Create a revocable living trust online California. Best online revocable trust service. Change or cancel anytime. Maintain complete control. Avoid probate. Attorney-prepared and reviewed revocable trust documents $400-$500.
A revocable living trust is a trust that you can change, modify, or completely cancel at any time during your lifetime. Unlike an irrevocable trust, you don't give up control—you remain the trustee and maintain full authority over all assets.
Think of it as a flexible container for your assets. You can:
This flexibility makes revocable trusts the most popular choice for California residents, and most living trusts created here are revocable.
California is one of the few states that sets probate fees by statute rather than by the hour. The attorney's fee is fixed by Probate Code §10810 and the executor is entitled to the identical amount under Probate Code §10800. Both schedules run: 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, 1% of the next $9 million, and one-half of 1% of the next $15 million.
Two details in those statutes surprise most families.
The first is that the attorney and the executor are each paid the full statutory amount. They are separate fees. On a $1,000,000 estate the calculation is $4,000 plus $3,000 plus $16,000, which is $23,000 for the attorney and another $23,000 for the executor, or $46,000 in total before filing fees, the probate referee's appraisal, and publication costs.
The second detail costs Californians more than any other. Both statutes compute the fee on the appraised value of the estate "without reference to encumbrances or other obligations." The mortgage is not subtracted. A home worth $1,000,000 with a $600,000 loan against it generates fees on the full $1,000,000, not on the $400,000 of equity your family would actually receive.
Probate also takes time. Probate Code §12200 gives the personal representative one year from the issuance of letters to petition for final distribution, extended to 18 months if a federal estate tax return is required. That is the statutory checkpoint, not a promise of completion, and contested estates run longer.
Small estates can sometimes avoid the process without a trust. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, an affidavit under Probate Code §§13100–13101 transfers personal property worth up to $208,850 with no court involvement. A petition filed with the superior court under §§13151–13154 can pass a primary residence worth up to $750,000, with the court issuing an order determining that the property passes to the successor rather than anything being recorded by affidavit. An affidavit under §13200, filed with the court, covers other California real property up to $69,625. These amounts adjust every three years under Probate Code §890, and the next adjustment is April 1, 2028.
Those thresholds are why a trust matters most to homeowners. A California house usually exceeds every one of them, and once it does, the statutory fee schedule applies to its gross value.
Signing a trust does not move anything into it. A trust only controls what it owns, and transferring assets into it is called funding. An unfunded trust is a stack of paper: the assets still stand in your individual name at death, and they go through probate exactly as though you had never signed anything. This is the single most common failure we see in trusts prepared elsewhere.
Real property is funded by recording a new deed transferring title from you as an individual to yourself as trustee. Californians often hesitate here, worried about losing their Proposition 13 assessment. They should not. Revenue and Taxation Code §62(d) excludes from change in ownership any transfer into a trust for as long as the transferor is the present beneficiary or the trust is revocable. Deeding your home into your own revocable trust does not trigger reassessment.
Bank and brokerage accounts are funded by retitling them in the name of the trust. The bank will ask for a certification of trust rather than the full document, so your dispositive terms stay private. Business interests require assigning your LLC membership units or corporate shares to the trust, which may need consent under the operating agreement.
Funding is not a one-time task. Every property you buy and every account you open after signing has to be titled in the trust, or it falls outside it. Reviewing titling every few years is the difference between a trust that works and one that only appears to.
Some assets belong outside the trust, and moving them in can cause real harm.
Retirement accounts are the important one. An IRA, 401(k), or 403(b) is owned by an individual by definition. Retitling one into a trust is treated as a distribution of the entire account, which can produce an income tax bill on the full balance in a single year. Leave the account in your name and name the trust or an individual as beneficiary instead.
Life insurance passes by beneficiary designation and never touches probate, so there is nothing to gain by transferring ownership of a policy to a revocable trust. Naming the trust as beneficiary is sometimes appropriate where minor children are involved.
Vehicles are usually left out. Vehicle Code §5910 lets an heir or a beneficiary under the will transfer the registration by sworn statement without probate, though only where the decedent left no other property requiring probate. Insurers can also be awkward about trust-titled cars. Small accounts can also be left out deliberately: personal property under the §13100 threshold of $208,850 can pass by affidavit without probate.
This is the advantage most out-of-state planning templates miss entirely, and for a long-married California couple it can be worth more than everything else on this page combined.
When someone dies, inherited assets generally receive a new income tax basis equal to their date-of-death value. In most states only the half owned by the person who died is adjusted. California is a community property state, and Internal Revenue Code §1014(b)(6) gives the same treatment to the surviving spouse's one-half share of community property. Both halves step up at the first death.
A couple bought a Los Angeles home in 1990 for $200,000. It is worth $1,200,000 when the first spouse dies. In a separate property state the survivor's basis would be roughly $700,000, leaving about $500,000 of gain on a later sale. In California, with the property properly characterized as community property, the entire basis resets to $1,200,000 and the survivor can sell with little or no capital gain.
The benefit depends on how the property is characterized and titled, which is precisely the kind of drafting a generic multi-state form does not handle. Getting this right is one of the strongest reasons for a California-specific trust.
Plainly: a revocable living trust does not save income tax, and for nearly everyone it does not save estate tax either. Anyone selling one primarily as a tax shelter is overselling it.
While you are alive, the trust is a grantor trust. It needs no separate taxpayer identification number and files no return of its own. Under Treasury Regulation §1.671-4(b), trust income is reported under your own Social Security number on your personal return, and the trustee is not required to file anything with the IRS. Your tax filing does not change at all.
