08 Jul What happens when a revocable trust is amended?

Q. When a revocable trust is amended to add a trustee, does the ownership of the assets in the trust need to reflect the new information, or can the new trustee simply show the amendment to the trust when action is necessary?
— Trustee

A. Thank you for your question.

Assets that have been transferred into a revocable trust are still owned by the same trust even after it is amended.

A change of trustees does not require a change in the name of the trust but even a mere name change will not require a retitling of the assets, said Catherine Romania, an estate planning attorney with Witman Stadtmauer in Florham Park.

She said a revocable trust generally uses the Social Security number of the grantor — sometimes called the settlor — as its taxpayer identification number.

“This also will not need to change merely because a co-trustee is added or the trustees are changed,” Romania said. “A new taxpayer identification number will be required when the grantor/settlor dies at which time the trust becomes irrevocable.

Even though you have a properly executed amendment to the trust showing you have been named as co-trustee, some financial institutions take a particularly long time to review documentation and allow you to act upon such documentation, she said.

With that in mind, it is recommended that the amendment be provided to the financial institution where assets are located prior to such time as you need to act on the document, Romania said.

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This story was originally published ion July 8, 2021.

NJMoneyHelp.com presents certain general financial planning principles and advice, but should never be viewed as a substitute for obtaining advice from a personal professional advisor who understands your unique individual circumstances.