Funding a Pennsylvania Living Trust
By Sean Quinlan, Esq. · Updated January 15, 2025
Funding is the step that converts a revocable living trust from a binder on the shelf into a working probate-avoidance plan. It is also the step DIY plans skip.
Real estate
A deed transferring the property from the individual owner to the trustee, in the same form as taken (joint, tenancy by entireties). Record at the county recorder of deeds. Title insurance generally not retriggered.
Brokerage and bank
Re-title the accounts in the trustee's name. Most institutions require the trust certification of trust (20 Pa.C.S. § 7790.5).
Business interests
Assignment of LLC interests or stock certificates into the trust, with operating-agreement compliance.
Retirement accounts
Generally not retitled — name individual beneficiaries to preserve stretch-IRA treatment. Trust as beneficiary only in special cases.
This article is general information about Pennsylvania law as of the update date above. It is not legal advice for your situation and does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice on your specific facts, please schedule a consultation.
Talk with a Pennsylvania estate planning attorney.
Most plans take two meetings. The first is a consultation — clear, honest, and free of pressure.