Do I have to declare a trust paid on the death of both parents on the CSS?

[Twoin18]

@delcran

That said, BellknapPoint, I also don’t understand the point of all of this for our situation…others in my wife’s family are more prosperous and used to doing whatever this advisor says, but I feel like this is just a default recommendation based on what her siblings are doing…

There are two main reasons:

1. you are in a state with expensive and slow probate
2. you have assets that could exceed the inheritance tax threshold (either on a state basis or if the federal limits reset after 2025) since a revocable trust makes it easier to pass assets in ways that bypass the estate of the surviving spouse.

If your spouse’s family are relatively wealthy then the second seems quite plausible (they have likely been doing this since before the 2017 changes increased the threshold).