Estate and Planned Giving

Revocable Living Trusts: Getting Started

A revocable trust agreement is simple. You transfer assets—usually cash and securities—to the trust, naming the trustee of your choice. (That trustee may even be you.) You're the beneficiary of the trust during your lifetime. The trustee will manage the assets and pay to you the net income—or if you want additional funds, a portion or all of the principal.

Quick Tip
A living trust can be a way to manage your investments—for your benefit during your lifetime and for your family's benefit afterward.

After your lifetime, the trust becomes irrevocable. Your specified loved ones can receive lifetime income or principal from the trust, or you can have their share given to them in a lump sum, much like a regular will. When the trust terminates, the remaining assets are given to the beneficiaries you chose, often in the form of percentages. Should you choose to include Illinois Wesleyan University in your trust as a beneficiary, we can use the percentage you designate to us for our important needs.

If you'd like to remember Illinois Wesleyan University after your lifetime, share our bequest language, to add to your living trust, with your estate planning attorney.

The official bequest language for Illinois Wesleyan University is:

"I, [name], of [city, state, ZIP], give, devise and bequeath to Illinois Wesleyan University [written amount or percentage of the estate or description of property] for its unrestricted use and purpose."

Learn more about giving back through your will and living trust.

Please contact Ben Rhodes at 309-556-3137 or brhodes@titan.iwu.edu if you have additional questions about supporting Illinois Wesleyan University through your revocable living trust. We're happy to help without obligation and in confidence.

The information on this website is not intended as legal or tax advice. For legal or tax advice, please consult an attorney. Figures cited in examples are for hypothetical purposes only and are subject to change. References to estate and income taxes apply to federal taxes only. State income/estate taxes or state law may impact your results.

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