Estate tax reaches very few families. The federal basic exclusion amount is $15 million per person for 2026 under IRC §2010(c)(3), as amended by P.L. 119-21, which made the figure permanent and indexed for inflation. With portability a married couple can shelter $30 million. California imposes no state estate tax of its own. A revocable trust avoids probate; it does not move assets out of your taxable estate, because you still control them.
You are the trustee of your own trust while you are able. The successor trustee is the person who steps in when you cannot, and naming the wrong one undoes careful drafting faster than almost any other mistake.
The job is administrative rather than ceremonial. A successor trustee inventories and safeguards assets, pays final debts and taxes, keeps records, communicates with beneficiaries, and distributes according to the trust. It is a fiduciary role, and the trustee is personally accountable for performing it properly.
Choose for reliability and organization rather than seniority or sentiment. The eldest child is not automatically the right answer. Consider whether the person lives close enough to handle California property, whether they are comfortable with paperwork and deadlines, and whether naming them will create friction among siblings. A professional fiduciary or corporate trustee is worth considering where family relations are strained or the estate is complex.
Always name at least one alternate. Co-trustees can work well, but requiring both to act on everything can paralyse administration if they disagree.
A revocable trust stays revocable only while you are alive and competent. Probate Code §15401 allows revocation either by whatever method the trust document specifies or by a signed writing, other than a will, delivered to the trustee during your lifetime. If the document names its method as the exclusive one, that is the only route available.
At your death the trust becomes irrevocable and the successor trustee takes over. There is no court petition, no letters, and no statutory fee schedule. The trustee gathers assets, gives the notice California law requires to beneficiaries and heirs, settles debts and final taxes, and distributes what the trust directs.
Incapacity works similarly and is where a trust quietly earns its keep. If you can no longer manage your affairs, the successor trustee steps in under the terms you wrote, without a conservatorship proceeding.
Every trust-based plan includes a short companion will called a pour-over will. It directs anything still held in your individual name at death into the trust, so a forgotten account is still distributed under the terms you chose. It is also where you nominate guardians for minor children, which a trust cannot do.
A pour-over will is a safety net, not a substitute for funding. Assets that reach the trust through the will still pass through probate first, with the statutory fees under §§10800 and 10810 applying unless the value falls under the small estate thresholds. The goal is for the pour-over will to have nothing left to catch.
Understanding the difference helps you choose the right trust for your situation
| Feature | Revocable Trust | Irrevocable Trust |
|---|---|---|
| Can You Change It? | Yes, anytime | No, permanent |
| Who Controls Assets? | You do | Trustee (not you) |
| Avoids Probate? | Yes | Yes |
| Estate Tax Benefits? | No | Possible |
| Asset Protection? | No | Yes |
| How You File Taxes? | Same as before | Trust files separately |
| Medicaid Planning? | No | Possible |
| Best For | Most people | Special situations |
| Our Cost | $400-$500 | Custom quote |
Choose a revocable trust if: You want probate avoidance, privacy, and incapacity planning while maintaining full control (this is most people). Choose an irrevocable trust if: You need asset protection from lawsuits, Medicaid planning, or estate tax reduction (high net worth). Not sure? Call us at (818) 337-4071 for a free consultation.
A revocable trust is the right tool for most California homeowners, but it is not the right tool for everything, and you should know what it does not do before you sign one.
If your goal is asset protection from creditors or Medi-Cal planning, a revocable trust is the wrong instrument and an irrevocable structure should be considered instead. For the far more common goal of keeping a California home out of probate and providing for a family privately, it is the right one.
Simple questions about your family, assets, and wishes. No legal jargon. Save and return anytime. Most people complete in one sitting.
Rozsa Gyene (State Bar #208356) personally prepares and reviews every trust to ensure legal compliance, catch errors, and verify it matches your intentions.
Receive your completed documents with signing instructions. Print, sign in front of a notary (we tell you exactly what to do), and your trust is complete.
Transfer your assets into the trust. We provide detailed instructions for real estate, bank accounts, and investments. This step is crucial—unfunded trusts don't avoid probate.
Yes, absolutely. You can amend, modify, or completely revoke your trust at any time for any reason. Want to change beneficiaries? Remove someone? Add a new asset? Update distribution percentages? You can do all of this. We offer amendment services for existing clients.
No. Because you maintain control and can take assets out anytime, creditors can still reach assets in a revocable trust. Asset protection requires an irrevocable trust. However, revocable trusts DO protect against probate and conservatorship—which is what most people need.
Exactly the same as you do now. A revocable trust is "tax-invisible"—the IRS treats it as if it doesn't exist. You continue using your Social Security number for the trust and report all income on your personal tax return. No extra tax forms required.
When you die, your revocable trust automatically becomes irrevocable (can't be changed anymore). Your successor trustee takes over, following your instructions to distribute assets to beneficiaries. This happens privately, quickly (weeks not years), and without probate court.
No. Because you can take assets out of a revocable trust anytime, Medicaid counts them as your assets. Medicaid planning requires an irrevocable trust created at least 5 years before applying. If you're concerned about long-term care costs, call us at (818) 337-4071 to discuss irrevocable trust options.
In California, most married couples create a joint revocable trust (also called a family trust). It's simpler to manage and costs less ($500 vs $800 for two separate trusts). Separate trusts make sense for blended families or when spouses want different beneficiaries. Our questionnaire helps you decide.
Traditional attorneys charge $3,000-$6,000. Our online platform with attorney review costs $400 for a single trust or $500 for a joint trust. Both include all supporting documents: pour-over will, power of attorney, healthcare directive, HIPAA authorization, and funding instructions.
Maintain full control. Change anytime. Avoid probate. Attorney-prepared and reviewed. Complete in 30 minutes.
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