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Putting a car in your trust

Cars, trucks, motorcycles, campers, boats, and trailers

Your car has a paper called a title. It says who owns the car. Signing your trust did not change your title. Only the tag office can do that.

You have three choices. You choose. This guide explains each one. Then it gives you the words to say at the tag office.

Know thisIf a car stays in your name alone, your family should expect to go to the probate court before the title can change. That is the court that handles a person’s things after they die.

A sample car title

The owner on it today

John Smith

The owner after you put it in your trust

John Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Revocable Living Trust

Same car. Same driver. Only the owner line changes. Trustee means the person in charge of the trust. That is you.

Part 1 of 3

Three choices. You choose.

Make this choice for each car or truck you own. Have a motorcycle, camper, boat, trailer, golf cart, or a car made before 1986? See Part 3.

  1. 1Put the car in your trust’s nameThe one we like
  2. 2Both your names on the title, with the right words
  3. 3Leave the car in your own name

  1. Choice 1The one we like

    Put the car in your trust’s name

    Steps for Choice 1

    TodayYou go to your county tag office. Your new title comes in the mail.

    If you can no longer manage thingsThe person your trust names to take over can step in and handle the car.

    When you dieThe car is already in your trust. Your trust says who gets it. A car in your trust is handled by your trust, not by the probate court.

  2. Choice 2

    Both your names on the title, with the right words

    Steps for Choice 2

    TodayFor two people who want to keep the car in their own two names. The title must say “Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship.”

    If one of you can no longer signThe other cannot sell the car alone. That is one reason we like Choice 1.

    When one of you diesThe car goes to the one who is still living. They take a death certificate to the tag office. No court. After that the car is in one name. The one still living then picks Choice 1 or Choice 3.

  3. Choice 3

    Leave the car in your own name

    Nothing to do.

    TodayNothing changes.

    If you can no longer manage thingsYour trust does not cover this car. The person you named in your power of attorney would have to handle it.

    When you dieYour family should expect to go to the probate court before the tag office will change the title. Your will does not skip that.

Why we like Choice 1: the car is handled by your trust, not by the probate court. Your family has one place to look. And if you can no longer manage things, the person your trust names can handle the car. It is still your call.

Not sure? Which sounds like you?

Part 2 of 3

Do it

Do this any time after you sign your trust. There is no deadline. Sooner is better.

Print the words on one sheet

Choice 1Put the car in your trust’s name

Still paying on the car? Do this first

Your lender is the bank or company you make car payments to. It holds your title. Call the number on your statement.

SayI have a car loan with you. I want to put the car in the name of my living trust. I will keep making the same payments. Will you allow that, and what do you need from me?

If they say no, you can wait. Keep paying as you do now. When the loan is paid off, come back to this page.

  1. Call your car insurance company

    SayI am putting my car in the name of my living trust. What do you need from me? Will my price change?

  2. Call your county tag office

    It is where you renew your tag. It may be called the Tax Commissioner’s office. To find the number, search for your county’s name and “tag office.”

    SayI am moving my car from my own name to myself as trustee of my own living trust. Nobody is paying anything for it. What do I need to bring?

    Then ask these four things. Write down the answers.

    • Which pages of my trust do you need? Will you take my Certification of Trust? (That is the short paper that proves your trust is real.)
    • How should my trust’s name be written on the form?
    • Do we both need to come in?
    • The state manual says no title tax is due on this. Can you confirm that?
    Share your trust with your spouse, or cannot find your title?

    If you share your trust, addIt is a joint trust with my spouse.

    If you cannot find your title, addI cannot find my title. How do I get a new one?

  3. Bring these

    • Your car title. It is one sheet, and it says Certificate of Title at the top.
    • The state’s title form, called Form MV-1. The tag office has it and can help you with it.
    • A copy of your trust. Bring the pages they asked for on the phone, and your Certification of Trust.
    • Your driver’s license.
    • Your proof of insurance.
    • A way to pay the fee.
    • Only if you get an emissions test each year: your newest test paper.
    • Only if your title still lists a lender: your lien release. That is the paper that says the loan is paid. The lender can send you one.

    Do not sign the back of your title at home. Sign it at the counter.

  4. At the counter

    SayI want to put this car’s title in the name of my trust. Before you sign anything, askIs any title tax due on this?

    Then sign. The clerk will show you each line. You sign as trustee. Are two people on the title now? Both of you sign.

    A sample of how the owner can be written. Your tag office may write it a little differently.John Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Revocable Living Trust
    If the clerk says tax is due, or is not sure

    If they say tax is due, sayThe state Motor Vehicle manual, in the part about trusts, says title tax is not due when a person moves a car into their own revocable living trust.

    If they still say it is due, you can stop before you sign. Then nothing has changed. You can go back another day.

    Before you leave, askWho at the state can I call about this?

    If the clerk has not done this before, sayCould you ask a supervisor? I can wait.

  5. Keep the new title

    Your new title comes in the mail. Read the owner line. It should show your trust’s name, the way the tag office said it would be written. Is it wrong? Call the tag office.

    Keep your new title with your trust papers, not in the car.

Choice 2Both your names, with the right words

  1. Look at your title

    You need two things on it: both your names, and the words “Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship.” Two names without those words are not enough.

    Both there? You are done. Keep the title with your trust papers. Still paying on the car? Your lender has the title. Call and ask how the owners are written on it.

  2. Words missing? Call your county tag office

    SayWe want our car title to say Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship. How do we do that? Is any title tax due?

Part 3 of 3

Other things you drive or tow

Have one of these? Tap it to see what to do. Skip any you do not have.

More than one of these

Make one call to your county tag office and ask about all of them. Then name each one.

SayI am putting my things in the name of my own living trust. Which of these have a title, and what do I bring for each one?

