What happens when a revocable trust is amended?
Q.  Trustee  A. Thank you for your question. Assets that have been transferred into a revocable trust are still owned by the same trust even after it is amended. A change of trustees does not require a change in the name of the trust but even a mere name change will not require a retitling of the assets, said Catherine Romania, an estate planning attorney with Witman Stadtmauer in Florham Park. She said a revocable trust generally uses the Social Security number of the grantor  sometimes called the settlor  as its taxpayer identification number. This also will not need to change merely because a co-trustee is added or the trustees are changed, Romania said. A new taxpayer identification number will be required when the grantor/settlor dies at which time the trust becomes irrevocable. Even though you have a properly executed amendment to the trust showing you have been named as co-trustee, some financial institutions take a particularly long time to review documentation and allow you to act upon such documentation, she said. With that in mind, it is recommended that the amendment be provided to the financial institution where assets are located prior to such time as you need to act on the document, Romania said. Email your questions to Ask@NJMoneyHelp.com. Karin Price Mueller writes the Bamboozled column for NJ Advance Media and is the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Follow NJMoneyHelp on Twitter @NJMoneyHelp. Find NJMoneyHelp on Facebook. Sign up for NJMoneyHelp.coms weekly e-newsletter.