Sorry for the highly specific post but maybe someone has experience with this. This is an estate planning question specific to California community property laws and taxable investing (trust) accounts at Vanguard.
Spouse and I have been married for 15 years but we have kept individual taxable investing accounts that predate our marriage by decades. Account values have grown over time with appreciation as well as some contributions while married. Death is much more likely than divorce. Given accounts are presumed to be community property while married we would like to qualify for double stepped up cost basis for these assets.
Idea is to put each person's individual assets into a trust account at Vanguard titled to our joint trust. There would be two trust accounts for traceability purposes. Then execute a Community Property Transmutation Agreement reserving right to re-establish separate property contributions under California Family Code 2640.
House is already community property and in our trust.
Anyone with marriage later in life done this, either before a death or used the agreement after a death?
After talking to four Vanguard reps in different departments over 90 minutes this morning one did advise me that Vanguard has a paper form to create a CPWROS joint account, although this account would presumably not have beneficiaries so its use seems limited. I am waiting for them to send the account opening form to me by email tonight. We do have pour over wills. One of the Vanguard reps did helpfully mention a Community Property Agreement which is similar but a little different than a transmutation.
Also curious what other California married couples are doing specifically at Vanguard. I am aware Fidelity and Schwab might have more accessible CPWROS accounts but spouse does not with to move assets. By default Vanguard will do a 50% cost basis step up, but need to know for sure how to get them to do the 100% step up (and make it as easy as possible on surviving spouse or executor).
Neither of the two estate planning attorneys we've used since marriage mentioned this to us (but I did not ask about it).
Spouse and I have been married for 15 years but we have kept individual taxable investing accounts that predate our marriage by decades. Account values have grown over time with appreciation as well as some contributions while married. Death is much more likely than divorce. Given accounts are presumed to be community property while married we would like to qualify for double stepped up cost basis for these assets.
Idea is to put each person's individual assets into a trust account at Vanguard titled to our joint trust. There would be two trust accounts for traceability purposes. Then execute a Community Property Transmutation Agreement reserving right to re-establish separate property contributions under California Family Code 2640.
House is already community property and in our trust.
Anyone with marriage later in life done this, either before a death or used the agreement after a death?
After talking to four Vanguard reps in different departments over 90 minutes this morning one did advise me that Vanguard has a paper form to create a CPWROS joint account, although this account would presumably not have beneficiaries so its use seems limited. I am waiting for them to send the account opening form to me by email tonight. We do have pour over wills. One of the Vanguard reps did helpfully mention a Community Property Agreement which is similar but a little different than a transmutation.
Also curious what other California married couples are doing specifically at Vanguard. I am aware Fidelity and Schwab might have more accessible CPWROS accounts but spouse does not with to move assets. By default Vanguard will do a 50% cost basis step up, but need to know for sure how to get them to do the 100% step up (and make it as easy as possible on surviving spouse or executor).
Neither of the two estate planning attorneys we've used since marriage mentioned this to us (but I did not ask about it).
Statistics: Posted by stan1 — Fri Feb 06, 2026 2:00 pm — Replies 0 — Views 4