A boat is a different office. See “A boat” below.

A motorcycle, motor home, or camper

If it was made in 1986 or later, it has a title, just like a car. You have the same three choices, and the steps are the same. For a camper you tow, ask when you call: “Is any tax due when I move my camper into my own living trust?”

A car or truck made in 1985 or earlier

An older car may not have a title. If yours has one, use the steps for Choice 1.

If it does not, call your county tag office and ask: “My car has no title. How do I put it in the name of my trust?”

A trailer

Campers and travel trailers made in 1986 or later have titles. So do other trailers that weigh more than 2,000 pounds. You move those the same way as a car. Ask when you call: “Is any tax due when I move my trailer into my own living trust?”

Boat trailers, homemade trailers, and small trailers only have a tag. Call your county tag office and ask: “How do I put this tag in the name of my trust?”

A boat

Boats are not handled by the tag office. They are handled by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Call them at 1-800-366-2661. Ask: “How do I put my boat in the name of my living trust, and what papers do you need?”

Your boat trailer is separate. It has a tag from the county tag office.

A golf cart, four-wheeler, or moped

Most of these have no title and no tag. Then there is nothing to change at the tag office.

Does yours have a tag? Then it may have a title. Call your county tag office and ask: “Does this have a title? How do I put it in the name of my trust?”

Questions people ask

Do I have to do this?

No. It is your choice. Choice 3 in Part 1 says what happens if you leave the car as it is.

I have more than one car.

Do one at a time. The steps are the same for each.

I will trade this car in soon.

You can leave this one as it is. Put the next one in your trust when you buy it. See “I am about to buy a car.”

What is a power of attorney?

It is the paper that lets someone sign for you. For a car left in your own name, the person you named in yours should call the tag office first. With no power of attorney, a court would have to name someone.

Is it still my car?

Yes. You are the trustee of your own trust. You still drive it, sell it, or trade it in. When you sell it, you sign as trustee.

Will I owe tax on the change?

The state’s manual for tag offices says no title tax is due when you move a car from your own name into your own living trust. Ask your tag office to confirm that before you go. The words to say are in Part 2.

Title tax is the tax on a car when it changes owners.

What does it cost?

There is a small title fee. There may be a small fee for the tag too. Ask on the phone: “What will the total be, and how can I pay?”

Does my tag change?

Ask the tag office when you call. The tag goes with the owner on the title, so there may be a small fee to move it.

What about my car insurance?

Call your car insurance company before you change the title. Tell them the car will be in your trust’s name. Ask what they need from you, and ask if your price will change.

I still owe money on the car.

Your lender is the bank or company you make car payments to. It holds the title until the loan is paid. Call the lender first. The words to say are in Part 2.

If the lender says no, you can wait. Keep paying as you do now. When the loan is paid off, the lender lets go of the title. Ask the lender for a paper that says the loan is paid. Then you can make the change.

My car is leased.

A leased car belongs to the leasing company. It cannot go in your trust. There is nothing to do.

I signed a paper that gives my things to my trust. Is that enough?

Not for a car. Signing a paper at home does not change your car’s title. Only the tag office can do that.

I am about to buy a car.

Tell the dealer you want the title in your trust’s name. Ask what they need from you. If you are getting a loan, ask the lender too.

You still pay the normal title tax when you buy a car.

Less common situations

My child’s name is on the title with mine.

Look at your title. Does it say “Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship”? If it does, the car goes to whichever of you is still living, and your trust does not decide who gets it.

If it does not, your share is handled with your estate when you die, and your child still owns the other share. To change the title, both of you have to sign.

Ask your county tag officeMy adult child and I are both on my car title. I have a revocable living trust. Can my share go into my trust while my child stays on the title? Who has to sign? Is any title tax due?

My car has a title from another state.

Georgia wants a Georgia title and tag within 30 days of your move here. Take your out-of-state title and your Georgia driver’s license to your county tag office. Georgia has a title tax for new residents, so ask what it will be for your car.

The sure way is two steps: get the Georgia title in your own name, then move the car into your trust.

Or ask the tag officeCan the Georgia title be issued in my trust’s name on this first application, or do I title it in my own name first? What title tax is due each way?

I plan to give this car to a grandchild.

You can give your car to a grandchild while you are alive. You sign the title over, and your grandchild takes it to the tag office. Georgia has a lower title tax for close family, and a grandchild counts. You both sign a state form called Form MV-16 in front of a notary.

Plan to give the car away soon? Ask the tag office about the family tax rule before you put the car in your trust.

What if I move to another state?

Your new state gives the car a new title under its own rules. Bring your Georgia title and a copy of your trust. Call that state’s motor vehicle office before you go.

Ask themMy car has a Georgia title in my name as trustee of my revocable living trust. What do you need from me to title it here, and can the new title stay in my trust’s name?

When I die, who signs for a car that is in my trust?

The person you named to take over as trustee signs. They sign the title over to whoever your trust says gets the car. The tag office asks for the title, the state’s title form (Form MV-1) and a copy of your trust. It is handled by your trust, not by the probate court.

They should call the tag office first and ask what to bring, and if any title tax is due.

If I cause a wreck, are the other things in my trust at risk?

A living trust does not protect your things from your own debts. That is true before and after you put your car in it. Putting the car in your trust does not put your house or savings at more risk, and it does not make them safer.

What protects you after a wreck is your car insurance. Ask your insurance company if you have enough coverage.

Does my car payment change?

Your loan is a contract with your lender. Call the lender before you change the title and ask: “Will my payment, my autopay or my loan terms change?”

That is everything.

Do one car at a time. You are done with a car when its new title comes in the mail. You do not need to tell us.

Take the words to the tag office

Pick the one that is easier for you.

Print the words on one sheet