Personal Finance and Investing

If you open any non-qualified account at any brokerage, they will typically offer you the T.O.D. Option, as it names beneficiaries and avoids probate.

I have a TOD on my regular savings account at my bank, for that matter.

As you indicate, the account holder does have the ability to name numerous beneficiaries for each account, which can include charities, trusts and individuals.

I’ve said this before in this forum, but this is exactly why it is important to review beneficiaries in all accounts from time to time, more often as we get older. Many people have accounts that date back years and years, and the persons named in those can fall out of favor, or pass away, etc.

It can be quite the task to find out an elderly loved one has left perhaps a dozen different accounts, from savings to IRA’s etc., each with different beneficiaries.