A revocable living trust isn't a document you sign once and forget. It's a plan that only works if it's built correctly and funded completely — and most of the costly mistakes I see happen at the funding stage, not the drafting stage. That's the gap my office is built to close.
If you're still weighing whether a trust makes sense for your situation, our article on how a revocable living trust avoids probate for New York families walks through the mechanics in more depth. This page focuses on what happens next — how my office actually sets one up and funds it for you.
A revocable living trust is a legal arrangement created during your lifetime. You typically serve as trustee, keeping full control over your assets — you can buy, sell, spend, or amend the trust's terms at any time. The difference from a will is ownership: once an asset is retitled into the trust's name, it's no longer held individually by you. It's held by the trust, and the trust doesn't stop functioning when you pass away. Assets titled in the trust's name generally fall outside the probate process governed by New York's Surrogate's Court Procedure Act, because there's nothing left in the decedent's individual name for the court to administer.
A will still has to go through probate — a court process that can take months, involves filing fees, and becomes part of the public record. A funded revocable living trust generally avoids that process altogether. For families who own real estate, want to keep their finances private, or hold property in more than one state, that difference can save significant time, cost, and stress at an already difficult moment.
A trust that exists only on paper — with your house deed and brokerage accounts still titled in your own name — protects no one. I've reviewed estate plans where a family paid for a trust years earlier and never completed the deed transfer, only to end up in probate anyway. Funding isn't an optional add-on to a living trust; it's the entire point of building one.
A living trust tends to make the most sense for families who own New York real estate, want to avoid a public probate record, or hold property in more than one state that would otherwise trigger multiple probate proceedings. It isn't necessary for every estate — smaller, simpler estates may be well served by a will alone — which is why we start with a review of your specific assets before recommending a plan.
No. A revocable living trust avoids probate, not estate or income taxes — the assets remain part of your taxable estate.
Yes. As long as it's revocable, you can amend its terms, add or remove assets, or dissolve it entirely at any time while you're alive and competent.
Yes. We pair every trust with a "pour-over" will that catches any asset you forgot to retitle, sending it into the trust through a simplified probate process.
Any asset left titled in your individual name isn't protected by the trust and will likely have to go through probate anyway, regardless of what the trust document says.
Drafting typically takes a few weeks; funding timelines vary depending on how many accounts and properties need retitling, which we manage directly with your institutions.
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