What Is a Revocable Living Trust Form?
A revocable living trust form is a document that creates a legal entity (called a trust) to hold assets like real estate, money, and valuables. The trust lets you manage these assets and nominates a trusted person to take over if you can’t act for yourself. It’s a more flexible option than a last will, as it allows asset management during your lifetime.
A revocable trust can be changed or canceled at any time, as long as you’re mentally able and follow the right steps. This makes it easier to update the trust if you want to add or remove assets or choose a new trustee.
Our revocable living trust form lets you establish a trust and take charge of your estate planning. Use it to avoid probate and state succession laws, protecting your assets how you see fit.
When to Use an Irrevocable Living Trust
If you want to give up control of your assets and receive protection from creditors, consider an irrevocable living trust.
Who Are the Parties to a Revocable Living Trust?
A revocable living trust (or a revocable inter vivos trust) involves several parties:
- Grantor: The trust’s creator and the original owner of the assets named in the trust.
- Primary trustee: The party responsible for managing the assets in the trust.
- Successor trustee: The party who will take over management of the trust if the original trustee cannot.
- Beneficiaries: The individual(s) who receive the benefits of the trust assets after the grantor dies or after the terms of the trust are met.
Revocable Trust vs. Irrevocable Trust
The main difference is asset protection. Irrevocable trusts move assets out of your estate, so they can’t be touched by creditors and won’t be taxed when you die. But that protection comes at a cost: you give up control, and you usually can’t make changes without court or beneficiary approval.
Revocable trusts, on the other hand, let you stay in control. You can change the terms or revoke the trust entirely, but the assets remain part of your estate—which means no protection from creditors or estate taxes.
| Factor | Revocable Living Trust | Irrevocable Living Trust |
|---|---|---|
| Ability to Change or Revoke | Yes | Possible but difficult |
| Grantor Keeps Control of Their Assets | Yes | No |
| Assets Protection from Creditors | No | Possibly (depends on the circumstances) |
| Avoidance of Probate | Yes | Yes |
| Tax Benefits | No | Yes |
| Complexity to Manage | Less complex | More complex |
| Belongs to Grantor's Estate | Yes | No |
Choosing the Right Type of Trust
Whether you need a revocable or irrevocable living trust or another kind, read about different types of trusts to manage your assets and fulfill your estate planning.
How to Create a Revocable Living Trust
If you want to know how to set up a trust to protect your assets, you can complete the process in five steps.
1. Consider Your Goals
Start by considering what you want to accomplish through the creation of your living trust. That includes:
- what assets you want to protect
- who will benefit from the trust
- who will control your assets normally
- who will control your assets if you become incapacitated or pass away.
By considering these critical elements ahead of time, you can streamline the creation of your revocable living trust.
2. Review Legal Requirements
Most states have adopted the Uniform Trust Code [1] , which guides the creation and changes of living trusts. It also outlines the grantor’s and beneficiaries’ rights. However, some states have their own laws or modifications to the Uniform Trust Code. Do your research to make sure that you follow those requirements. If you have a complex situation, consult a lawyer.
3. Write the Form
As you fill out the revocable trust form, you’ll establish the specifics you considered in the first step. Our revocable trust template makes it easy to include all relevant legal information:
- Grantor information: Determine whether one person or multiple people are creating the living trust.
- Trust’s purpose: Explain whether the trust will manage and control the grantor’s assets or distribute them after the grantor’s death.
- Property: Describe the property you’re placing into the trust.
- Trustees: Name the initial trustee and successor trustee, if applicable.
- Powers: List the trustee’s powers, noting any limitations or restrictions.
- Compensation: Specify if the trustee will receive compensation for acting in their role.
- Beneficiaries: Name your beneficiaries, who will receive all property not specifically named to other entities.
- Gifts: Make specific gifts you intend to give as part of the trust, including funds designated to children, pets, charities, or other individuals or entities.
4. Sign & Notarize
Once the form is complete, you may need to sign before a notary public or witnesses. This step is often essential to legalizing your new revocable living trust.
Check your state’s requirements to see if you need a notary public’s or witnesses’ signatures. Even if you don’t, it’s still helpful to have these third parties observe your signature for increased validity.
5. Review & Update
Because a living trust is revocable, you can update it at any time. Regularly review and update your trust to reflect life changes such as marriage, divorce, or new assets.
