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Trust Formation Services

Move wealth to your heirs or the causes you care about — without losing more of it to taxes than you have to.

Panorama designs and coordinates GRATs, CRATs, and CRUTs matched to your income needs, timeline, and giving goals — then reviews the structure with you every year for as long as the trust exists. The result is a plan built around your actual assets, not a template.

Request a Trust Review(352) 555-0142
50
States licensed
3
Trust structures offered
Every year
Annual review commitment
Compare the structures

Know your options

Three trusts, three different jobs. The table below lays out how each one handles your goal, its tax status, how it pays you, how capital gains are treated, and who it fits best.

 GRATGrantor Retained Annuity TrustCRATCharitable Remainder Annuity TrustCRUTCharitable Remainder Unitrust
Primary GoalTransfer wealth to heirsPersonal income + charitable impactPersonal income + charitable impact
Tax StatusGrantor trustNon-grantor trustNon-grantor trust
Payment TypeFixed annuityFixed annuityVariable annuity (unitrust %)
Capital Gains TreatmentTaxed to the grantorDeferred; taxed in tiers as receivedDeferred; taxed in tiers as received
Best FitHNW families with appreciating assetsCharitably minded clients wanting a fixed, predictable payoutCharitably minded clients comfortable with a growth-linked, rising-or-falling payout
The mechanics

How each one works

Same plain-English walk-through for all three: how the asset moves in, how the income works, how taxes are handled, and what happens to what's left.

GRAT

Grantor Retained Annuity Trust

Moving the asset in
You transfer an appreciating asset (typically stock or a business interest) into an irrevocable trust for a set term, retaining the right to receive fixed annuity payments back from the trust during that term.
How payments work
The trust pays you a fixed annuity each year. If the asset outpaces the IRS hurdle rate, the growth above that rate passes to your heirs at the end of the term with little or no additional gift tax.
How taxes are handled
As a grantor trust, you — the grantor — pay the income tax the trust generates, which is itself an additional wealth transfer to the remainder beneficiaries outside your estate.
What happens to the remainder
Whatever is left after your annuity payments goes to your named beneficiaries (heirs) when the term ends, removing that appreciation from your taxable estate.
CRAT

Charitable Remainder Annuity Trust

Moving the asset in
You contribute an appreciated asset to an irrevocable trust and name both yourself (or another beneficiary) for income and a charity for the remainder.
How payments work
The trust pays you a fixed dollar amount each year — the same payout regardless of how the trust performs — for the term or for life.
How taxes are handled
As a non-grantor trust, the trust files its own return. Capital gains are deferred when the asset is contributed and taxed in tiers as payments are distributed to you.
What happens to the remainder
When the term ends, the remaining trust assets pass to the charity or charities you named, and you may receive an upfront charitable deduction for the projected remainder.
CRUT

Charitable Remainder Unitrust

Moving the asset in
You fund an irrevocable trust with an appreciated asset, naming an income beneficiary and a charitable remainder beneficiary, just like a CRAT.
How payments work
Instead of a fixed dollar amount, the trust pays you a fixed percentage (the unitrust percentage) of the trust's value, revalued each year — so the payout rises or falls with the trust's performance.
How taxes are handled
A non-grantor trust that files its own return. Capital gains are deferred at contribution and taxed in tiers as distributions are received, the same tiering approach as a CRAT.
What happens to the remainder
The assets left at the end of the term go to your chosen charity, and you may claim an upfront charitable deduction for the projected remainder value.
Qualifying signs

Who this is for

These structures are powerful, but they are not for everyone. If most of the statements below describe you, a trust review is worth the conversation.

  • You hold a significantly appreciated asset — publicly traded stock, a business interest, or real estate.
  • You want to reduce the future estate or gift tax your heirs will face.
  • You want income now and a charitable legacy later, from the same pool of assets.
  • You are comfortable with an irrevocable, long-term commitment — once assets go in, they stay in.
The engagement

How we work together

Five steps, from the first call through every annual review after. You'll know what's happening at each stage and who is doing what.

  1. 01

    Discovery call

    A confidential conversation about your assets, your family, your timeline, and what you want the money to do — for you, your heirs, and the causes you support.

  2. 02

    Structure recommendation

    We map your situation to the right structure — GRAT, CRAT, or CRUT — and explain in plain language why it fits and what it will and won't do.

  3. 03

    Coordinate drafting with your CPA & attorney

    We work alongside your CPA and estate attorney to draft and fund the trust correctly. We coordinate; we don't replace your existing advisors.

  4. 04

    Fund and illustrate

    Assets are transferred into the trust and we provide a clear income illustration showing the payments you can expect and how they're taxed.

  5. 05

    Annual review

    Every year, for as long as the trust exists, we review performance, revisit your goals, and adjust the strategy when your life or the law changes.

Our commitment

What you can expect from us

Clear obligations at three moments that matter — before you commit, when the trust is funded, and every year after that.

Before you sign

We explain, in plain language, what irrevocability actually means — that the assets are out of your estate and your control — along with the taxation of payments and the mortality and term risks that determine whether the structure succeeds. You sign only when you understand the trade-offs.

At funding

We confirm the trustee and beneficiary designations are exactly what you intend, coordinate the asset transfer, and provide a written income illustration so you can see the payments you should expect and how each one is taxed.

Every year after

We hold an annual performance review, compare the trust's results against your original goals, and revisit the strategy when your circumstances or the tax law change. The trust is not filed and forgotten — it is watched for as long as it exists.

Request your review

Tell us about your situation. We'll tell you which structure fits.

Share a few details and a Panorama advisor will review your circumstances and recommend whether a GRAT, CRAT, or CRUT — or none — is the right fit.

This form is a request for a planning conversation, not legal, tax, or investment advice. Trust outcomes depend on your individual facts and should be confirmed with your CPA and a qualified attorney before any document is signed. No specific tax savings amount or guaranteed outcome is implied.