Preparing your Brooklyn Coop accounts for estate transfer involves two key steps: designating beneficiaries on each account and, where appropriate, retitling accounts into a trust. Because Brooklyn Coop is a membership-based institution, trust retitling must maintain the membership eligibility requirement. Accounts with Payable on Death designations or trust ownership bypass probate entirely.

Brooklyn Coop offers 8 accounts, each with its own transfer rules. The sections below cover how to set up beneficiaries, fund a trust, and which products support each approach.

Personal CheckingSimple SavingsSavings with ATM3-Month Share Certificate6-Month Share Certificate12-Month Share CertificateHigh Yield Club AccountTeen Checking

1Visit any Brooklyn Cooperative branch (Bed-Stuy, East New York, or Bushwick)

2Request to add or update Payable on Death (POD) beneficiary designations

3Provide government-issued photo ID

4Complete the beneficiary designation on your membership application

5Provide beneficiary details: full name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship

6Specify percentage allocation if adding multiple beneficiaries

Required Documents

Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)

Special Requirements

POD designations available on deposit accounts (savings, checking, share certificates)
Joint account owners have automatic right of survivorship
If no beneficiary is designated, funds go to the deceased member's estate
Beneficiary designations are made on the membership application