How to fund a living trust, asset by asset
A living trust only avoids probate for the property you put into it. Funding means retitling your home and accounts in the trust’s name. Here is how for each type of asset.
Key facts
- An unfunded trust does not avoid probate: assets in your own name still go through court.
- Real estate is funded with a new deed to you as trustee, recorded with the county.
- Bank and brokerage accounts are retitled, or given a payable-on-death designation to the trust.
- Retirement accounts are not retitled. You name beneficiaries instead.
- New assets should be bought in the trust’s name from day one.
Why funding matters
Signing a living trust creates the container. Funding fills it. If your house stays in your own name, it will go through probate as if the trust did not exist, and only a pour-over will will move it into the trust, after probate.
Funding also matters while you are alive. If you become unable to manage your affairs, your successor trustee can only step in for assets the trust actually owns. Anything left in your own name may need a power of attorney or a court-appointed conservator.
How to fund each type of asset
| Asset | How to fund it | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Home and other real estate | Sign a new deed transferring it to you as trustee, have it notarized and record it with the county | Ask your title insurer whether coverage continues, and check your county’s rules on property tax and transfer forms |
| Bank accounts | Ask the bank to retitle the account in the trust’s name, or add the trust as payable-on-death beneficiary | Deposit insurance coverage can change for large balances |
| Brokerage accounts | Open a trust account or retitle the existing one using the firm’s forms; a transfer-on-death designation is an alternative | Keep cost-basis records |
| IRAs and 401(k)s | Do not retitle. Name beneficiaries on the account | Retitling a retirement account is generally treated as a taxable distribution |
| Life insurance | Name people or the trust as beneficiary | Naming the trust helps when beneficiaries are minors |
| Vehicles | Follow your state’s title rules; some states allow transfer-on-death registration | Low-value vehicles often pass through simplified state procedures |
| Business interests | Assign LLC interests or shares to the trust as the operating agreement allows | Check transfer restrictions and partner consents |
| Personal belongings | Sign a general assignment of tangible personal property to the trust | List valuable items separately |
Moving your home into the trust, step by step
- Find your current deed. Your county recorder’s office or your closing papers will have it. You need the exact legal description of the property.
- Prepare the new deed. It transfers the property from you to you as trustee, for example to “Jane Doe, trustee of the Jane Doe Living Trust dated May 1, 2026.” Many online trust services and attorneys prepare it, and some counties publish forms.
- Sign it before a notary.
- Record it with the recorder in the county where the property is located, and pay the recording fee.
- File any transfer forms your state requires, such as California’s preliminary change of ownership report, and confirm that your homestead or property tax exemption carries over.
- Tell your insurers. Ask your homeowner’s insurer to add the trust or trustee to the policy, and ask your title insurer whether coverage continues.
The deed is where funding mistakes are most costly. A wrong legal description or an unrecorded deed can leave the home outside the trust, so many people pay an attorney or title company to prepare and record it.
Bank accounts and deposit insurance
For checking, savings and CDs, you can either retitle the account in the trust’s name or keep it in your name and add the trust as payable-on-death beneficiary. Banks usually ask for a certification of trust, a short summary of the trust that confirms who the trustees are without showing who inherits what.
Trust accounts have their own FDIC coverage rules. Since April 1, 2024, revocable and irrevocable trust accounts are insured up to $250,000 per owner for each beneficiary, with a maximum of $1,250,000 per owner at each bank. If you hold more than that at one bank, spread it across banks or ask the bank how coverage applies.
Assets you usually leave out
- IRAs, 401(k)s and other retirement accounts. Name beneficiaries instead. Retitling them is generally treated as a withdrawal.
- Health savings accounts. They belong to you individually; name a beneficiary.
- Accounts you hold for a child as custodian, such as UTMA accounts. The money already belongs to the child.
- Vehicles, in states that offer transfer-on-death registration or a simple transfer procedure for heirs.
Funding checklist
- List every asset, with how it is titled and who is named as beneficiary today.
- Record a new deed for each property and keep a copy of the recorded deed with your trust.
- Contact each bank and brokerage firm for its trust-account forms.
- Review beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance.
- Sign a general assignment for personal property.
- Keep a schedule of trust assets and update it when you buy, sell or open accounts.
Set aside time over a few weeks: each bank and broker has its own forms, and county recording times vary.
The most common trust mistake is never finishing this step. Estate planning attorneys regularly see families go through probate for a house that was meant to be in the trust.
FAQ
Will my lender call my mortgage if I deed my home to my trust?
For a home with one to four units that you live in, federal rules generally bar the lender from calling the loan due just because you transfer it to a living trust in which you remain a beneficiary and occupant. The lender can ask for a way to be told about later changes, so tell yours. Rental property you do not live in is not covered, so check with the lender first.
Should my trust be the beneficiary of my IRA?
Sometimes, but not by default. Naming a trust affects how quickly inherited retirement money must be withdrawn and taxed. Many people name individuals first and the trust as a backup. Get advice before naming a trust.
Do I need to refinance or change my homeowner’s insurance?
You do not need to refinance. Ask your insurer to add the trust or trustee to the policy so coverage matches the new title.
What if I buy a new home after setting up the trust?
Ask your lender and title company whether you can take title in the trust’s name at closing. If not, deed the home to the trust soon after closing.
Do I need a lawyer to fund my trust?
Not necessarily. Retitling bank and brokerage accounts is mostly paperwork with each institution. The deed is the step where professional help is most worthwhile, because errors there can defeat the purpose of the trust.
What happens to assets I forget to put in the trust?
Your pour-over will directs them into the trust at your death, but they may have to go through probate first. If their total is small enough, your state’s small estate procedure may allow a faster route.
Haven’t set up the trust yet?
Compare the cost of doing it online with hiring an attorney.
Compare living trust costsSources
- Nolo: Funding your living trust
- AARP: What a living trust can do for you
- LegalZoom: Steps to fund your living trust (updated May 2026)
- 12 U.S. Code §1701j-3 (due-on-sale exemptions), Cornell Law School
- 12 CFR §191.5 (due-on-sale limitations), Cornell Law School
- FDIC: Deposit insurance at a glance
OakTrust.com provides general information, not legal or tax advice. Deed, tax and title rules vary by state and county. For advice on your situation, talk to an attorney licensed in your state.