What is a trust?

A trust is a legal fiction that is a way to maintain, control, and distribute assets. It’s not a bank account. It’s not a separate entity. In fact, the trust uses your social security number. While you’re alive, your trust holds your assets (like a treasure box holds your treasures). If you have a trust and become incapacitated, you have a successor trustee who manages your trust assets for you until you’re better.

Your trust is also how you gift things when you die. Unlike a will, your trust allows you to have some control over when and how things are gifted. For example, you may want to make sure that your minor child does not get everything all at one time or until he/she/they is/are 25 or 30 or 35. The trust gives you the ability to do that; a will does not.

Physically, a trust is just a stack of papers that we put into a binder.

Note: If you have a trust, you still have a will that pours everything into the trust to make sure that things are distributed per your trust. It’s your trust that will gift things to people, however.

If you have other questions or what a more thorough explanation that reflects your life and your assets, please contact me for a consultation.