Should I Put My Home in a Trust in Texas? Pros, Cons & Your Next Steps

For many homeowners asking, “should i put my home in a trust in Texas,” a revocable living trust can avoid probate, maintain privacy, and simplify transfer to loved ones. It doesn’t automatically protect you from all creditors or nursing home costs, so a Texas estate planning attorney should review your situation. Warren & Migliaccio offers free consultations at (888) 584-9614.

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How Texas Estate Planning Works With Trusts and Your Home

Introduction to Estate Planning for Texas Homeowners

In simple terms, your estate plan is the legal roadmap for what happens to your money, house, and other property if you become incapacitated or pass away. A complete plan often includes:

• A will
• One or more trusts
• Financial and medical powers of attorney
• Beneficiary designations on accounts and life insurance
• Guardianship or conservatorship planning for minor children

For Texas homeowners, key goals usually include:

• Avoiding or reducing the probate process and court costs
• Protecting minor children and a surviving spouse
• Keeping your financial situation out of public records
• Reducing stress and conflict for your family

Typically, homeowners, parents of minor children, and people with six figures of investment assets could benefit from a trust.

• Avoiding or reducing the probate process and court costs
• Protecting minor children and a surviving spouse
• Keeping your financial situation out of public records
• Reducing stress and conflict for your family

Even though Texas offers “independent administration,” probate is still a court process with filings, deadlines, and potential delays, especially when real property like a homestead is involved.⁸ ¹¹ Probate filings and inventories often become part of the public record, meaning your estate can be open to public scrutiny.

Where a Trust Fits in a Texas Estate Plan

In many plans, a revocable living trust sits at the center of how you manage and transfer assets, including your home. You keep full control as trustee while you’re alive and well. If you become incapacitated, your chosen successor trustee can step in and manage assets without a court‑appointed guardian. The main disadvantage of a trust is that it can be more expensive to set up compared to a will.

Most homeowners who use a trust in texas also sign:

• A “pour‑over” will that moves any stray assets into the trust at death
• Durable powers of attorney
• Medical directives and HIPAA releases

Working with an experienced estate planning attorney helps coordinate these parts so they follow Texas laws and match your trust terms.

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Types of Trusts Texas Homeowners Use to Protect a House

Revocable Trusts vs. Irrevocable Trusts in Texas

Revocable trusts

• You keep full control as trustee.
• You can change the trust terms, add or remove assets, or even revoke the trust.
• For tax purposes, the trust’s assets are still part of your estate; you report income on your own return.
• Under Texas law, your own creditors can usually still reach assets in your revocable trust, so this is not strong asset protection.

Irrevocable trusts

• You generally give up control over trust terms and distributions.
• In certain situations, irrevocable trusts can help with estate tax planning, long‑term care or nursing home planning, or creditor protection.⁷ ¹⁵
• Transfers into an irrevocable trust are usually permanent and can create gift‑tax and Medicaid eligibility issues if not planned carefully.

Because the trade‑offs are significant, no one should transfer a homestead into an irrevocable trust without detailed advice from an estate planning attorney.

Revocable Living Trusts for Real Estate

Many homeowners use a revocable trust or revocable living trust to hold:

• Their primary residence (homestead)
• Rental houses
• Vacation homes or land

Why? Does a will override a trust in Texas? Find out more here.

• It avoids probate for the house and other trust’s assets—learn more about estate planning consultations to ensure your family’s future.
• It keeps trust terms—who gets what and when—out of the public eye.
• If you’re incapacitated, your successor trustee can manage mortgage payments, insurance, repairs, and even a sale of the home without a court guardianship.

Revocable living trusts are especially helpful for:

• Married couples, who want to protect a surviving spouse while preserving an inheritance for children
• Blended families, where family dynamics may be complex
• Parents of minor children, who need housing and financial stability if something happens to both parents

A trust can ensure that a surviving spouse becomes the sole owner of a house immediately upon the death of the other spouse.

