What Is a Revocable Trust?

A revocable trust — also called a living trust or revocable living trust — is a legal document that holds your assets during your lifetime and distributes them to your chosen beneficiaries after your death, without going through probate court.

Unlike a will, which only takes effect when you die, a revocable trust is active the moment you create it. You transfer ownership of your assets into the trust, but because it is revocable, you retain full control. You can change it, add to it, remove assets from it, or cancel it entirely at any point while you are alive.

How a Revocable Trust Works

When you create a revocable trust, you take on three roles simultaneously:

- Grantor — the person who creates and funds the trust. You.
- Trustee — the person who manages the trust assets. Also you, during your lifetime.
- Beneficiary — the person who receives the trust assets. Also you, during your lifetime — and your chosen heirs after your death.

You name a successor trustee — typically a spouse, adult child, or professional trustee — who takes over management of the trust if you become incapacitated or when you die. At that point, your successor trustee distributes the assets to your named beneficiaries according to the terms you set.

What a Revocable Trust Avoids

The primary reason most people create a revocable trust is to avoid probate — the court-supervised process of distributing a deceased person's assets. Probate is public record, can take 12-24 months, and typically costs 3-8% of the estate's value in court fees and attorney fees.

Assets held in a revocable trust pass directly to beneficiaries without probate. The process is private, faster, and significantly less expensive than the alternative.

A revocable trust also provides continuity if you become incapacitated. If you are in an accident or develop a serious illness, your successor trustee can step in and manage your affairs immediately — without a court proceeding to establish a conservatorship.

What a Revocable Trust Does Not Do

A revocable trust does not provide asset protection. Because you retain control of the assets, they are still considered yours for purposes of creditor claims, Medicaid eligibility, and estate taxes. If protecting assets from creditors or reducing estate taxes is a goal, an irrevocable trust is the appropriate tool.

A revocable trust also does not replace a will entirely. You still need a pour-over will — a will that directs any assets not already in the trust to be transferred into it at your death.

Who Should Have a Revocable Trust

A revocable trust is particularly valuable if you own real estate in more than one state, have a blended family, want to keep your estate distribution private, have a beneficiary with special needs, or simply want to make the process as easy as possible for your heirs.