Estate planning at F&M Bank

No. Under IRC Section 408, an IRA must be owned by an individual and cannot be retitled into a trust during the account holder's lifetime without triggering full taxation of the account. Instead, name a primary and contingent beneficiary on the IRA Beneficiary Designation form. A trust may be named as beneficiary, but should be drafted to qualify as a "see-through trust" under the Treasury regulations to preserve favorable distribution rules under the SECURE Act.

F&M Bank offers CD-based Market Rate Traditional and Roth IRAs in 6, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, and 60-month terms with a $500 minimum opening balance. Traditional IRA earnings grow tax-deferred; qualified Roth withdrawals are tax-free. IRAs cannot be retitled to a trust under IRC Section 408, but a trust can be named as beneficiary on the IRA Beneficiary Designation form. Married account holders in California (a community property state) may need spousal consent to change beneficiaries on an IRA.

Farmers & Merchants Bank is headquartered at 302 Pine Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90802. The bank was founded in 1907 by C.J. Walker and operates 27 full-service branches across Southern California, from San Clemente in the south to Santa Barbara in the north. It is one of the oldest and largest independently operated banks in California. Customer service is reachable at 1-877-700-2265 and the main office at (562) 437-0011.