--- title: "How to Put Your House in a Trust (NJ, NY, and OH) | Legacy Counsel" description: "The actual steps to transfer a residence into a revocable trust, what it does to your mortgage and taxes, and the mistakes that undo it." lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "LegalService", "@id": "https://jacobslegacycounsel.com/#legalservice", "name": "Jacobs Legacy Counsel", "alternateName": [ "Legacy Counsel by Jacobs Counsel", "Jacobs Legacy" ], "url": "https://jacobslegacycounsel.com", "description": "Fixed-fee estate planning for high-net-worth families, founders, executives, and professional athletes. 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Transferring a residence into your own revocable trust generally does not trigger a mortgage due-on-sale clause, change your income taxes, or affect your heirs' basis step-up. The most common failure is signing the trust and never recording the deed, which leaves the property in probate.", "datePublished": "2026-08-11", "dateModified": "2026-08-12T16:46:31.255746+00:00", "author": { "@type": "Person", "@id": "https://jacobscounsellaw.com/about/drew-jacobs#person", "name": "Andrew R. 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Notify the servicer rather than assuming." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Does putting my house in a trust protect it from creditors or nursing home costs?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "A revocable trust does not. Asset protection and Medicaid planning require different, irrevocable structures with tradeoffs and lookback rules." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Do I lose my property tax exemptions?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Usually not, but the filings must be handled. Each state and municipality has its own process for confirming exemptions after a transfer into trust." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "What about a house in another state?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "That is often the strongest reason to use a trust. Without it, the second state generally requires its own ancillary probate proceeding." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Can I still refinance or sell?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes. You sign as trustee. Some lenders ask that the property be deeded out temporarily for a refinance and then deeded back." } } ] } ] ] --- A Practice of [Jacobs Counsel LLC](https://jacobscounsellaw.com) Serving NY · NJ · OH — Vol. 2026 [Legacy Counsel ](/) Firm Resources Estate Planning Trusts [Probate & Admin](/probate-trust-administration)[Pricing](/pricing)[Book Call](https://cal.com/drewjacobs/estate-planning)[Start Intake](/get-started) Menu 1. [Home](/) 2. [Journal](/blog) 3. HOW TO PUT Your House IN A Trust [← Legacy Journal](/blog)Estate Planning · Trusts # How to Put Your House in a Trust (NJ, NY, and OH) The actual steps to transfer a residence into a revocable trust, what it does to your mortgage and taxes, and the mistakes that undo it. August 11, 2026 7 min read By Drew Jacobs, Esq. The short answer To put a house into a revocable trust you prepare and record a new deed conveying the property from yourself individually to yourself as trustee, file the state-specific transfer or exemption forms, add the trust to your homeowner's insurance, and confirm your property tax exemptions carry over. Transferring a residence into your own revocable trust generally does not trigger a mortgage due-on-sale clause, change your income taxes, or affect your heirs' basis step-up. The most common failure is signing the trust and never recording the deed, which leaves the property in probate. Signing a trust does not move your house. A separate deed does. This is the step most plans skip, and it is the reason families end up in Surrogate's Court holding a trust that owns nothing. ## The steps 1. **Confirm current title:** pull the recorded deed and verify exactly how the property is held, including any survivorship language. 2. **Prepare a new deed** conveying the property from you, individually, to yourself as trustee of the trust. 3. **Handle state transfer forms:** New Jersey, New York, and Ohio each require their own affidavits or exemption filings for a transfer into a revocable trust. 4. **Record the deed** in the county where the property sits. 5. **Update insurance** so the trust is named on the homeowner's policy. 6. **Check exemptions:** confirm homestead, veteran, senior, and school-tax relief benefits carry through. ## Mortgage, taxes, and step-up A transfer to your own revocable trust generally does not trigger a mortgage due-on-sale clause, does not change your income taxes, and does not affect the basis step-up your heirs receive. The property remains yours for every practical purpose — you are simply holding it in a different capacity. Notify your lender rather than assuming. ## Where it goes wrong - A trust signed and a deed never recorded — the most common failure of all. - A recorded transfer-on-death designation left in place, quietly overriding the trust. - Property in a second state left out, forcing an ancillary proceeding. - Exemption filings missed, producing an unnecessary property tax increase. - An irrevocable trust used where a revocable one was appropriate, with real tax consequences. ## Next step We handle the deed work as part of the plan, not as an afterthought. [See how we fund trusts](/trust-funding) or [start here](/get-started). Educational information only, not legal or tax advice. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Frequently asked ## Questions we hear most Will my mortgage lender call the loan? A transfer into your own revocable trust generally falls within federal protections against due-on-sale enforcement. Notify the servicer rather than assuming. Does putting my house in a trust protect it from creditors or nursing home costs? A revocable trust does not. Asset protection and Medicaid planning require different, irrevocable structures with tradeoffs and lookback rules. Do I lose my property tax exemptions? Usually not, but the filings must be handled. Each state and municipality has its own process for confirming exemptions after a transfer into trust. What about a house in another state? That is often the strongest reason to use a trust. Without it, the second state generally requires its own ancillary probate proceeding. Can I still refinance or sell? Yes. You sign as trustee. Some lenders ask that the property be deeded out temporarily for a refinance and then deeded back. Free Download ### Will or Trust? 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