Parents often make the mistake of choosing a trustee based solely on personal relationships without considering their financial acumen, integrity, and willingness to serve. Choosing one of the children is not always the best choice as other beneficiaries may see their role with suspicion.
Selecting the wrong trustee is easily the biggest blunder parents can make when setting up a trust fund. As estate planning attorneys, we've seen first-hand how this critical error undermines so many parents' good intentions.
Disadvantages of Trust Funds Loss of Control: Some trusts mean giving up control over your assets. Time and Compliance: Maintaining a trust requires time and adhering to legal requirements.
If the asset is a house, you must execute a new deed giving it to the trust. If the asset is a car, you must transfer the title to the trust. If the asset is a bank account, you must transfer the funds to a new bank account in the name of the trust.
Under New York trust laws, a lifetime trust is created by a person who is still alive rather than upon a person's death through a will. Any person 18 or older may dispose of property through a lifetime trust. Every estate held in property may be disposed by a lifetime trust.
Loss of Asset Access Similarly to the above disadvantage, putting assets in a trust means you don't have immediate access to them. Even if you have a very open, revocable trust, taking assets from the trust to your personal bank account or elsewhere requires filing paperwork and extra time.
To make a living trust in New York, you: Choose whether to make an individual or shared trust. Decide what property to include in the trust. Choose a successor trustee. Decide who will be the trust's beneficiaries—that is, who will get the trust property. Create the trust document.
Costs: Setting up a trust involves legal and administrative fees, including tax implications related to stamp duty, inheritance tax, and income tax. Furthermore, ongoing administrative costs can be incurred, particularly if a professional trust company is involved.