Pour-Over Wills in Alexandria

Start with the ownership question

A will and a trust are different planning documents. A pour-over will is intended to direct property covered by the will into a trust at death; it does not, by itself, show that property is already titled in the trust. That makes it important to consider both what the documents say and how each asset is owned.

If your main goal is to have identified property held in a revocable living trust during your lifetime, review whether that property has actually been transferred or titled as intended. If you also want a will to address property that is not in the trust, discuss how the will and trust should coordinate. Which approach fits depends on your goals and circumstances.

Make a property-and-document checklist

Before a planning conversation, gather your current will and trust documents, any amendments, and a list of significant property. For each item, note the current owner or title shown on the most recent record you have, whether you believe it is held in the trust, and any question about how it should be handled. Mark unknowns rather than guessing.

For real estate, a deed or other ownership record can help identify what is recorded, but a directory listing or recorded document alone does not establish clear title or determine the right transfer. The DeKalb County Register of Deeds contact listed by UT CTAS is at 732 S. Congress Blvd., Room 101, Smithville; confirm the current location and instructions before visiting.

• Bring the will, trust, amendments, and available deeds or ownership records.
• List property that may not be titled in the trust and note what you want to happen to it.
• Write down questions about beneficiary designations or other ownership arrangements rather than assuming the will controls them.

Compare the two planning tasks

Trust-funding work concerns ownership now: identify property intended for the trust and confirm whether the ownership record reflects that intention. Will-and-trust coordination concerns instructions for property addressed by the will later. These are related tasks, but completing one does not answer every question about the other.

A trustee’s role is not interchangeable with an executor’s or an agent’s authority under a power of attorney. Identify the document and the role when reviewing who may act, and ask how the documents fit together. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes these as distinct financial decision-making roles.

Questions to take to a planning discussion

Ask which property your current trust is intended to hold, what records would help confirm current ownership, and what should happen to property not held in it. Ask whether the will’s instructions are consistent with the trust’s terms and whether any ownership or beneficiary arrangements need separate attention. If a deed or title question arises, ask what further review is appropriate before making a change.

Dale Law Group, PLLC offers pour-over wills and revocable living trusts as part of its estate-planning services. The firm is based in Murfreesboro and serves Tennessee; it does not have an office in Alexandria.