FAQ Friday: I have a trust and my husband just passed away. Do I need to do anything?

On Friday, January 7th at 11 a.m. EST, Mr. Berger discusses what to do, or not do, in the scenario where a trust is setup and your partner passes.

When a trust was first created, that may have been the case that nothing had do be done upon the first death, but now there may be things to consider.

Everything goes to the survivor’s trust. The social security number needs to be checked and that it is on everything so income does not continue to be reported on the deceased.

You can continue to use the revocable living trust name with the survivor. You can consider filing an estate tax return.

If the trust splits into a marital trust and splits into a survivors trust then it can be more complicated. If the house is split, sometimes we would buy the half in the marital trust or family trust and put it in the survivor’s trust.

If it all goes to the survivor’s trust then there is less to do, but still key items that shouldn’t be overlooked. If there is a different type of Trust, professional help could be key.

---

Submit your question

Bring your questions about estate planning and administration to our weekly Facebook Live with Mr. Berger on Fridays at 11am EST. Leave your email if you’d like to receive a notification of our response.