How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Northrim Bank
Covers 11 deposit, 2 retirement, 1 investment, 1 insurance, and 2 lending accounts — beneficiaries must be updated in-branch
Northrim Bank Customer Service
Northrim Bank, P.O. Box 241489, Anchorage, AK 99524
Northrim Investment Services (investment adviser representatives of Elliott Cove Capital Management; Northrim Bank itself has no trust department)
Northrim Bank Customer Service (Northrim publishes no dedicated estate or death-claim department; estate claims are handled by branch staff and the Anchorage call center)
Northrim Bank, P.O. Box 241489, Anchorage, AK 99524
Estate planning for your Northrim Bank accounts starts with understanding how each one transfers at death. Beneficiary designations and trust retitling both bypass probate, but the right approach depends on the account type, your tax situation, and how much control you want over distributions.
With 17 product types, Northrim Bank offers a range of transfer options. Some accounts support Payable on Death (POD) designations, others can be retitled into a trust, and some require probate if no beneficiary is designated. The sections below break down each step.
- Deposit accounts (checking, savings, money market, CD): the banker updates the account ownership and beneficiary designation on the account record. Per the Personal Deposit Account Agreement, the resulting form of ownership -- "Single-party Account With Pay-on-death Designation" or "Multiple-party Account With Right of Survivorship and Pay-on-death Designation" -- is what determines who Northrim pays at death.
- IRAs (Variable IRA, Jump-Up IRA): a separate IRA beneficiary designation with primary and contingent sections is completed at the branch. This is the ONLY transfer mechanism on an IRA -- an IRA cannot be retitled to a trust.
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- Naming a trust as beneficiary: bring the exact legal name and date of the trust. Under Alaska law a trustee may furnish a certification of trust in place of the full instrument (AS 13.36.079), but Northrim's Personal Deposit Account Agreement refers only to a "written trust agreement" -- confirm with the branch which it wants before the visit.
- A pledge beats a beneficiary. Under the Pledges clause of the Personal Deposit Account Agreement, if the account has been pledged as collateral, the pledge must be satisfied before any surviving owner's or POD beneficiary's rights take effect.
- Northrim expressly makes no representation about whether a given ownership or beneficiary designation is appropriate -- only about whom it will pay.
Sources
Data sourced from Northrim Bank primary sources (22 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Northrim Bank instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Northrim Bank primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Northrim Bank Customer Service
Northrim Bank, P.O. Box 241489, Anchorage, AK 99524
Northrim Investment Services (investment adviser representatives of Elliott Cove Capital Management; Northrim Bank itself has no trust department)
Northrim Bank Customer Service (Northrim publishes no dedicated estate or death-claim department; estate claims are handled by branch staff and the Anchorage call center)
Northrim Bank, P.O. Box 241489, Anchorage, AK 99524
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