I'm curious also. A family member has convinced my mom she needs a trust. She is retired and has $1M in retirement accounts plus a paid off house valued at ~$800K. I originally thought trusts were for the super rich and mom bought into the idea because she liked feeling rich enough to need a trust. $1M is a lot for her generation (still is, just not as much as it used to be) and she's always been status conscious though it comes from a lifetime of being told she isn't "enough," which is sad. Avoiding probate seems a nice benefit, but I have zero idea how much a trust costs to set up and it seems with retirement accounts and a paid off house as the main assets it wouldn't cost her children much to wait for probate beyond a year of property taxes and caring for an empty house. The attorney she hired to set up her trust has told her to put material items, not just cash, in the trust. She's asked us to tell her what furniture, dishes, etc. we want so she can include that in the trust. Is that adding all of the "stuff" just padding the lawyer's wallet with more work for him/her? I can't imagine its a whole lot of extra work for them unless mom is making lots of changes. But I also have a hard time thinking the household items would go through probate anyway.

FWIW I have no idea how the trust is set up and how much mom put in it. Mom has made it clear I'm less successful than this family member she's listening to so she's only interested in his advice. Thus I've stopped engaging on the issue beyond "whatever you want to set up, mom, its your money." It also seems a bit perverse for me to have too much interest in what happens with her assets after she passes (hopefully a long time from now).

I'm curious about this too. My Mom keeps telling me I need to set up a trust before she passes for an inheritance I may be getting; most likely around $1-1.5M. But I'm really not that keen on setting up a trust anytime soon when I don't have the need as it sounds pricey. Solidly middle class here, with assets mostly tied up in a home, 401Ks, and a small pot of cash for emergencies. Unless it would help save on taxes for any inheritance I get eventually...?

My in laws put their assets in a trust and then decided to move. It cost money to hire the lawyer to pierce the trust in order to have the cash to buy the house. Trusts are expensive.

Anonymous wrote:If you have the type of money this would be prudent for, it’s odd you’d be starting here than with an estate attorney.

This is a bit rude. Many self-made folks learn as they go. Sometimes we learn from strangers too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you want to do this? It's expensive, and it can be expensive to undo and many people decide they don't ultimately want a trust in their old age.

Can u elaborate a bit more about this? I have read a lot about this and have not found a lot of negatives opinions about having a family trust.

NP for us it's about properties in multiple states and probate.

OP - we set ours up with the recommendation of our lawyer when we did our estate planning. We also set up trusts for each child. Ask your estate planner what the best options are for you and start there. You may not need one. Our lawyer said he only recommends them to folks with over $5M NW.

Beneficiaries can also be the trustees.

Not OP, but wanted to share what I think I understand about this. Some lawyers now recommend this for middle class too, not just the rich. The pros:

*When you die, you avoid probate. It is much easier to transfer funds, rel-estate, investments directly to the loved one even tax free up to a certain amount.
*You can put some boundaries on the money.

*Much less hassle if everyone is ethical

*Mor protection if you get sued for something.

The Cons:
*You need to truly "trust" pun intended family members. Your trustees can abuse the power and can then be sued, but what an ordeal. They are allowed to pay themselves a certain amount to be trustees, as well they should because it is work.

*Trustees pass away/become estranged/have their own health issues. It may be the trust then needs a hired trustee-which means more money going out. Sometimes the hired bank trustee can be a real stickler about how things are written so you better have a lawyer who knows what she/he is doing when it is written.

Anonymous wrote:Why do you want to do this? It's expensive, and it can be expensive to undo and many people decide they don't ultimately want a trust in their old age.

Can u elaborate a bit more about this? I have read a lot about this and have not found a lot of negatives opinions about having a family trust.

Can u elaborate a bit more about this? I have read a lot about this and have not found a lot of negatives opinions about having a family trust.

If you have the type of money this would be prudent for, it’s odd you’d be starting here than with an estate attorney.

Anonymous wrote:You start by going to a good estate lawyer. Which one depends on where you live.

+1 Start by finding a lawyer.

Why do you want to do this? It's expensive, and it can be expensive to undo and many people decide they don't ultimately want a trust in their old age.

Go to a specialist Estates & Trust attorney with good credentials. This is not a do-it-yourself project, and has ramifications you probably have not considered.

You start by going to a good estate lawyer. Which one depends on where you live.

We would like to create a family trust and transfer our deed and other assets to the trust.
Where should we start? How much does it cost to do one? How long does it take?
Any rec of reputable companies or lawyers?

TIA