A Trust Only Works if It’s Properly Funded

Creating a trust is one of the most effective tools in estate planning, offering benefits like avoiding probate, maintaining privacy, and ensuring your assets are distributed according to your wishes.

However, a trust is only as good as the effort put into funding it. Think of a trust like a treasure chest—beautiful, secure, and built to protect your valuables. But without transferring your assets into the chest, it’s just an empty box.

At our firm, we emphasize the importance of proper trust funding. This crucial step ensures that your trust will work for you and your loved ones when you need it most. Here’s why funding your trust is essential and how we can help.

Funding a trust means transferring ownership of your assets into the trust. This involves changing the legal title of certain assets or naming the trust as the beneficiary.

Common assets that can (and should) be funded into a trust include:

• Real estate
• Bank accounts
• Investment accounts
• Life insurance policies
• Business interests
• Personal property, like valuable collections

If these assets are not properly transferred, they won’t be covered by the trust and may end up going through probate—a time-consuming and often expensive process you intended to avoid.

The Treasure Chest Analogy

Imagine your trust as a treasure chest. It’s designed to keep your valuables safe and to ensure they are distributed according to your wishes when the time comes.

But if your assets aren’t placed inside the chest, they are left vulnerable:

• Assets outside the trust may be subject to probate.
• Without proper ownership or beneficiary designations, your wishes may not be honored.
• Unfunded assets may cause confusion or disputes among your heirs.



An empty treasure chest can’t fulfill its purpose. Proper funding ensures that your assets are secure and easily accessible when your family needs them most.

Why Proper Trust Funding Matters

A well-funded trust offers several advantages:

1. Avoiding Probate: Assets within the trust bypass the probate process, saving time, legal fees, and potential family disputes.
2. Ensuring Privacy: Unlike a will, which becomes public record during probate, a trust keeps your financial affairs private.
3. Seamless Asset Distribution: A properly funded trust ensures your assets are distributed efficiently and according to your wishes.
4. Providing for Loved Ones: Your trust can include specific instructions for how and when beneficiaries receive assets, offering added protection and financial management.

Without proper funding, these benefits may be compromised.

How We Help

Our firm offers a unique trust funding service to ensure your trust is fully functional and effective.

Here’s how it works:

• Meet with Our Funding Manager: During this meeting, you’ll receive personalized guidance on what assets need to be moved into the trust, how to move them, and when to move them.
• Step-by-Step Assistance: We provide clear instructions for transferring ownership of your assets or updating beneficiary designations.
• Follow-Up Support: We work with you and the necessary parties—such as financial institutions or title companies—to confirm that everything has been properly transferred.

Our hands-on approach ensures that your trust is funded correctly, providing peace of mind for you and your family.

Don’t Leave Your Trust Empty

A trust is a powerful tool, but its effectiveness depends on proper funding. Without it, your estate plan may fail to achieve the goals you worked hard to create.

With our comprehensive trust funding service, you can rest assured that your treasure chest will be filled with the assets you’ve worked a lifetime to build and protect.