Revocable Living Trust Sample
Ready to see how a revocable living trust is worded to protect your assets? View a free revocable living trust sample below. When you’re ready to start setting up your own, you can use our revocable living trust template to make it simple. Download in PDF or Word formats.
What Comes After Writing a Revocable Living Trust?
Once you create a revocable living trust, you must fund the trust, meaning you must change the title of your assets so the trust becomes the legal owner. How you transfer assets depends on their type:
- Real estate: Use a warranty deed or a quitclaim deed.
- Financial accounts: Update ownership on existing accounts.
- Personal property: Write a bill of sale.
- Vehicles: Update the title and registration with your state’s DMV.
- Business interests: Create an assignment agreement.
Transferring property to a living trust helps protect your assets and avoids expensive, time-consuming probate challenges after your death.
Pros and Cons of Revocable Trusts
Consider the advantages and disadvantages of revocable trusts to determine whether this tool is the right solution for your estate planning.
Pros of Revocable Trusts
- Ability to change: You can change a living trust at any time throughout your lifetime.
- Privacy: A revocable living trust is private, meaning that others will not have information about the details of your estate.
- Avoidance of probate: With a revocable living trust, probate is not necessary after your death, which streamlines the process for your heirs.
- Control: You continue to control your assets throughout your lifetime, and there are no limitations on how you can transfer or use them.
- Incapacity planning: A revocable living trust allows you to include incapacity planning, which will kick in if you are unable to control your own assets.
Cons of Revocable Trusts
- No protection from creditors: Creditors can go after a trust if it’s revocable.
- Need to retitle property: You must retitle the property to transfer ownership to your trust, which can be time-consuming.
- Need to remain attentive during amendments: Pay careful attention when amending the trust, especially your wishes for asset distribution, to avoid difficulties with those changes.
Revocable Living Trust vs. Last Will & Testament
A revocable trust lets you and your trustee manage your assets during your lifetime, while a last will only comes into effect after you pass away. A last will determines what happens to assets when you die, and it must go through the probate process.
You can write a last will to include a testamentary trust, which manages assets for minor children or those who may need financial oversight.
| Factor | Revocable Living Trust | Last Will and Testament |
|---|---|---|
| Avoidance of Probate | Yes | No |
| Privacy | Remains private | Becomes part of public records |
| Complexity | More complex | Simpler |
| Management of Assets During Incapacity | Yes | No (only becomes effective when the grantor passes away) |
| Easily Amendable | Yes | Yes (use a codicil to will to do so) |
More End-of-Life Preparation
Learn more about the difference between a living trust vs. will to ensure you have your legal documents in order. Plus, explore other end-of-life documents to complete your estate planning and end-of-life care.
Create a Flexible Estate Plan Today
Legal Templates makes creating a flexible estate plan easy. With our revocable living trust template, you can put together a living trust that includes all key information, including naming yourself as the grantor, nominating a trustee, designating beneficiaries, and leaving gifts. Even better, it’s revocable. That means that as life happens, you can make changes to your designations without having to go through a complicated legal process.
Frequently Asked Questions
What can I put in a revocable living trust?
A revocable living trust can hold many assets, including bank accounts, investment accounts, real estate, and business interests. You can also include tangible personal property, including jewelry, collectibles, and artwork.
What should I not put in a revocable living trust?
In most cases, revocable living trusts should not include life insurance policies, retirement accounts, or Social Security benefits. It’s better to assign beneficiary designations for these directly. Also, avoid putting vehicles, active bank accounts, and Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) into a trust, as these are better managed via other methods.
Be sure to check state regulations about the types of assets you can include in your trust.
When does a revocable trust become irrevocable?
A revocable trust becomes irrevocable when the grantor dies or becomes incapacitated. At that time, the trustee will carry out the grantor’s wishes, and the trust can no longer be changed.
How much is a revocable living trust?
Creating a revocable living trust with an attorney can cost several thousand dollars, depending on your area and the complexity of your document. If you create one on your own with Legal Templates, you can get the template for an affordable fee as part of our monthly or yearly subscription.
What’s the difference between a living trust and a revocable trust?
A living trust is created by the grantor during their lifetime, and it can be irrevocable or revocable. A revocable trust is a type of living trust that the grantor can amend or revoke during their lifetime.
