When you create a Michigan living trust, you're usually the first trustee. The more important decision is who takes over when you die or can no longer manage your affairs: your successor trustee. This person will control your home, your accounts, and the timing of what your family receives. Pick well and your trust works quietly, without court. Pick poorly and you can create the family fight a trust was supposed to prevent. Here's how to choose, in plain English, with the Michigan rules that matter.
The Short Version
- Choose someone organized, honest, and willing, not just your oldest child.
- Name at least one backup. If no named trustee can serve, a court fills the vacancy.
- Co-trustees must act by majority under Michigan law, so two co-trustees have to agree on everything.
- A named trustee can decline, and can later resign with 28 days' notice to beneficiaries.
- Trustees are entitled to reasonable pay unless your trust says otherwise.
What the Job Actually Involves
Before picking someone, understand what you're asking of them. A Michigan successor trustee will typically:
- Send the required notice to beneficiaries within 63 days after the trust becomes irrevocable at your death (MCL 700.7814).
- Prove their authority to banks and title companies with a certificate of trust.
- Get a tax ID number for the trust, gather and protect assets, and keep the house insured.
- Pay final bills and taxes, and file trust income tax returns.
- Keep records, send reports, and distribute assets according to your instructions.
For a simple trust this can be done in 6 to 12 months of part-time work. If your trust holds a share for a young child or a beneficiary with special needs, the job can last years. See our successor trustee checklist for the full step-by-step.
What to Look For
- Trustworthy. They'll control money that isn't theirs.
- Organized. They have to track receipts, deadlines, and paperwork.
- Fair-minded. They may have to tell a sibling "no" or "not yet."
- Available. Living in or near Michigan helps when there's a house to manage, though it isn't required.
- Willing. A reluctant trustee is a slow trustee.
- Healthy and younger than you. A trustee your own age may not outlive you.
Financial expertise is helpful but not essential. A good trustee knows when to hire a tax preparer or ask for help.
Common Choices and Their Trade-Offs
One adult child
The most common choice, and often the best. It's simple and inexpensive. The risk is resentment from siblings who feel left out, so pick the child with the right temperament and explain your reasons.
All your children together
Feels fair, but it's often impractical. Every decision needs agreement (see co-trustees below), and three people signing every check slows everything down.
A sibling, niece, nephew, or trusted friend
A good option when your children are young, live far away, or don't get along. Pick someone a generation younger when you can.
A bank or trust company
Professional, neutral, and always available. The trade-off is cost: corporate trustees charge fees and many have minimum account sizes, so they rarely make sense for a modest estate. Ask for a fee schedule before naming one.
Your spouse
In a joint trust for a married couple, the surviving spouse usually continues as trustee. You still need successors for after both of you are gone.
Naming Two Co-Trustees
Many parents name two children to serve together. Know the rule first: under MCL 700.7703(1), "cotrustees shall act by majority decision." With two co-trustees, a majority means both. If they disagree, nothing happens.
Each co-trustee is also expected to participate. MCL 700.7703(2) says a co-trustee "shall participate in the performance of a trustee's function" unless unavailable because of absence, illness, or similar reasons, or the function has been properly delegated to another trustee. Co-trustees can agree to delegate certain powers to each other, but some delegations require notice to beneficiaries within 28 days (MCL 700.7703(4)).
If you name co-trustees, consider either three (so a majority can act) or a clause letting either one sign alone for routine matters. Your trust's own terms generally control over these default rules.
Always Name a Backup
Your first choice may die before you, become ill, or simply not want the job. Under MCL 700.7704(1), a vacancy in a trusteeship occurs if a designated trustee rejects the job, can't be identified, resigns, is removed, dies, or has a guardian or conservator appointed.
How is a vacancy filled? MCL 700.7704(3) sets the order: first "in the manner designated by the terms of the trust," and only then "by a person appointed by the court." In other words, if you don't name backups, your family may end up in probate court asking a judge to pick a trustee, which is exactly what a trust is supposed to avoid. Name at least two successors in order.
What If They Say No or Quit Later?
Declining. Nobody is forced to serve. Under MCL 700.7701(2), a named trustee who hasn't accepted "may reject the trusteeship," and one who "does not accept the trusteeship within a reasonable time after knowing of the designation is deemed to have rejected" it. Acceptance happens by following the method your trust provides or, if none, by taking control of trust property or acting as trustee (MCL 700.7701(1)).
Resigning. A trustee who starts and then wants out can resign "upon at least 28 days' notice to the qualified trust beneficiaries, the holders of powers of appointment, and all cotrustees," or with court approval (MCL 700.7705(1)). Your backup then steps in.
Should Your Trustee Be Paid?
Under MCL 700.7708(1), "if the terms of a trust do not specify the trustee's compensation, a trustee is entitled to compensation that is reasonable under the circumstances." If your trust does set compensation, the trustee gets that amount, though a court can adjust it if the job turns out very different from what you expected or the amount is unreasonably low or high (MCL 700.7708(2)).
Many family trustees waive pay, especially when they are also beneficiaries. Others take a modest fee because the work is real. Decide whether you want to address it in your trust, and tell your trustee and beneficiaries so no one is surprised. Whatever is paid shows up in the trustee's reports to beneficiaries.
Talk to Them Before You Sign
- Ask whether they're willing. Don't surprise them at the funeral.
- Tell them where the original trust and your account list are kept.
- Give them a copy of the trust or tell them how to get it.
- Explain your reasons to the children you didn't pick. A short conversation now can prevent years of hurt.
- Review your choice every few years, and after major life changes. See how to amend a Michigan trust.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my successor trustee also be a beneficiary?
Yes, and in family trusts they usually are. Michigan's rule is that the same person can't be both the sole trustee and the sole beneficiary (MCL 700.7402). See how to sign a Michigan living trust.
Can someone who lives out of state be my trustee?
Generally yes. Practically, managing a Michigan house from far away is harder, so consider a local backup or co-trustee.
Should my executor and trustee be the same person?
Often that's simplest, since the pour-over will feeds into the trust. See executor vs. trustee.
Who decides if I become incapacitated?
Your trust document should say how incapacity is determined (for example, by written statements from physicians) so your successor can step in without court.
Name the Right People in Your Own Trust
The CreateMIWill Trust Kit ($197) includes an attorney-drafted Michigan revocable living trust where you name your successor trustees in order, plus a certificate of trust and instruction and signing guides. The Complete Bundle ($349) adds a Michigan will, durable power of attorney, and patient advocate designation.
Michigan Trust Kit or Complete Bundle
Attorney-drafted Michigan revocable living trust with certificate of trust, funding instructions, and signing guide. Instant download.
Sources: MCL 700.7701; MCL 700.7703; MCL 700.7704; MCL 700.7705; MCL 700.7708; MCL 700.7814.