-occupied home into a living trust and stay the beneficiary and occupant. Confirm for your loan.Review beneficiary forms on life insurance and retirement accounts. Make sure they match your plan.

Property not properly moved into the trust “may be subject to probate,” says the Florida Bar.

Step 3: VA benefits and the trust

Leave VA payments alone unless you are advised otherwise. A trustee cannot manage VA benefits unless they are paid directly into the trust, or VA appoints the trustee as a fiduciary.Thinking of VA pension or Aid and Attendance someday? Ask a VA-accredited representative first. VA looks back 36 months at asset transfers (38 CFR 3.276).

Step 4: Keep it safe

Check that you have a pour-over will. It catches property you missed, but that property may still go through probate first.Ask your bank how FDIC trust-account insurance applies to your deposits ($250,000 per eligible beneficiary, up to $1,250,000, under rules effective April 1, 2024).Keep a funding record. Store copies with your trust so your successor trustee can find them.

Sources

Go deeper: Guide To Living Trusts · Veteran Legacy Checklist · Ask the Navigator

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Educational information only. Not legal, tax, financial, or medical advice, and not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Estate and probate rules vary by state; an estate attorney in your state can confirm what applies. Confirm forms, phone numbers, and deadlines on VA.gov.

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Free Living Trust Starter Checklist

Living Trust Starter Checklist

Step 1: Get organized

Step 2: Move the assets in (this is “funding”)

Step 3: VA benefits and the trust

Step 4: Keep it safe

Sources

Stay connected

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Free Living Trust Starter Checklist

Living Trust Starter Checklist

Step 1: Get organized

Step 2: Move the assets in (this is “funding”)

Step 3: VA benefits and the trust

Step 4: Keep it safe

Sources

Stay connected

Want a free checklist?