Once a written living trust agreement is executed, you transfer your assets from your individual name to your name as trustee of your living trust. For example, instead of your property being held in the name of “Jane Doe,” it now will be held as “Jane Doe, Trustee of the Jane Doe Living Trust.”

You will transfer your bank and investment accounts, certificates of deposit, real estate, investments, etc. into your living trust. To transfer real estate (e.g., your home) to the trust, a deed must be prepared, signed and recorded with the clerk of the county court. If you have bank accounts, savings account, CDs etc. you must change the ownership of the accounts by changing the signature cards at the institutions which hold the accounts. If you have investment accounts or mutual fund accounts, you must instruct your broker to transfer your stocks and bonds into the name of the trust. Lawyers typically prepare a document which transfers all your personal property into the trust. If you wish to have life insurance proceeds go to the trust, you must tell your insurance agent to assign your life insurance policies to the trust.

Assets not put into your name as trustee will not be considered part of the trust and may be subject to probate at your death. When this process is complete, you, as an individual, will no longer own the transferred property. Your living trust will be the legal owner, but you, as trustee, will retain complete control of your trust and the assets in it. You sell assets in the same way you currently do.