Here’s one people get wrong all the time.
You set up a trust. Now the bank wants to add it as the payable-on-death beneficiary on your checking account, or the insurance company wants to name it on your homeowner’s policy. And they say, “Bring us a copy of your trust.”
You don’t need to, and in Missouri you generally shouldn’t have to. Missouri law (RSMo 456.10-1013) lets you use a certificate of trust instead.
That is what a certificate of trust is for. It is a short document, a couple of pages, that answers the questions a bank or title company actually has:
- That the trust exists, and when it was signed
- Who the trustee is
- What the trustee is allowed to do
- How title should read
It leaves out everything that isn’t their business, like who inherits and how much.
In one of our signing meetings, a client’s backup trustee, who had administered a trust before, jumped in: “That’s important, because you don’t want to hand anybody your whole trust.” Exactly right.
In fact, the bank shouldn’t want the whole thing. Once they have it, they’re responsible for knowing what’s in it, which means somebody has to read forty pages of it. The certificate is cleaner for everyone.
How we handle it: When you sign your trust with us, you get bright yellow follow-up sheets for the few things only you can do, like visiting the bank or calling your insurance agent. Each one has the certificate of trust attached. You hand over the certificate and keep the trust.
If a bank insists on the full trust, call us. That’s usually a five-minute conversation.
Book a free 15-minute call or call (573) 334-5125.
General information, not legal advice.