Throughout my career as a CPA, I worked with businesses, high-net-worth individuals, and families, providing accounting, financial reporting, and tax services. Over time, I discovered that one area was consistently underserved — trust accounting.

Many trustees are family members who never expected to administer a trust. They suddenly find themselves responsible for managing assets, maintaining detailed financial records, and preparing accountings for beneficiaries or the court, often while coping with the loss of a loved one. The process can be overwhelming, and finding professionals with specialized trust accounting expertise is not always easy.

I founded Trustify Accounting Services to fill that gap. We provide trustees, attorneys, and professional fiduciaries with the specialized accounting support they need. By focusing exclusively on trust accounting, I help clients navigate the financial complexities of trust administration with accuracy, transparency, and professionalism.

After more than two decades in accounting and financial reporting, I chose to dedicate my practice to trust accounting because I believe trustees deserve a specialist who understands both the technical requirements and the real-life challenges they face.

Trustify Accounting Services works with trustees, attorneys, fiduciaries, and families who need accurate, organized trust accounting throughout the trust administration process. We assist:

• Individual Trustees who need guidance preparing trust accountings and organizing financial records.
• Successor Trustees administering a trust after the death or incapacity of a loved one.
• Professional Fiduciaries seeking reliable, accurate accounting support for their clients.
• Estate Planning and Probate Attorneys who need well-prepared trust accountings for beneficiaries, mediation, settlement discussions, or court proceedings.
• Beneficiaries requesting an independent review or clear presentation of trust financial activity.
• Families navigating complex trust administrations involving multiple assets, investment accounts, real estate, or family businesses.

Every trust is unique. Our goal is to provide clear, accurate, and easy-to-understand trust accountings that help reduce uncertainty, improve transparency, and support a smoother administration process.

Because fiduciaries owe a number of legal duties to beneficiaries, and breaching any of these duties—especially the duty to account—can lead to personal liability. The duty to account requires a fiduciary to provide a detailed report of the financial activities and administration of a trust or estate, allowing beneficiaries to review and, if needed, challenge the fiduciary’s actions.

An accounting may be required by the governing instrument (such as a will or trust), state statute, a court order, ongoing or anticipated litigation and/or a request from a beneficiary.

Yes! A fiduciary may voluntarily prepare an accounting to help administer the trust or estate, manage legal risk, seek protection from liability, especially if beneficiaries won’t sign a release after the fiduciary’s term ends.

There are several key benefits, including:

• It provides a clear, organized view of the trust’s finances, which aids in efficient management and decision-making.
• If there’s no fraud involved, the accounting may protect the fiduciary from future liability for the period covered.
• Delivering an accounting can start the statute of limitations clock, limiting the window for legal challenges.
• Annual accountings can be easier and less time-consuming than reconciling multiple years at once.
• Regular accountings help identify and fix errors sooner—before they become bigger problems.
• Many numbers needed for trust or estate tax returns can be pulled directly from the accounting, saving time and reducing costs.
• It ensures that up-to-date financial information is available when needed.
• Regular accountings may increase the chance that beneficiaries will sign releases—especially while a family matriarch or patriarch is still alive.
• It helps satisfy the fiduciary’s duty to maintain accurate books and records.
• It protects against the loss of important financial history due to staff changes, bank mergers, or disasters.

The governing trust or estate instrument and applicable state law regulate the preparation and content of the accounting. Many states have adopted the Uniform Principal and Income Act, though often with local modifications. This act helps determine how income and principal are allocated. In California, accountings are prepared in accordance with the California Probate Code.

Unlike traditional financial statements, a fiduciary accounting allocates each transaction between principal and income, and includes detailed descriptions of financial activity. Financial statements typically do not make this distinction or provide that level of transaction detail.

A fiduciary accounting — sometimes referred to as a “court accounting” — is a detailed report of all financial activity within a trust, estate, guardianship, or conservatorship for a defined period. It shows all receipts (incoming funds) and disbursements (outgoing funds), and properly allocates each transaction between principal and income. The accounting must include key schedules such as beginning and ending asset balances at carry and fair market values, receipts, disbursements, gains and losses on sales, distributions to beneficiaries, liabilities, and any fees paid to the trustee or attorney.

Each accounting is customized and unique and requires different supporting information. Some of the documents we may ask for are:

• Bank and brokerage statements (monthly)
• Prior years tax returns, if applicable
• Final closing escrow statements
• Property management statements
• Check copies/check registers
• Trust documents and/or list of beneficiaries
• Appraisals
• Prior accountings, if applicable