A charitable remainder unitrust is like a combination of a gift and an investment plan. You place assets in trust and you (and/or another beneficiary) receive lifetime income from them, then we receive the remainder.

With a unitrust, the amount you receive as income is a set percentage of the value of the trust assets, redetermined annually.

You also have the option of choosing a unitrust with a net income plus make-up provision. That way, in years when the actual yield is below the stated percentage, you receive only that amount. Then later, when performance is better, those deficiencies are made up.

This option is excellent for devising a supplemental retirement plan--we can provide you with more details.