One trust for jointly owned property—with customized gifts to anyone you choose
A Two Grantor Trust with Specific Gifting is a single revocable living trust created by two individuals who own property jointly. Both grantors transfer their jointly owned property to the trust, which holds that property for the support and benefit of both grantors during their lifetimes.
The key feature: This trust allows you to make customized specific gifts to anyone you choose—children, friends, extended family members, charities, or any other persons or entities. Rather than simple equal distribution, you specify exactly what each beneficiary receives, whether that's specific property, dollar amounts, or percentages of your estate.
One trust for jointly owned property—simpler than maintaining two separate trusts.
Both grantors serve as co-trustees with equal decision-making power over trust assets.
When one grantor dies, the surviving grantor automatically becomes sole trustee with full control.
Trust property passes directly to beneficiaries after both grantors pass, avoiding court proceedings.
Trust details and asset distribution remain private, unlike wills which become public record.
Either or both grantors can amend the trust during their lifetimes as circumstances change.
Unlike a standard trust with equal distribution, this trust allows you to customize exactly how your assets are distributed after both grantors pass away. You have complete flexibility to:
Beneficiaries can include:
For each beneficiary, you can specify:
"The family home to our daughter Emily; my mother's jewelry collection to niece Rebecca; the art collection split equally between all three grandchildren."
"$25,000 to each grandchild for college expenses; remainder of estate divided equally between our two children."
"$100,000 to St. Jude Children's Hospital; vintage book collection to the public library; remaining assets to nephew David."
"Our joint property split 60/40 between his children and her children; specific gifts of personal items to each child individually."
Dual Grantors: Two individuals jointly create the trust and serve as co-grantors.
Co-Trustee Management: Both grantors serve as co-trustees with equal management authority over trust assets during both of their lifetimes.
Successor Trustee Provisions: When one grantor passes, the surviving grantor becomes sole trustee. The trust also names a successor trustee to manage and distribute assets after both grantors have died.
The trust holds jointly owned property transferred by both grantors—such as real estate, bank accounts, investment accounts, business interests, or any other assets owned together.
The grantors name beneficiaries who will receive the trust property after both grantors have passed. These can be children, family members, friends, charities, or any combination the grantors choose.
Clear instructions for how trust assets should be distributed to beneficiaries, including:
Most commonly used by married couples or domestic partners who own property together and want a unified estate plan. This is essentially the same as a "joint revocable trust" for couples.
Two business partners who jointly own property or investments can use a dual grantor trust to ensure seamless management and distribution of their shared assets.
Siblings or other family members who co-own property (like an inherited family home or investment property) can create a dual grantor trust to manage that property and plan for its eventual disposition.
Any two people who jointly own significant property and want to avoid probate while maintaining shared control can benefit from a dual grantor trust structure.
Two grantor revocable trust with customized specific gift provisions
Flexible distribution to any beneficiaries you choose
Complete control over who gets what—family, friends, or charities
Specific gifting means you designate exactly what each beneficiary receives—whether that's specific property (like "my antique car collection"), dollar amounts ($25,000), or percentages (30% of estate). This gives you complete control over distribution rather than just splitting everything equally.
Absolutely! Beneficiaries can be anyone—children, grandchildren, friends, caregivers, charities, religious organizations, or any person or entity you choose. There's no restriction to family members only.
Both are created by two individuals with jointly owned property. The key difference: This trust includes specific gifting provisions allowing you to customize exactly what each beneficiary receives. The Multiple Grantor Trust is simpler with standard distribution.
A two grantor trust is ONE trust created by two people for jointly owned property. Two separate trusts means each person creates their own trust for their separate property. A two grantor trust is simpler and more cost-effective when the two individuals own most assets jointly.
Yes, as co-trustees, both grantors typically need to agree on major trust decisions during both of their lifetimes. This ensures shared control over jointly owned property.
New jointly acquired property can be titled in the name of the trust, automatically becoming trust property. This keeps your estate plan current without needing to amend the trust for each new asset.
While a dual grantor trust typically has agreed-upon beneficiaries, you can include provisions for different distributions if that's important to both grantors. However, if you want completely independent beneficiary designations, two separate trusts might be more appropriate.
No! While commonly used by married couples, a dual grantor trust can be used by any two individuals who jointly own property—domestic partners, business partners, siblings, parent-child, or any two people with shared assets and estate planning goals.
Yes! This is a revocable trust, meaning it can be amended or even dissolved by the grantors during both of their lifetimes. As your situation changes, the trust can be updated to reflect new wishes.
If one grantor becomes unable to manage affairs, the other co-trustee can continue managing the trust assets. The trust can also name a successor or co-successor trustee to assist if needed.