Bank Checking Account Trust Conversion?

[Midpack]

My attorney instructed us to fund our trust by retitling/converting all our (larger) assets. Converting our house deed, cars, Vanguard accts and online savings has been pretty easy.

But re: local bank checking acct he instructed us there would be no need to change our bank acct number, or to change our checks - still in our names vs name of trust. In fact he said don’t change the acct name.

It took some doing but Bank of America did agree to keep our acct number as is. However, they say it’s impossible to avoid changing the acct to the name of the trust. Our checks will change and any check written to me or DW by name can’t be deposited anymore - has to be in the name of the trust! WTH?

Were any of you able to do as our estate attorney recommended?

[After a long discussion with a very frustrated BofA rep, he told us he could leave everything the same by instead making our trust the beneficiary of the checking account, POD only (payable on death of both of us). Waiting to see if attorney finds that acceptable.]

 

[pb4uski]

My dad's living trust's checking account is titled:

[Dad's name] Liv Tr
[pb4uski, DS & DM] Succ Ttees UAD [date trust was established]

and we deposit checks made out to DM in there all the time.

I would think that they should be able to change the titling of the checking account to be in the name of the trust and show you as the trustee and then still deposit checks made out to you.

Dad died 15 years ago and I don't have any old statements showing how the account was titled when he was alive but I suspect it was:

[Dad's name] Liv Tr
[Dad's name] Ttee UAD [date trust was established]

And I believe that he deposited checks made out to him or DM to that account because they didn't have any other checking accounts that I know of.... though I could see an argument that perhaps the bank should not have accepted checks made out to DM while Dad was alive... but she was the sole contingent beneficiary of Dad's trust.

Then again, if we had trusts we generally keep so little in our checking accounts that if that was outside the trust just had beneficiary designations then it would not be a big deal.

 

[Midpack]

Then again, if we had trusts we generally keep so little in our checking accounts that if that was outside the trust just had beneficiary designations then it would not be a big deal.

I’m not overly concerned because we don’t keep a lot in checking either. But it was handy when my Dad passed away, my sister and I (as successor co-trustees) could write checks on his accounts as if the accounts were are own. Made it easier to settle his estate. That’s why I’d like to get the checking account into the trust.

Thank you pb4uski, you’re always very knowledgeable and helpful! Cheers.

 

[OldShooter]

Any time I have had checks printed I tell the printer what to print and they do it. What the checks say has little to do with the account titling.

Edit: DW and I have always maintained separate checking accounts. Both are titled at the bank as joint but her printed checks have only her name and mine ditto. My checks also show the addresses of both our houses, the only hassle there being squeezing the information into a limited number of printed lines.

Our attorney told us not to bother putting the checking accounts, cars, personal property into the trusts as the total amount was not large and would not cause a probate problem.

Re insurance, our insurance company (Selective) added the trusts to the two house policies as if it was the most routine change they ever made.

 

[Ready]

I retitled our Vanguard account to the trust but elected not to deal with the hassle on the checking account. We have PODs set up so the trust only matters if we both die at the same time.

We were unable to convince Allstate to add the trust to our policy so we ended up leaving them after 30 years and switched to Amica, who had no problem including the trust on the policy.

 

[Midpack]

Any time I have had checks printed I tell the printer what to print and they do it. What the checks say has little to do with the account titling.

I thought so. What bothered me more was BofA telling us any checks for deposit had to made out to the trust, couldn’t be in my name or DW. Sounds wrong frankly. I’m planning on trying again at another larger branch to see if that helps. If not I’ll go with making the trust a beneficiary of the checking account instead.

 

[OldShooter]

I thought so. What bothered me more was BofA telling us any checks for deposit had to made out to the trust, couldn’t be in my name or DW. Sounds wrong frankly. I’m planning on trying again at another larger branch to see if that helps. If not I’ll go with making the trust a beneficiary of the checking account instead.

... and you believe that the bank compares every endorsement to your exact account title? Try making a deposit to our account after endorsing the check "Elmer Fudd" and see how that goes.

There is too much high speed automation to allow that sort of thing on routine transactions. When I was treasurer of our flying club I had the account and the checks marked "Two Signatures Required over $1000." The bank was quite honest in admitting that they don't check the signatures at all, much less being able to look for two.

But, really, your problem is that you are at the wrong bank. Stop by the nearest credit union, explain the problem, and see if it is an issue for them.

 

[rk911]

we re-titled our three bank accounts to our trust and kept the same account numbers. we re-titled all of our joint accounts as well as the house but we did not re-title our vehicles.