Why Would I Put My Home in a Trust?

Putting property in a trust can make managing and distributing your assets — including your home — easier after your death. It can also have legal and tax benefits.

Bankrate’s recent article entitled, “How, and why, to put your home in a trust,” says that a real estate trust is a legal arrangement in which the owner of a home, known as the “grantor” or “settlor,” transfers ownership of the property to another entity or individual, known as the “trustee.” The trustee manages the property for the benefit of the grantor and any named beneficiaries of the grantor’s estate.

You can place your home into a trust by signing a deed that names the trustee as the property’s new owner. The deed must be recorded with the local county recording office, and then the trust is the legal owner of the property.

The home’s original owner will usually name him- or herself as the trustee of a revocable trust, so they can maintain control of the property. However, the original owner can name someone else as the trustee. This can be helpful in case the original owner passes away. Trustees are frequently adult children of the homeowner, who will inherit the property upon the homeowner’s death.

Trusts are often used for tax, estate planning, or asset protection purposes, as — depending on the type of trust — the property can be protected from creditors and transferred directly to the beneficiaries without going through probate. Two primary types of trusts pertain to real estate: revocable and irrevocable.

Also called a living trust, a revocable trust can be changed or dissolved at any time by the grantor (creator) of the trust. A revocable trust lets a grantor control the property and make changes to the trust during their lifetime. The grantor retains the right to modify or dissolve the trust. The grantor can act as a trustee, manage the property, or appoint someone else. The revocable trust does not protect the assets of the trust from creditors.

A revocable/living trust states the original homeowner’s wishes upon death. When the grantor passes away, the property in the revocable trust is distributed to the grantor’s beneficiaries according to the terms of the trust agreement.

An irrevocable trust, as the name implies, is more permanent and can’t be terminated or modified by the grantor after it’s been created, unless the beneficiaries agree to the change. An irrevocable trust can protect the assets of the trust from creditors, including the high cost of long term care and nursing homes.

Reference: Bankrate (February 21, 2023) “How, and why, to put your home in a trust”

Book a call with attorney John A. Laine to learn more about how a trust may help you and your family.