Instructions to manage and fund your trust

Do you need instructions to manage and fund your trust?

Funding is the process by which your assets are placed in the trust. Properly funding the trust ensures that the trust works as you envisioned – and that probate is avoided. We like to describe a trust like a bucket that contains all of your personal belongings and financial assets, accompanied by a rule book that controls who can hold the bucket and what is to happen to its contents. The trustee is the person who holds the bucket, protects and controls the assets inside, and the rule book directs them on what they can and cannot do. The trustee has no power to control assets that are not placed into the bucket (the trust). As such, it is critical for all of your assets, with a few exceptions such as retirement accounts, to be “put inside the bucket”. The method in which assets are placed into the bucket varies based upon the type, size, and nature of the asset. The Funding Instructions document provides detailed instructions so that you can ensure all of your assets are properly placed into the trust both initially and throughout the years that follow the creation of your trust.