In a Sale
What This Means When the House Is Being Sold
This is the document that surfaces when a trust owned some property but not all of it, often because a house was never formally deeded into the trust before death even though the plan intended it to be there. Where that happens, the pour-over will generally has to go through probate to move the property into the trust, exactly the delay a trust-based plan was meant to avoid.
Identifying early whether a piece of real property was actually titled in the trust's name, or only intended to be, determines which process governs the sale.
Compare
Not to Be Confused With
- This TermPour-Over Will
- Often Mistaken ForTrust Funding
- Often Mistaken ForRevocable Living Trust
- Often Mistaken ForTestate
What Tells Them Apart
A revocable living trust is the primary planning document, meant to hold assets directly. A pour-over will is the backup, catching anything left out. Trust funding is the process of actually retitling assets into the trust's name, and a gap in it is what creates the need for the will to catch a missed asset. Testate simply means a will exists, which one does here.
Questions
Questions People Ask
What happens if a house was never actually put into the trust before death?
If a pour-over will exists, it generally directs that asset into the trust, but the transfer typically still has to go through probate first, since the house was not formally titled in the trust's name at death. This defeats much of the point of avoiding probate, which is why confirming trust funding while someone is alive matters.