Why Do We Put Homes Into a Trust?
For many families, the home is more than just an asset—it’s a place of memories, stability, and holds significant emotional value. But when a homeowner passes away, that same home can become a source of stress, delay, and even conflict if it’s not properly protected with proper estate documents. At Wakefield Law, we talk with our clients every day about how trusts can be used to hold real estate and ensure safe and efficient transfer of one of the most valuable assets to loved ones. One of the most effective ways to safeguard your home and ease the burden on your loved ones is by placing it into a trust.
What Does It Mean to Put Your Home in a Trust?
Placing your home in a trust means transferring ownership from your individual name to a legal entity—the trust—while you’re still alive. You retain control during your lifetime, and after your death, the trust directs what happens to the property without the need for probate.
This strategy is especially powerful when paired with a revocable living trust, which allows you to:
Maintain full control over buying, selling, and financing
Make changes as your circumstances evolve
Ensure a smooth transition after your passing
Here’s why putting your home into a trust is a smart move:
1. Avoidance of Probate
Probate is the court-supervised process of distributing assets after death. It can be slow, expensive, and public. A home held in trust bypasses probate entirely, allowing your family to access or sell the property without court delays.
2. Minimize Family Conflict
A trust provides clear instructions about who inherits the home and under what conditions. This clarity helps prevent disputes and ensures your wishes are honored.
3. Ease of Transfer and Sale
If you become incapacitated, your successor trustee can manage the home without court intervention. That means bills get paid, repairs get made, the home can be sold, and your family isn’t left scrambling when you are in your most vulnerable position.
4. Tax Planning
Trusts, like other inheritance vehicles, ensure preservation of the step-up in basis by beneficiaries. If transfers aren’t done carefully, there can be enormous tax consequences, but trusts avoid those pitfalls when written carefully.
How It Works in Practice
Let’s say you own a home in Virginia and a beach house in Delaware. After creating your family living trust, you sign a new deed transferring the properties from your name to the trust. After your death, your successor trustee follows the instructions in the trust—whether that’s transferring the home to a child, selling it, or keeping it in the family.
No probate. No delays. No guesswork.
Give us a call if you’d like to learn more about the wonderful gift you can give to your family – a well written trust as a part of your estate plan can save your loved ones cost, delay, and legal obstacles after you pass. We’re here to help you get started! 703.771.9740