• Married couples, who want to protect a surviving spouse while preserving an inheritance for children
• Blended families, where family dynamics may be complex
• Parents of minor children, who need housing and financial stability if something happens to both parents

Special Trust Planning for Minor Children and Special Needs Loved Ones

If you have:

• Minor children
• A special needs child or adult
• A vulnerable family member with addiction or money issues

…it may not be wise to leave them a house outright.

Instead, your trust can:

• Hold the house in a trust or hold sale proceeds for their benefit
• Allow a trustee to manage assets, decide whether to keep or sell the home, and protect assets from bad decisions
• Provide for a special needs beneficiary without disrupting vital government benefits

Your trust document can create separate “subtrusts” at your death, tailored to each beneficiary’s needs. This careful structure can reduce conflict among siblings, stepchildren, and other relatives.

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How Trusts Own Texas Real Property (and Help Avoid Probate)

Trusts and Real Property in Texas

Under the Texas Trust Code, a trust can hold title to real estate.¹ To move your house or other real estate into a trust, we typically:

1. Create the trust document under Texas law.
2. Prepare and sign a new deed transferring ownership from you individually to you (or another trusted person) as trustee.
3. Record the deed in the county where the property sits.

Texas does not require that a trust document be notarized, but notarization is considered a best practice.

1. Create the trust document under Texas law.
2. Prepare and sign a new deed transferring ownership from you individually to you (or another trusted person) as trustee.
3. Record the deed in the county where the property sits.

Once funded, your home becomes part of the trust’s assets. At your death, the successor trustee follows the trust terms instead of relying on a probate judge to interpret a will. Proper funding can:

• Reduce or completely eliminate probate for that property
• Lower court costs
• Shorten the overall process for your beneficiaries
• Keep the details out of public records
• Help avoid property tax reassessment after the transfer, potentially saving the family from increased taxes

Home in a Trust vs. Transfer on Death Deed in Texas

A transfer on death deed (TOD deed) is authorized by Chapter 114 of the Texas Estates Code.² ¹⁰ It lets you name one or more beneficiaries to receive a specific piece of real property at death, without probate.

TOD deed – key points

• Simple and often low‑cost
• Works well if you have one house and one or two trusted beneficiaries
• Offers no built‑in oversight for minor children or beneficiaries with problems
• The property remains subject to your liens, mortgages, and some creditor claims²

Home in a trust – key points

• Can manage multiple assets and multiple houses
• Lets you control trust terms: who can live in the home, when it can be sold, and how money is distributed
• Provides better tools to protect a surviving spouse while still leaving an inheritance to children
• Helps keep family disputes out of open court and the public record

For many homeowners, a TOD deed is a useful tool, but a home in a trust offers greater flexibility and protection, especially when family dynamics are complicated.

Homestead, Mortgage, and Insurance Issues

Your homestead rights are strongly protected by the Texas Constitution.³ ¹⁴ Those protections can continue even when the home is held in a properly drafted living trust, and the homestead will still pass under Texas descent and distribution rules if not otherwise directed.⁴ ¹⁸

Key issues we review:

• Homestead exemption and property taxes – If you still occupy the home as your principal residence and meet the other requirements, you can usually continue to claim the homestead exemption even when the home is in your revocable trust.⁵ ¹³
• Mortgage – Most lenders allow transfers to a revocable living trust without calling the loan due, but you must keep payments, property taxes, and insurance current.
• Homeowners’ insurance – Your insurer should list the trust or trustee as an insured interest so any claim checks are properly issued.
• HOA rules – Some associations require notice if title changes, even when you still live in the home.

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The Trust Document, Creditor Protection, and Tax Considerations in Texas

Key Trust Terms for Managing a Texas Home

Your trust document is the instruction manual for your trustee. When a Texas trust will hold your home, or if you’re considering alternatives like a Transfer on Death Deed Texas, we typically address:

• Who serves as initial trustee and successor trustee
• Your right to live in the house for life
• Whether your spouse has the same right of occupancy
• Who pays the mortgage, taxes, insurance, and repairs
• When and how the trustee may sell or rent the home
• How sale proceeds are invested and used for your benefit

The trust document must outline how the assets in the trust will be managed and distributed.

