
Estate planning options at United Community
Estate planning for your United Community 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.
Across 15 product types, United Community accounts vary in how they transfer at death. The sections below walk through Payable on Death (POD) designations, trust funding options, and which products support each method.
No beneficiary form at United Community
- Georgia and Tennessee accounts: a "Revocable Trust or Pay-on-Death Account"
- North Carolina accounts: a "Payable on Death (POD) Account"
- Alabama, Florida, and South Carolina accounts (and accounts opened online): a single-party or multiple-party account "With Pay-on-Death Designation"
- The ownership form and any beneficiary designation are those specified on the bank's account records
- Every person opening an account gives name, address, date of birth, and other identifying information; the bank may ask to see a driver's license or other identifying documents
- For any formal trust account the bank may require the documents and authorizations it considers necessary to establish who has authority to withdraw
- Appointments with a banker can be scheduled online
Required Documents
- Name, address, date of birth and other identifying information (for each person opening the account)
- Driver's license or other identifying documents (if the bank asks)
- Trust documents and authorizations the bank considers necessary. They establish who has authority to withdraw, at account opening and at all times afterward
- Georgia and Tennessee accounts: a "Revocable Trust or Pay-on-Death Account"
- North Carolina accounts: a "Payable on Death (POD) Account"
- Alabama, Florida, and South Carolina accounts (and accounts opened online): a single-party or multiple-party account "With Pay-on-Death Designation"
- The ownership form and any beneficiary designation are those specified on the bank's account records
What United Community says about beneficiaries and trusts
Each section is United Community's own statement, with the document it comes from numbered under Sources.
State requirements United Community statesGeorgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina
- Georgia
A beneficiary cannot withdraw until every person who created the account has died, and only a beneficiary then living takes. Two or more surviving beneficiaries own the account in equal shares, without right of survivorship.1
The person or persons who create the account may change beneficiaries, change account types, and withdraw all or part of the funds at any time.1
- Tennessee
A beneficiary cannot withdraw until every person who created the account has died, and only a beneficiary then living takes. Two or more surviving beneficiaries own the account in equal shares, without right of survivorship.2
The person or persons who create the account may change beneficiaries, change account types, and withdraw all or part of the funds at any time.2
- North Carolina
A beneficiary cannot withdraw until every person who created the account has died, and only a beneficiary then living takes.3
- Alabama
United Community reserves the right to refuse some forms of ownership and beneficiary designations unless otherwise prohibited by law.4
Ownership passes to the pay-on-death beneficiaries at the death of the last surviving owner and is not part of that owner's estate.4
- Florida
Ownership passes to the pay-on-death beneficiaries at the death of the last surviving owner and is not part of that owner's estate.5
- South Carolina
Ownership passes to the pay-on-death beneficiaries at the death of the last surviving owner and is not part of that owner's estate.6
Which accounts a trust can hold1
What United Community says about trust accounts1
State requirements United Community statesGeorgia, Tennessee
- Georgia
The "Revocable Trust or Pay-on-Death Account" is owned by the person or persons who create it, with the named beneficiaries entitled only after all of them die.1
- Tennessee
The "Revocable Trust or Pay-on-Death Account" is owned by the person or persons who create it, with the named beneficiaries entitled only after all of them die.2
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- United Community Private Wealth
Fiduciary services, including trust administration and estate settlement7
Not in United Community's published guidance3
- A beneficiary designation form
- What the owner provides to name a beneficiary
- A trust-account document list
Sources
Data sourced from United Community primary sources (18 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these United Community instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against United Community primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
United Community estate support
Private Wealth Client Services (fiduciary services: trust administration and estate settlement)
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your United Community accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
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