Do I (still) need a trust?

Do you have an asset that may be at risk? If yes, then you may still need your trust.

Reasons you had for setting up the trust may have changed. If you no longer need the trust, we’ll have a discussion around this and if it’s in your interest to wind it up, we can help with that.

I want to set up a trust, what do I need to do?

First, we understand your circumstances and why you need a trust. From there, we ask you to complete our Fact Find, sign our engagement letter and complete our AML (Anti-Money Laundering) requirements.

‘What are your costs?’

To set up a new trust the fee is from $2750 + GST, or for New Zealand Trustee Services to be appointed to a compliant trust it is $1750 + GST. Our annual fee for acting as Trustee and attending to the annual duties is from $575.00 plus GST. Any other attendances are charged on a fee for services basis.

All of our fees are detailed in our Engagement letter.

Why do I need an Annual Review?

Your trust is a vehicle for protecting your assets. As you would with a vehicle, you get a yearly check to ensure it is road worthy. The same should be done for your trust. There are requirements that must be met under the Trusts Act, and by meeting on an annual basis we can ensure everything is correct and fulfilling the mandatory duties under the Trusts Act.

Also, acting as a professional trustee carries a high fiduciary responsibility that we do not take lightly and with all due respect many either do not fully understand or appreciate the intricacies.

We appreciate that having a Trust can be considered costly, however we do ask that clients understand and consider what the costs could be, not only financial, were the worst to happen.

The fee we charge for our Annual Review covers a multitude of things such as –

• The fiduciary responsibility for acting as professional trustee.
• An understanding of the Trusts Act and the responsibilities to meeting its requirements
• A review of your trust prior to your meeting with us
• The time with us to discuss, review your trust and meet the requirements of the Trusts Act.
• The document preparation following your meeting.
• Education regarding trusts and trustees responsibility.
• Hidden expenses such as administration of your trust and file, wages, system costs, storage costs and rent of offices.

Why do we need to meet, nothing has changed?

Whilst we’re often told ‘nothing has changed’ we would counter that with the following.

‘What do you consider a change?’ & ‘You don’t know what you don’t know’.

Changes are not just about the assets or trustees, they cover anything and everything for someone who is involved in the trust such as beneficiaries.

In addition, both you, and NZTS aren’t to know what changes may have occurred without meeting with you. Just because your assets haven’t changed doesn’t mean other important parts of your life haven’t.

Changes are not always apparent. Until you meet with us to discuss your trust and circumstances some things are not always considered a ‘change’. Part of the responsibility we take on is ensuring we discuss your circumstances and understand how things may have changed over the year. Changes from insurance updates due to a property value update all the way to a death in the family are all important factors that can have huge implications for the trust if not properly documented.

What is expected of you and us as a trustee?

As your professional trustee you can expect that we will work with you around the best interests of the trust.

As trustee for your trust, you will be expected to keep New Zealand Trustee Services informed of decisions made or changes to assets. When setting up the trust, you agree you will meet with us annually to discuss your trust, any possible changes and document these and the discussion. This will ensure that should anything happen, the trust is meeting the regulatory requirements and reduces any possible risk.

‘How quickly can you set my trust up and what do you need?’

We can set up a trust in a few days, however, there are certain things needed in order to do so.

• Completed fact find
• Signed engagement letter
• Proof of ID and address (verified)

Also note, the trust will require an IRD number. This takes around one to two weeks to obtain so if the trust is new please be aware of timescale involved to obtain what is required.

I need documents signing, where do I send them and how long will it take?

Documents for signing should be sent to [email protected]

We work on a 24-48 hour timeframe depending on the document. (Please note Financial Accounts do fall outside of this)

Should any document be urgent, please make us aware in the subject and the reason for this in the body of the email, this may invoke an urgency signing fee. If you have not heard back within 4 hours, you’re welcome to follow up with us for an update.

Can documents be signed Electronically?

Yes. Minutes, resolutions and deeds can all be signed electronically (and witnessed).  We have taken the decision over the last couple of years to use DocuSign. This is a fast and easy way to get documents signed. Wills and Enduring Powers of Attorney are the only document that need to be wet ink signature.

I’m buying/selling a property, how are NZ Trustees involved?

Buying

When buying a property we may be required to sign the sale and purchase completed by the real estate agent. Alternatively, if the ‘and/or nominee’ is circled we wouldn’t need to sign it.

However, we will need to sign the legal documents from your lawyer prior to settlement. If you are borrowing funds, details around how this would be structured is in our brochure on our news & resources page.

Also, we would need to know whether this is to be used as a residential property by you or rented. From there, once completed we would prepare either a Licence to Occupy, or Management Agreement.

Selling

When selling a property, if the sale is through a real estate agent then all parties named on the title are required to sign the Listing Agreement, and then, whether the sale is through an agent or not all parties on the title are required to sign any Sale & Purchase Agreement.

Once agreed, we would also sign the legal documents from your lawyer prior to settlement.

What am I paying for?

The fees charged cover our increased responsibility for acting as your independent professional trustee. You’re paying for the security and protection that a professional trustee provides.

When you set up the trust you  will sign an Engagement letter that explains what our fees are for. (The Engagement Letter is also available on our website)

At the Annual Review the Trust Manager will explain what fees can be expected and provide you with an Engagement Letter to sign.

When other transactions occur such as investment of funds, which require documentation to be signed we are required to record this decision by way of a resolution which will incur costs.

Freephone: 0800 698 787
Email: [email protected]