Funding means retitling your assets into the trust's name, and a trust that has not been funded does nothing whatsoever. The signing ceremony is not the finish line. The deed recording is.
I see unfunded trusts constantly, usually from mail-order packages and occasionally from lawyers who drafted the document and then left the client to handle the paperwork alone.
What has to go in
Real property, first and always. This is the asset that drives probate, and in Los Angeles it is usually the only asset that matters. We prepare the grant deed, the Preliminary Change of Ownership Report, and record it with the county. That is included in the flat fee, not billed separately.
- Your primary residence, plus any rental, vacation, or out-of-state property.
- Bank and credit union accounts, retitled to 'the Vasquez Family Trust' or whatever yours is called.
- Brokerage and non-retirement investment accounts.
- Shares in an LLC or closely held business, subject to the operating agreement.
- Promissory notes, deeds of trust you hold, and any money owed to you.
What stays out, on purpose
Retirement accounts. Do not retitle a 401(k) or an IRA into a trust. Doing it can trigger an immediate taxable distribution of the whole balance, which is a genuinely terrible day. Name people as beneficiaries instead, and name contingent beneficiaries too.
Vehicles usually stay out. California has a simple transfer procedure at the DMV and the value rarely justifies the paperwork. Life insurance stays out of a revocable trust in most cases, though the trust can be named as beneficiary if minor children are involved.
Two assets people always forget
Out-of-state property, which otherwise triggers a second probate in that state on top of California's. And the safe deposit box, which the bank will not open for anyone whose name is not on the signature card.
How the retitling actually happens
- We record a grant deed for each parcel. Recording usually posts within a few weeks, and you get a conformed copy for your file.
- You take a certification of trust to each bank. It is a short document proving the trust exists without revealing the dispositive terms, and every branch officer in Los Angeles has seen one.
- Brokerages have their own change-of-title form. Expect a week or two per account.
- Beneficiary designations get updated on retirement accounts and life insurance, which is a form, not a deed.
“I ask every client to send me a photo of the conformed deed when it comes back from the county. It takes them ninety seconds and it has caught three recording errors in the last two years.”
Delia Vasquez-HartRefinancing later
Some lenders ask you to take the property out of the trust to close a refinance, then put it back. That is normal and it is fine, but the putting-back step is where people fall down. Set a calendar reminder for thirty days after closing and check the deed yourself.
Questions we get asked
Does transferring my house into the trust reassess my property taxes?
No. A transfer to your own revocable trust is excluded from reassessment. We file the Preliminary Change of Ownership Report noting the exclusion so nothing gets flagged.
Will it trigger the due-on-sale clause on my mortgage?
Federal law protects transfers into a revocable trust where you remain a beneficiary and occupy the home. Lenders deal with this every day.
What about accounts I open after the trust is signed?
Open them in the trust's name from the start. It is one extra line on the application and it saves the whole retitling dance later.
How do I know if my old trust was ever funded?
Look at the grant deed. If the grantee line names you personally rather than you as trustee, the house is not in. Bring it in and we will tell you what else is missing.
Existing clients get a funding checklist with each item and a place to write the date it cleared. If yours is buried somewhere, email us and we will send a fresh one with your specific assets already listed.