--- title: A Guide to Our Trust Services description: Explore how trusts can benefit families beyond the ultra-wealthy. 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[Videos](https://www.uslabank.com/video) - [Careers](https://www.uslabank.com/careers) ![Personal-Nav](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/USLA-Theme-2025/Images/Personal-Nav.svg) Personal Online Banking [Log In](https://web2.secureinternetbank.com/pbi_pbi1151/Login/274971101) ![Business-Nav](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/USLA-Theme-2025/Images/Business-Nav.svg) Business Online Banking [Log In](https://web2.secureinternetbank.com/EBC_EBC1151/Login/274971101/6053) # Blog [Financial](https://www.uslabank.com/blog/tag/financial) |November 05, 2026 ### A Guide to Our Trust Services ![](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/2026-Blog-TrustGuide.jpg) Trusts have a reputation for being something only the ultra-wealthy need to think about. In reality, a trust can be a smart tool for any family that wants more control over how their money and property are managed — now and for the people they leave behind. So how do trusts actually work, and how do you know if you need one? Here's a closer look, straight from our Trust Services team.     ### Why Families Choose a Trust Why do so many financially successful individuals and their families look to trust institutions to meet their financial management needs? Several reasons come to mind: - Trusts offer unique benefits in comprehensive wealth management. - We provide a team approach, a fully staffed department with individuals who bring a diverse range of skills to the job. - Our services are fee based, we are not compensated by generating transactions or through commissions for the sale of particular products. - We are a corporate fiduciary, authorized by the banking authorities to act as a trustee for individuals and institutions in the management and distribution of their assets. What can be accomplished with this power to delegate the authority to manage property in a trustee? Trusts can be individually tailored to address many different financial goals. As a result, there's no such thing as a “typical trust.” All trusts have something in common. They have assets that require careful management, and that job falls to the trustee.   ### Essentials of Every Trust The creator of a trust is customarily called the grantor. The grantor works with an attorney to prepare the trust agreement, which will give the trustee the instructions about the management of the trust and the distribution of income and principal. Every trust has beneficiaries, for whose protection the trust has been created. The grantor may be the first and foremost beneficiary of a revocable living trust—or the grantor and spouse. Otherwise, other heirs are named, whose interests will vest at various times, as specified in the trust agreement. If the trust is revocable, the grantor may amend it at any time, even terminate it. If the trust is irrevocable, such as a trust created at death by a will, it normally cannot be changed without court proceedings. Finally, there must be a trustee. That could be an individual or a corporate fiduciary, such as us.   ### When should you consider a trust? Trusts offer advantages in wealth management that are not available with ordinary investment accounts. Trusts can be used to achieve some or all of the following objectives: - Provide lifetime financial protection for a surviving spouse. - Establish inheritance management for minors, and incapacitated or disabled family members. - Protect assets from creditors. - Reduce or eliminate death taxes. - Increase financial privacy and confidentiality regarding wealth distribution. - Implement a program of philanthropy. - Protect an estate plan from claims by disgruntled heirs. - Provide complete financial management in the event of your own incapacity. Whatever the reason for creating your trust, the next question is crucial: Whom should you choose as your trustee? Who has the qualifications to see to it that your trust plan will succeed? Where would you look for the right trustee?   ### Who should be your trustee? Typically, a trust grantor is deciding between a corporate fiduciary (a company that has been granted the legal right to act as a trustee, such as us) and an individual, such as a family member, friend, or business associate. Factors that should be considered include: - **Judgment and experience.** Inexperienced trustees may dissipate the trust assets, or make administrative mistakes that result in delay or other problems. - **Impartiality.** A trust typically has current income beneficiaries and future or remainder beneficiaries. The interests of both types of beneficiaries must be balanced carefully. Conflicts need to be resolved by a trustee that all the beneficiaries can respect. - **Investment sophistication.** The Uniform Prudent Investor Act and other laws governing the investment of trust assets must be adhered to. The trustee should be able to increase returns or reduce portfolio volatility, and must be able to diversify the portfolio. - **Permanence and availability.** Many trusts are expected to last a decade or more. Corporate trustees have the advantage of perpetual existence. - **Sensitivity to individual beneficiaries' needs.** Understanding the individual needs of trust beneficiaries is very important, and on this issue many will assume that the friend or family member has the advantage. This is not necessarily the case, but sometimes an individual will be made cotrustee to handle such decisions. Even so, a corporate trustee might be brought into the process for an objective voice and to prevent unreasonable distributions. - **Accounting and recordkeeping.** Detailed trust records are required, and few individuals are equipped to handle this chore properly. - **Fees.** There is a chance that the fees charged for trust administration will be lower when a friend or family member is named as trustee. However, when a trustee is serving for little or no compensation, it becomes hard to give the trust the attention that it deserves. In the usual case, the trust assets consist of ordinary investment assets, such as stocks, bonds, or mutual funds. In that situation, a corporate trustee is likely to be a very cost-effective alternative. The central features of today's trusts are professional asset management, conducted under fiduciary safeguards, in a segregated vehicle, which is bankruptcy-remote from the manager. This is what we do. *(June 2026) | © 2026 M.A. Co. All rights reserved.*   ### Let's Find the Right Fit for Your Family Choosing a trustee is really about choosing a long-term partner — someone who will still be there decades from now, who won't play favorites among your beneficiaries, and who knows the difference between managing your money and managing your family's future. If you're weighing whether a trust makes sense for your family, USLA's Trust Services team is a good place to start the conversation. We're local, we're fee based, and we're focused on one thing: helping your plan succeed. [Reach out to schedule a no-pressure conversation about your goals.](https://www.uslabank.com/contact-us)     [Previous Article](https://www.uslabank.com/blog/usla-trust-officer-graduates-from-cannon-trust-school-with-honors) [![USLA](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/raw_assets/public/USLA-Theme-2025/images/USLA-Logo-white-RGB.svg "USLA")](https://www.uslabank.com/) - Quick Links - [Locations and Hours](https://www.uslabank.com/locations-hours) - [About Us](https://www.uslabank.com/about) - [Rates](https://www.uslabank.com/rates) - [Switch Kit](https://www.uslabank.com/switch-kit) - [Contact Us](https://www.uslabank.com/contact-us) - [Lost or Stolen Card](https://www.uslabank.com/security-center) #### Info & Policies - [Privacy Policy](https://www.uslabank.com/privacy-policy) - [USA Patriot Act](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/Patriot%20Act%20Document.pdf) - [Community Reinvestment Act](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/Community%20Reinvestment%20Act%20(CRA)%20Public%20File.pdf) - [Terms & Conditions](https://www.uslabank.com/terms-and-conditions) #### Socials - [![Facebook](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/USLA-images-2025/Facebook.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/USLAbank) - [![Youtube](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/USLA-images-2025/Youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/@USLAbank) - [![LinkedIn](https://www.uslabank.com/hubfs/USLA-images-2025/LinkedIn.svg)](https://www.linkedin.com/company/uslabank/) Copyright © 2026 Union Savings and Loan Association. 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