Payable on Death Accounts "POD" are bank accounts that are created for the benefit of another. Some jurisdictions call these accounts Totten Trusts, informal trusts, revocable bank account trusts, or ITF ("in trust for"). You may set up a POD account by notifying your bank of the beneficiary you want to inherit the money in the account or certificate of deposit. The bank and the beneficiary you name will do the rest, bypassing the Probate court entirely.
There are many benefits to POD Accounts, the following are just a few:
- They are simple to execute
- You can leave an unlimited amount of money this way
- Designation of a beneficiary and claiming of money is simple.
POD Accounts pass outside of probate because the bank account automatically passes to the beneficiary named – rather than through the Will.