• Who serves as initial trustee and successor trustee
• Your right to live in the house for life
• Whether your spouse has the same right of occupancy
• Who pays the mortgage, taxes, insurance, and repairs
• When and how the trustee may sell or rent the home
• How sale proceeds are invested and used for your benefit

We also coordinate these terms with your will and the protections Texas law gives a surviving spouse and minor children in the homestead.⁴ ⁶

When a Trust Protects Your Home From Creditors (and When It Doesn’t)

This is where many internet articles are misleading.

• A revocable trust by itself does not shield your home from your personal creditors, lawsuits, or back taxes. If a creditor could reach your house before, it can usually reach it after you place the house in a revocable trust.
• A revocable trust can, however, offer some creditor protection for beneficiaries after your death if it includes “spendthrift” clauses and limits on how and when they receive assets.
• Certain types of irrevocable trusts can provide stronger protection for you and your beneficiaries, but only if set up correctly and well before problems arise.

If you’re worried about business or professional liability, or you’ve heard pitches about “bullet‑proof trusts,” it’s critical to talk to an experienced estate planning attorney who can explain what Texas laws actually allow and what they don’t.

Estate Tax and Nursing Home (Medicaid) Considerations

Right now, most Texas families do not face federal estate tax because the exemption is very high, and Texas does not impose a separate state inheritance or estate tax.⁴ ⁰ Still, higher‑net‑worth families may use trusts and other strategies to manage future estate tax risk.

Nursing home and Medicaid planning is a different issue:

• Texas participates in the Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP), which allows the state to seek repayment for certain long‑term care costs from a deceased person’s estate.⁷
• A standard revocable living trust usually does not keep the homestead out of reach of MERP.⁷
• Some families use specially designed Medicaid asset protection trusts, which are irrevocable and must be created years before applying for Medicaid to be effective.¹⁵

Because small mistakes can cause major legal issues, no one should transfer a homestead into an irrevocable trust or start gifting away assets for Medicaid purposes without detailed legal advice.

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Creating and Maintaining a Texas Trust for Your Home

Creating a Trust in Texas

When a client asks, “should i put my home in a trust in Texas,” we walk through a clear process:

1. Clarify goals – Avoiding probate, helping a surviving spouse, protecting special needs beneficiaries, or planning for nursing home care.
2. Select your trustee – You may serve as your own trustee, with a trusted family member or professional as successor.
3. Draft the trust – We prepare a trust under the Texas Trust Code, tailored to your assets, debts, and family situation.¹
4. Sign with proper formalities – You sign the trust, powers of attorney, and “pour‑over” will in a formal signing meeting.
5. Fund the trust – We create and record a new deed so your house, and later other assets, are properly titled in the trust.

Our firm is Lead Counsel Verified, and we bring nearly 20 years of combined financial and legal experience to each new plan.

Maintaining a Trust Over Time

Trusts are not “set it and forget it.” To keep your plan working, you should:

• Review your trust every few years or after major life changes (marriage, divorce, birth of a child or grandchild, new houses, business interests, or an inheritance).
• Make sure new assets (such as other property or investment accounts) are titled correctly or have up‑to‑date beneficiary designations.
• As trustee, manage assets prudently, pay ongoing expenses, and keep basic records.¹ ⁹

An unfunded trust—where you sign the documents but never deed the house into it—gives a false sense of security and may still require probate.

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Case Study: Using a Revocable Living Trust to Keep a Texas Home Out of Probate

Problem: A North Texas couple came to us exhausted and worried. They had two young children, a new mortgage, and a basic online will. They feared a messy probate, family conflict between relatives, and what might happen to the homestead if one of them became ill or needed nursing home care.

Action: We reviewed their assets, goals, and Texas homestead protections, then compared options: will-only planning, a transfer on death deed, and a revocable living trust. We recommended a trust-based plan. We drafted a revocable living trust, pour-over wills, powers of attorney, and medical directives, then prepared and recorded a new deed transferring the homestead into the trust and coordinated all beneficiary designations.

