How to designate beneficiaries

If you have designated beneficiaries with a financial institution for any accounts, such as investments or life insurance policies, those choices will override any designations in your last will and testament, so it's important to make sure they are right. Our office can guide you to ensure you have designated the correct primary and contingent beneficiaries, please contact us with any questions.

This page serves as a resource to direct you to common financial institutions and the forms you need to update your beneficiaries. Some institutions allow you to make the changes online, some require paper forms and some require that you come in in-person.

Beneficiary Forms

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Special Power of Attorney

While in most cases we provide couples with Maryland durable power of attorney, it can be more efficient to also file specific power of attorney documents with your financial institution. Please print the relevant forms, fill them out and bring them to your document signing appointment. We can witness and notarize them for you.

In practical terms, a special power of attorney document gives you the blanket power to call a financial institution and talk to them about your spouse’s account, make transactions and even view their accounts in your dashboard online.

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TrustS - INSURANCE

Allstate Insurance - Need agent's information to add the trust as an additional insured
Erie Insurance - Need agent's information to add the trust as an additional insured
USAA - Add trust as an additional insured

TrustS - Accounts

BB&T: You will need bring your trust into a branch. It will go to their legal department to get approval to open your trust account.
Capital One
Fidelity
Maryland 529 (Change Account to Trust)
M&T Bank: The customer needs to come in person to the bank to close their accounts, bring in their full trust document which the bank will then send to their legal department and await a response in 7 days. The client then needs come back in and sign documents.
Merrill
Navy Federal Credit Union (Application for Deposit Trust Account)
Schwab (Transfer Investment Account to Trust)
Suntrust Bank (Truist): Bring trust paperwork and a picture ID into the branch.
TD Ameritrade
Tower Federal Credit Union: Does not issue debit cards for trust accounts. They require you to keep a personal account, in addition to your new trust account. We recommend opening your trust account at at different financial institution and naming the trust as a beneficiary on your TFCU personal account.
Vanguard

TrustS - Vehicles

Change the title of a boat to a trust:

Sign current title as sellers
Sign title as buyers for the trust. There is no tax as long as the buyers and sellers are the same people.
Our recommendation is that you bring the title to the DNR office. Here are the locations.
You can also mail the title to the DNR, the DNR recommends that you used certified mail.

Boat trailers are registered with the MVA. If you need to change the boat trailer to the trust, go to the MVA with the trust.

Change the title of a car (State of Maryland):

On the title, complete the section entitled Application for Title and Registration - you are the seller and buyer. There is no tax as long as the buyers and sellers are the same people.
Include a copy of the first and last pages of the trust
Mail to:
MVA
Mail In Title Unit
6601 Ritchie Highway, NE
Glen Burnie, MD 21062
Or bring to a local MVA office

TrustS - MortgageS

Amerisave: Requirements are as follows:
- Letter from client with their account number and a statement that they want to move their mortgage into the trust
- If the law office is submitting the request, client must also sign a letter authorizing us to communicate on their behalf.
- Sign the document(s) - wet signature required
- Scan and email to: custserve@yourmortgageonline.com
Axos Bank - Submit copy of Trust and loan number to servicing@axosbank.com
Bank of America (800-669-6607)
Submit a written request with the following information:
- Full name of the trust
- Contact phone numbers for the client
- Account numbers of the mortgage
- Address of the mortgage
- Relationship to client
- Client's intent to occupy the property
- Copy of the draft of the deed showing ownership change
- Copy of trust agreement
Mail to:
Bank of America, Name and Title Change Unit
FL1-908-01-49
4909 Savarese Circle
Tampa, FL 33634
Bay Vanguard: Come in person with the resolution, trust document, and any copies of EIN documents.
Glen Burnie Mutual: Requirements are as follows:
- Need recorded deed with book and page
- Bring documents to bank
- Bank will create a mini-assumption paperwork
- Borrowers will need to sign a personal guarantee
- Bank prefers to keep Certificate of Trust showing successor trustees
Loan Depot: Email a copy of the trust to servicing@loandepot.com. Include loan number.
Mr. Cooper - Directions listed here
Northwest Bank: Send a copy of the trust to: mortgagebanking.modifications@northwest.com. You may need to contact the branch - can call with loan number to find which branch to contact.
Penny Mac: Customers need to have a revocable trust, be beneficiaries of the trust and occupied their home for 12 months.
If these requirements are met, send deed and copy of trust certificate to:

Attn: Penny Mac Loan Services
PO Box 514387
Los Angeles, CA 90051-4387
Fax: 866-577-7205

Rocket Mortgage: Please call Rocket Mortgage at 313-373-3000 and they will send a letter with instructions for transferring the property to the trust.
SECU: To transfer your mortgage into the trust, you’ll need to bring your trust to the SECU branch (you can set up an appointment online).
Truist: Client must call Truist at 800-330-4684 and ask to transfer the mortgage to the trust. They will send a letter outlining the next steps.