How Do You Fund a Living Trust in New Jersey? - Christine Matus
Episode notes
From The Matus Law Group - How Do You Fund a Living Trust in New Jersey? explains why a living trust only protects assets that have been properly transferred into it and walks listeners through the practical steps required to fund a trust. The episode covers how New Jersey families can retitle real estate, bank accounts, investment accounts, business interests, and personal property so those assets are governed by the trust rather than left to pass through probate.
Listeners will learn how the New Jersey Uniform Trust Code, N.J.S.A. 3B:31-1 et seq., applies to trust ownership, why a certification of trust under N.J.S.A. 3B:31-81 can help preserve privacy, and what documents may be needed to transfer real estate. The discussion also addresses bargain and sale deeds, GIT/REP forms, Form RTF-1, the Ocean County Clerk’s Office, the Ocean County Surrogate’s Court, and federal protections under the Garn-St. Germain Depository Institutions Act of 1982.
The episode also explores the different treatment of IRAs, 401(k) plans, life insurance policies, Limited Liability Company interests, partnership shares, corporate stock, vehicles, jewelry, artwork, antiques, and collectibles. Christine Matus, Esq., founder of The Matus Law Group, explains why retirement accounts generally should not be retitled directly into a trust, how beneficiary designations can affect taxes and probate, and how a pour-over will serves as a backup for assets that were never transferred during the trust creator’s lifetime.
Finally, the podcast reviews common trust-funding mistakes, including failing to transfer newly acquired property, overlooking beneficiary designations, neglecting to record a new deed, and not updating an estate plan after marriage, divorce, a birth, or a death. It also discusses New Jersey inheritance tax classifications, the repeal of the state estate tax, and the importance of regular trust reviews for families in Toms River, Red Bank, Ocean County, Monmouth County, and throughout New Jersey.
The Matus Law Group
81 E Water St #2C, Toms River, NJ 08753
(732) 281-0060