A signed trust is only the first step. This guide explains what funding a trust means, why gaps may matter, and how the attorney, financial advisor and CPA each fit into the follow-through.
Estate Structure Guide · Updated October 2026
Funding a trust means moving ownership of assets, or updating beneficiary designations where appropriate, so the trust document may actually govern them. The attorney drafts the documents and directs the titling, the CPA advises on tax effects, and a financial advisor may coordinate the account changes between them.
Key takeaways
A trust is a legal arrangement created by a written document. The document names who manages the trust, who may benefit, and the rules that apply. But a trust can generally only govern property that it actually holds or that is directed to it. Funding is the process of connecting your property to the trust by changing how it is titled or who is named to receive it.
In practice, funding is a set of small administrative steps spread across several institutions: a brokerage custodian, a bank, an insurance company, a retirement plan administrator, and the registry of deeds. Each has its own forms and its own timing. Because the steps are scattered, a few items may remain open long after the signing meeting.
Funding also varies with the type of trust. A revocable living trust is usually funded during your lifetime. Other structures, such as a credit shelter trust within an A/B plan, may be designed to receive assets at a later point, as the trust terms direct. Your attorney determines which assets should be in which trust and when.
If an account is never retitled or directed to the trust, the trust may have nothing to govern for that account. The asset may instead pass under your will, under a beneficiary designation, or under state default rules. Any distribution instructions, successor trustee provisions, or tax-related provisions in the trust document may not reach that asset. This is often called an unfunded or partially funded trust.
For Massachusetts households, the gap can matter for tax planning as well as administration. According to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, a Massachusetts estate tax return is generally required when the gross estate plus adjusted taxable gifts exceeds $2,000,000 for decedents dying on or after January 1, 2023, and a credit of up to $99,600 may apply. Massachusetts also generally does not allow a surviving spouse to use a deceased spouse's unused state exemption. Married couples sometimes work with an attorney on an A/B trust structure so that both spouses' exemptions may be considered, but that structure generally depends on assets being titled so the plan can operate as drafted.
Source: Massachusetts Department of Revenue, Estate Tax Guide and Who Must File Estate Tax Returns. Verified against mass.gov as of October 8, 2026. Thresholds and calculation steps may change, and the amount of tax for any estate is a question for your attorney and CPA.
To see how the exemption works for married couples, and why funding is the step where these plans may go wrong, read how an A/B trust may use both Massachusetts exemptions and why funding matters. For a wider view of how the pieces connect, see the Massachusetts estate planning guide.
The checklist below is a general, category-level starting point for a conversation with your professionals. It is not a substitute for your attorney's instructions, which depend on your trust and your circumstances.
Other assets, such as business interests and personal property, are typically handled case by case by your attorney. Before any change, make sure your attorney has confirmed it in writing. Retitling can have legal and tax effects that differ by asset, which is why the attorney and CPA decide and the advisor tracks the follow-through.
Gather accounts, current titling, beneficiaries, and the signed trust documents in one place.
Your attorney identifies which assets belong in the trust and how each should be titled or designated.
Custodian and insurer forms are completed, with the CPA asked about tax effects before anything is moved.
New accounts, a home sale, or a family change may require another look at titling and beneficiaries.
Gaps may come from ordinary events that nobody thought to connect back to the trust, rather than from one large mistake. A few examples that families may want to look for:
A new bank or brokerage account may be opened in individual name out of habit. If it was meant to be part of the plan, it may need its own retitling request.
Older designations may name a former spouse, a deceased relative, or no contingent beneficiary at all, and depending on the account, they may control who receives it regardless of what a trust or will says. Your attorney can explain how this applies to your accounts.
A second home, a sale and repurchase, or a refinance may change title without anyone checking whether the new ownership matches the plan.
A custodian may have received a retitling form but rejected it for a missing signature or trust certification, and the rejection may never have been noticed.
A shared checklist, reviewed with your attorney and CPA on a regular schedule, may help surface these items earlier. Reviews are also a natural time to ask whether a change in tax rules or family circumstances calls for an update to the documents themselves, which is your attorney's decision.
Funding goes more smoothly when each professional's role is clear. The table shows a typical division of work. Your own engagement terms and your professionals' advice control.
| Professional | Typical role in funding | What stays outside the role |
|---|---|---|
| Estate attorney | Drafts the trust, decides what should be titled to it, prepares deeds, and gives legal advice on how the plan works. | Day-to-day tracking of account-level forms across institutions. |
| Financial advisor | Inventories accounts, passes the attorney's instructions to custodians, tracks open items, and flags financial events that may need a second look. | Drafting or titling legal documents, giving legal advice, or giving tax advice. |
| CPA | Advises on the tax effects of a change, such as cost basis, reporting, and estate or gift tax questions. | Drafting legal documents or managing account paperwork. |
At MSA Financial, Michael Cammarata, CFP®, acts as the coordinating point between your investment accounts, your estate attorney, and your CPA. He is not an attorney or CPA. If you already work with professionals, he coordinates with them. If you need an introduction, he can offer one from a network of independent Massachusetts professionals, and you choose whom to engage. Read more about how a financial advisor coordinates estate planning with your attorney and CPA.
These questions are educational starting points. Your professionals can answer them for your situation.
Retirement accounts often raise their own planning questions. For background on account types and trade-offs, see how tax-advantaged retirement accounts differ and what to ask your CPA.
Funding a trust means transferring ownership of assets into the trust, or coordinating beneficiary designations where appropriate, so the trust document may actually govern those assets. Signing the trust document creates the structure. Funding is the separate follow-through that connects accounts and property to it. Your attorney determines which assets belong in the trust and how each one should be titled.
An unfunded trust may not do what it was drafted to do. Assets that were never retitled or never directed to the trust may pass under your will, your beneficiary designations, or state default rules instead, and any tax or distribution provisions in the trust may not apply to them. The result depends on your documents and circumstances, so ask your attorney how your plan would work if an account was missed.
The person who created the trust generally signs the transfer paperwork, with guidance from the attorney who drafted it. The attorney drafts the trust and prepares or reviews documents such as deeds. The custodian of each account processes its own retitling or beneficiary forms. A financial advisor may coordinate the account-level follow-up between those parties, and a CPA advises on tax effects.
Retirement accounts such as IRAs and workplace plans generally are not retitled into a living trust the way a taxable brokerage account may be, because a change of ownership could be treated as a distribution. Instead, a trust is sometimes named as a beneficiary. Whether that fits your situation is a question for your attorney and CPA, who can weigh the legal and tax trade-offs.
A practical first step is an inventory: every account, how it is titled today, and who is named as beneficiary. You can bring that list to your attorney and CPA and ask which items are consistent with your documents. To organize a general estimate of the Massachusetts estate tax before those conversations, use the Massachusetts estate tax calculator. It is an educational tool and not legal or tax advice.
This guide is for educational purposes only and does not constitute individualized legal, tax, or investment advice. Investment advisory services are offered through MSA Financial, LLC, a Registered Investment Adviser (CRD #107768). MSA Financial is an SEC-registered investment adviser. Registration with the SEC does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. Michael Cammarata is not an attorney or CPA and does not provide legal or tax advice. He does not draft legal documents or prepare tax returns. He coordinates with clients' existing estate attorneys and CPAs. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances, and legal and tax advice should be obtained from your own attorney and CPA. Massachusetts estate tax figures were verified against mass.gov as of October 8, 2026 and may change.