Result: Their home now passes under clear trust instructions, with a chosen successor trustee able to manage the property without guardianship or a full probate proceeding. They told us they finally slept through the night knowing their children will have a stable place to live and a roadmap to follow.

Takeaway: A properly drafted and funded revocable living trust can keep a Texas homestead out of probate, reduce conflict, and give families practical protection and peace of mind—especially when minor children and a significant mortgage are involved.

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Strategic Process – How to Decide Whether to Put Your Texas Home in a Trust (Step-by-Step)

If you’re wondering, “should i put my home in a trust in Texas,” use this practical roadmap:

Step 1 – Clarify Your Goals and Family Situation

• Avoiding probate and avoiding probate in other states
• Protecting a surviving spouse
• Caring for minor children or a special needs beneficiary
• Seeking some level of asset protection or privacy

Step 2 – Inventory Your Assets and Debts

List your:

• Home value and mortgage
• Other real property (rental houses, land)
• Retirement accounts and life insurance
• Bank and investment accounts
• Business interests and significant personal property

Step 3 – Compare Your Options for the Home

Consider:

• Will‑based plan only
• Transfer on death deed
• Joint ownership with right of survivorship
• Revocable living trust
• Special irrevocable trust in certain types of Medicaid or tax planning

Step 4 – Meet with a Texas Estate Planning Attorney

An estate planning attorney can:

• Explain how texas laws treat your homestead, creditors, and beneficiaries
• Review your tax situation and nursing home concerns
• Address complicated family dynamics (second marriages, estranged children, conservatorship orders, and more)

Step 5 – Implement and Fund the Plan

• Sign all documents in proper Texas form
• File the deed that transfers the house into the trust
• Update life insurance and retirement beneficiary designations

Step 6 – Review Regularly

Revisit your plan every few years or after major life changes to keep it aligned with your life and goals.

To talk through your options, schedule a free consultation at (888) 584-9614.

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Texas Statutes & Case Law That Affect Home Trusts

This article is for information only and is not legal advice. Laws change, and your facts matter.

Key authorities that impact trusts and homes in Texas include:

• Texas Property Code, Title 9, Subtitle B – Texas Trust Code (creation, operation, and termination of trusts).¹
• Texas Estates Code, including Chapter 114 – transfer on death deeds, and provisions on probate and nonprobate transfers of real property.² ⁸ ¹⁰
• Texas Estates Code Chapter 102 and related sections on homestead descent, distribution, and limits on partition when a surviving spouse or minor child occupies the homestead.⁴
• Texas Constitution Article XVI homestead protections against most forced sales.³
• Texas Tax Code and Comptroller guidance on residence homestead exemptions and property taxes.⁵
• Texas appellate cases and probate decisions interpreting trust funding errors, defective deeds, and homestead rights in probate disputes.⁶

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Common Mistakes We’ve Seen Texans Make With Home Trusts

Drawing on nearly two decades of practice, here are frequent pitfalls:

• Assuming a revocable trust automatically protects the home from all creditors, lawsuits, or nursing home bills
• Signing a trust but never deeding the house into it (the “unfunded trust” problem)
• Relying on an online form that doesn’t handle Texas homestead or community property rules
• Forgetting to coordinate the trust with the mortgage, homeowners’ insurance, and HOA requirements
• Ignoring family dynamics such as second marriages, estranged children, or blended families
• Overlooking the needs of minor children or a special needs beneficiary when deciding who gets the house

The good news: many of these issues can be fixed if you seek legal guidance before a crisis hits.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Putting a Home in a Trust in Texas

Q1: Does putting my Texas home in a revocable trust affect my property taxes or homestead exemption?

Usually, no. If the trust is drafted so that you retain the right to live in the home and it remains your principal residence, appraisal districts generally allow you to keep your homestead exemption.⁵ ⁹ You still must apply for and maintain the exemption like any other homeowner.

Q2: If I already have a will, do I still need a trust for my house?

A will is important, but it doesn’t avoid probate. Your executor still has to open a probate case, file an application, and work through the process.⁸ A trust can help your house (and other assets) pass outside probate, which may save time, cost, and stress for your loved ones.

