No. of Recommendations: 2
Trusts don't work like that. I'm dealing with one now after my mom died. It became irrevocable upon her death. The trust could continue in that form, but liquidating any assets (that aren't cash) would be a taxable event. And trust taxes are different...a lot of time they are higher than individual taxes. Upon her death, I had to secure a tax ID number for that trust. It will have to have a tax return filed under that number from now on (until I take it to zero, which I plan to do pretty quickly). If not for the stepped-up basis, a lot of taxes would be owed upon liquidation.
Really, a trust is mostly useful to avoid probate. It may avoid inheritance tax, but it will still generate tax from any gains of the assets.
