Many people think that once they sign their estate documents and get their binder, they’re completely protected. But here’s the truth: until your assets are actually moved inside your trust, it’s completely empty.
Moving your house, bank accounts, and investments into your trust is a process called funding.
If a trust is empty when you pass away, your family still has to go through Tennessee’s slow, stressful probate court.
My name is Haley, and I’m the Funding Coordinator at Linville Estate Law. My job is to take that heavy lifting off your shoulders. Here’s the step-by-step process of how we fund your trust:
1. The Family Wealth Inventory
Before we touch any accounts, I map out your entire financial footprint: every bank account, property, and insurance policy you own. This gives me a full picture of what needs to be protected, so nothing gets missed.
If you have a more complex financial picture, this step matters even more. Our clients Charlie and his family, real estate investors and business owners with three kids, had a lot of ground to cover:
“As real estate investors and business owners (with 3 kids!) we had a LOT of questions, and needed a lot of hand-holding during our estate planning process… They even helped us figure out a LOT of things we hadn’t thought of!” – Charlie
2. Our Funding Coordination Call
Next, you and I will hop on a call to look over your inventory together. I’ll ask a few simple questions to fill in the blanks, such as:
- Do you have contact info for your financial advisor?
- Which accounts do you have online access to?
- Are you planning to sell property soon, or should we deed it to the trust?
We will never ask for or keep your passwords or bank logins. Your digital security stays in your hands.
3. Bank Letters & Business Assignments
After our call, I dive straight into the paperwork for you:
- Banks: I draft formal instructions directing your banks to convert your accounts into the trust, or add the trust as a Payable on Death (POD) beneficiary.
- Businesses: If you own a local LLC, I review your operating agreement, then prepare assignments so your company transfers smoothly into your trust without disrupting your business partners.
- Timeshares: Every timeshare company handles transfers differently. I’ll reach out to the company to confirm the transfer steps and any fees before we move forward.
This is often the part clients are most relieved to hand off. As Brian put it:
“They assisted in walking us through the process and taking a lot of things off our plate, like changing the deeds on rental properties and providing written instructions for our banks on changing accounts.” – Brian
4. Direct Advisor & Insurance Coordination
You don’t have to spend your lunch break on hold with investment firms or insurance companies. I handle that back-and-forth for you, reaching out directly to your financial advisors and life insurance agents to update your beneficiaries:
- Regular investments: We either convert them to trust accounts or name the trust as the beneficiary, so they bypass probate court.
- IRAs & 401(k)s: We keep your spouse primary for tax advantages and name the trust as the backup.
- Life insurance: We name the trust as the primary beneficiary, so the payout is protected right away.
I send them your certificate of trust and follow up until we get written confirmation that everything is set.
When our client Trish was in this step she said:
“We are currently meeting with their financial team to ensure our assets are properly accounted for in the trusts. Their team does all the paperwork… realizing all the documents they provided and the work the financial team needs to transfer items in the trusts, it’s worth the price.” – Trish
5. Recording Your Deeds
Finally, our legal team pulls your property records, prepares a custom quitclaim deed for your primary residence, and gets it recorded with the county register’s office. Once every asset is verified and every deed is recorded, I scan the final proofs into your portal, place the physical receipts in your binder, and send you a closing email.
Let’s make sure your plan actually works
Your life’s work, your real estate, and your family’s peace are too important to leave to a binder sitting empty on a shelf. You deserve a team of real people who are patient enough to handle the tedious details for you.
If you’re ready to stop wondering whether your plan will actually work when it matters, we’re ready to help.
Click here to book your free 15-minute discovery call with our team. Let’s sit down, talk about your family’s goals, and build an estate plan that’s built specifically for you, funded and designed to protect the people you love.
These are public client reviews. Clients have not been compensated for them. Results are not guaranteed and may vary by case.
