• What is a "trust?"

A trust is a relationship where a person (the "Grantor" or “Settlor") gives (or "entrusts") money or property to another person, bank or trust company (the “Trustee") to hold for the benefit of another person (the “Beneficiary”). The Grantor, Trustee and initial Beneficiary may be the same person.

• What is a "Living Trust?"

A "living trust" is a trust created during a person’s lifetime. A “testamentary trust" is created under a person’s Last Will and "Testament" and comes into existence at the time a person dies.

• Doesn’t a trust “tie up" the money from those who are intended to receive it?

Trusts only "tie up" money if that is what the person creating the trust sets out in the trust document. Even in those situations, there are usually provisions allowing for money to be paid out to the beneficiaries.

• Aren’t trusts expensive?

Trustees of trusts must legally disclose how much they are charging as trustee. This amount is usually less than the average management fee on mutual funds, less than the fee charged by many investment managers, and less than what brokers typically receive in commissions and other compensation.

• Do I need a lawyer to set up a trust?

Trusts are usually a part of a person’s total estate plan. As a trust is a legal document, a licensed attorney at law should prepare it.

• How large must a trust be?

A wide-spread misconception is that a trust must involve millions of dollars. The fact is there is no minimum amount that must be placed into a trust. The considerations should be what are the legal fees involved in creating a trust and what are the on-going charges of the trustee (in the case of a corporate trustee). The question then is whether the purpose of the trust more than compensates for the costs involved.

• Are all trusts irrevocable?

Not all trusts are irrevocable. Many trusts are revocable. That means that the person creating the trust can change his/her mind at any time and terminate the trust. In a revocable trust, the person can take any amount out of the trust at any time without any questions whatsoever, and he/she can revoke the trust at any time.

• Do I lose control if l put property into a trust?

If you place property into a revocable trust, during your lifetime you stay in control. You can take the property out of the trust at anytime. After your death, the property stays in the trust according to the terms of the trust laid out in the trust document. You may decide the property should go outright to your heirs at the time of your death, or you may decide the heirs should receive the property at certain ages (such as: at age 30, they receive %, and at 35, they receive the other %), or you can require the property to stay in the trust for their lifetime, etc. You make all the decisions on when the property ultimately comes out of the trust.

• Aren’t trusts just for widows and orphans?

Quite to the contrary. Many people create trusts for themselves in order to gain non-biased investment expertise and to protect against potential incapacity. Often times, a trust can prevent the need for a guardianship or a conservatorship if a person ages and becomes unable to handle his/her financial affairs.

• Isn’t it true that trust departments don’t know how to manage money, but merely are "care-takers" of money?

Again to the contrary, overall trust departments are well regarded in the financial services industry as money-managers.

Several years ago, independent studies were conducted that showed trust departments as a whole to be better investment managers than independent investment advisors, mutual fund advisors and insurance companies.

• Do I need to have a trust to use your investment services?

No. In fact many of our clients sign a simple investment agreement naming us as an investment agent. At any time, you can terminate the agreement and terminate us as your investment agent. Our role as investment agent usually involves working with the client to establish investment objectives and then making investment decisions and executing investment transactions consistent with your objectives. We also help many clients with their IRA Rollovers. With an IRA, there is a simple IRA Agreement.

• Is it difficult to move a trust?

It all depends. The legal trust document must be read carefully to determine whether or not a trust can be moved to another trustee. Quite frequently there are provisions in trust documents that allow this.

• If I have a will, does my property avoid probate when I die?

No. Property titled in the name of a "living trust” avoids probate, but property passing under a person’s will does not avoid probate. Jointly Owned Property with Right of Survivorship between two people also avoids probate at the first person’s death. Other methods of avoiding probate are naming a beneficiary on an insurance policy, a retirement plan, or an IRA.

Payments on Death (POD’s) and Transfers of Death (TOD’s) also avoid probate.

• What's the Legal Name of your company?

Country Club Trust Company, N.A.