Q3: Is a Texas transfer on death deed enough, or should I still consider a trust for my home?

A transfer on death deed is a helpful tool if you have a simple situation—one house, one or two adult beneficiaries, and no special needs issues.² ¹⁰ If you have minor children, blended families, or want more control over how and when beneficiaries receive property, a living trust often provides better protection and flexibility.

Q4: What happens to the mortgage when I deed my house into a trust?

You still owe the mortgage, and you must keep payments current. Most lenders allow transfers into a revocable living trust without triggering a due‑on‑sale clause, especially when you remain the borrower and occupant, but you should always review your loan documents and notify the lender.

Q5: Can my home in a trust be taken if I’m sued or have medical/nursing home bills?

If the trust is revocable and you retain control, your home usually remains available to your creditors and may still be subject to Medicaid Estate Recovery after death.⁷ Certain irrevocable trusts may offer stronger protection, but they require careful planning and often a waiting period before they are effective.

Q6: How does a trust help if I become incapacitated before death?

If you can’t manage your own affairs, your successor trustee can step in under the trust document to manage the house and other assets—paying bills, arranging repairs, even selling the home if needed—without a court‑ordered guardianship. This can spare your family a separate court proceeding and ongoing oversight.

Q7: How much does it typically cost to set up a home trust in Texas, and how long does it take?

Costs depend on your goals, the complexity of your estate, and whether you need additional asset protection or tax planning. Many homeowners complete a trust‑based plan in a few weeks from consultation to signing. At our firm, we quote flat fees up front after reviewing your specific circumstances so there are no surprises.

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Your answer to “should i put my home in a trust in Texas” depends on your assets, debts, health, and family situation. For many homeowners, a revocable living trust offers real benefit—avoids probate, maintains privacy, and gives clear control over what happens to the house and other assets. For others, a will and TOD deed may be enough.

To get personalized guidance and protect what matters most to your loved ones, call our Lead Counsel Verified Texas estate planning attorneys today.

Call (888) 584-9614 to schedule a consultation.

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Legal Authorities (Endnotes & Citations)

1. Texas Property Code, Title 9, Subtitle B – Texas Trust Code: Creation, Operation, and Termination of Trusts (e.g., Tex. Prop. Code chs. 111–117). Texas Statutes+2Justia Law+2
2. Texas Estates Code ch. 114 – Transfer on Death Deed Authorized and Related Provisions (including §114.051, §114.104). Texas Statutes+2Justia Law+2
3. Texas Constitution art. XVI, §50 – Protection of Homestead from Forced Sale, and related provisions in art. XVI. Texas Statutes+2Justia Law+2
4. Texas Estates Code ch. 102 – Probate Assets and Homestead Passage/Partition protections for surviving spouse and minor children (e.g., §§102.003, 102.005). Texas Statutes+2FindLaw Codes+2
5. Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts – Property Tax Exemptions and Residence Homestead Exemption Guidance; Texas appraisal district homestead FAQ materials. Travis Central Appraisal District+3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts++3
6. State Bar of Texas and Texas practitioner materials discussing family protections in probate and homestead occupancy rights of the surviving spouse. Texas Bar+1
7. Texas Health & Human Services – “Your Guide to the Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP)” and related elder‑law analyses of Medicaid asset protection trusts. Texas Health and Human Services+2Hailey-Petty Law Firm, PLLC+2
8. TexasLawHelp and Texas State Law Library materials on estate administration, formal probate, independent administration, and transfer of property after death in Texas. Texas State Law Library Guides++3Texas State Law Library Guides+3
9. Public guidance on Texas homestead exemptions and property tax relief from county appraisal districts and statewide news coverage of recent constitutional amendments increasing homestead exemptions. Midland Reporter-Telegram+3Texas Real Estate Source+3Midland Reporter-Telegram+3
10. Supplemental legal references, including Justia and FindLaw codifications of the Texas Estates Code and Property Code, confirming language on TOD deeds, creditor claims, and independent administration powers. Justia Law+2FindLaw Codes+2

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