How Much Can a Trustee Charge in New Jersey?
New Jersey law says a trustee is entitled to reasonable compensation when the instrument is silent. Market custom runs 0.5% to 1.0% of trust assets per year. Most New Jersey fees land somewhere in that band.
New Jersey trustee fee at a glance
Fee basis
Reasonable compensation, statutory standard
Customary range
$1,250 to $50,000/yr by trust size
Court involvement
No pre-approval needed
- $250,000 trust$1,250 – $2,500
- $750,000 trusttypical$3,750 – $7,500
- $2,000,000 trust$10,000 – $20,000
- $5,000,000 trust$25,000 – $50,000
NJ rates preloaded — free, no login.
Three people usually land on this page. A successor trustee who never asked for the job and now needs to know what they may take. A family member deciding whether to charge anything at all. And a beneficiary checking whether the fee the trustee planned to draw is fair. One statute answers all three. This page walks through it in plain terms, including a look at what are trust minutes and why a written record of the fee decision matters.
The rule New Jersey actually applies
The governing law is N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2, which sets the compensation standard for nontestamentary trustees. The full legislative history is available from the New Jersey State Law Library. It works like this:
- The default rule. If the testator has not provided compensation for the trustee, or if the trust instrument is silent, the court shall allow such commissions as appear to be reasonable.
- The instrument controls. If the trust document sets compensation, that provision governs, subject to court review on dispute.
And to be direct about the thing most people come here asking: New Jersey does not publish a percentage schedule for private trust trustee compensation. No statute sets a percent of assets for a living trust trustee, and no statute lists the factors courts weigh. Any figure you hear, including the customary band this page uses, is market practice. It is not something a judge is obligated to copy.
What that looks like at four trust sizes
These are arithmetic illustrations of the customary band, not statutory amounts. Each card shows the trust size, the 0.5% low end, and the 1.0% high end.
Based on New Jersey customary practice. Not statutory.
Typical New Jersey family trust. Not statutory.
Based on New Jersey customary practice. Not statutory.
Based on New Jersey customary practice. Not statutory.
If you are the family trustee
In practice, family trustees in New Jersey do one of two things. They charge a fee and document it, or they waive the fee and document the waiver. Both are common, and neither is wrong. Many successor trustees charge when the work is real and recurring. Others waive because the trust is going to people they love, and they would rather not touch the money.
Waiving is usually treated as final. Courts generally treat a knowing waiver as binding, so if you are leaning that way, pause and check with an attorney before waiving, especially if the trust will pay you back in some other form later. If you charge instead, write the decision down. Our family trustee compensation guide covers how to document the choice, and the trust minutes template shows the fee-approval section ready to fill in.
Three New Jersey rules people miss
Most fee disputes trace back to ignoring one of these rules.
- The $5-per-thousand statute is for estate fiduciaries, not private trusts. N.J.S.A. 3B:18-25 sets annual corpus commissions ($5.00 per $1,000 on the first $400,000; $3.00 per $1,000 above). It is typically applied to testamentary and estate fiduciaries, not trustees of private living trusts. For a private trust, the standard is reasonable compensation under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2.
- The court adjusts, it does not pre-approve. N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2 gives the court a role when there is a dispute. The trigger is the instrument being silent or the parties disagreeing on what is reasonable. Nothing in the statute requires you to petition for approval before taking a fee. To see how the fee decision gets recorded, start with how to write trust minutes.
- The drafting attorney may face conflict rules. New Jersey case law and the Rules of Professional Conduct impose disclosure obligations on an attorney who drafted the trust instrument and also seeks to serve as trustee. While N.J.S.A. 3B:18-6 allows an attorney-trustee to receive both commissions and legal fees, the services must be clearly distinguished, and the compensation must be reasonable.
Run your numbers right here
Enter the trust's approximate size — this page uses New Jersey's customary annual range (NJ rates locked).
Estimated annual fee in New Jersey
$1,250 – $2,500
New Jersey: N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2. Reasonable compensation standard. No statutory percentage for private trust trustees. Customary 0.5–1% of assets.
New Jersey trustee fee FAQ
Does New Jersey law set a percentage a trustee can charge?
No. New Jersey has no statutory percentage schedule for private trust trustees. Under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2, when the trust terms do not specify compensation, the court shall allow such commissions as appear to be reasonable. The 0.5% to 1.0% of assets per year band you often see quoted is market custom among New Jersey fiduciaries, not a rule written into law. Run your New Jersey numbers above to see the customary band for your trust size.
Is it reasonable to charge a fee when the trust says nothing about it?
Yes. When the trust instrument is silent, N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2 supplies the default right to reasonable compensation. You do not need a paragraph in the trust authorizing a fee. The practical step is to document what you did and how you set the fee in your minutes so the amount can be defended later. Run your New Jersey numbers above to see the customary band for your trust size.
Do I need the court's approval before taking my fee?
No. New Jersey does not require a trustee to file anything or see a judge before paying themselves. That widespread idea is a misconception. The court's role under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2 is to set reasonable commissions on dispute, when the instrument is silent or the parties disagree. Run your New Jersey numbers above to see the customary band for your trust size.
What about the $5 per thousand statute I heard about?
That is N.J.S.A. 3B:18-25, which sets annual commissions for certain fiduciaries ($5.00 per $1,000 on the first $400,000 of corpus and $3.00 per $1,000 above). It is typically applied to testamentary and estate fiduciaries, not private living trust trustees. For a private trust trustee, the standard is reasonable compensation under N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2. Run your New Jersey numbers above to see the customary band for your trust size.
Are extra services like selling property billed on top of the annual fee?
They can be. The underlying reasonableness standard means a trustee may seek additional reasonable compensation for services beyond ordinary administration. An unusual project (litigation support, contested accountings, real-estate closings) does not automatically fold into the baseline fee. The extra charge still has to be reasonable under the circumstances. Run your New Jersey numbers above to see the customary band for your trust size.
How New Jersey compares
New Jersey sits with the majority of states on a reasonableness standard rather than a fixed schedule. Here is a slice of the full national table.
| State | Statute | Structure | Customary band | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | N.J.S.A. 3B:18-2 | Reasonableness, no schedule | 0.5 to 1% customary | New Jersey is the state this page covers |
| California | Cal. Prob. Code §§ 15680–15681 | Reasonableness, no schedule | 1 to 1.5% customary | |
| New York | N.Y. SCPA § 2309 | Statutory commissions | ~0.5 to 1% effective | |
| Texas | Tex. Prop. Code § 114.061 | Reasonableness, no schedule | 0.5 to 1% customary | |
| Arizona | Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 14-10708 | Reasonableness, no schedule | 0.5 to 1% customary |
Where TrustMinutes fits
Whatever fee you land on, your trust administration file should show how you got there. Trust record keeping requirements apply to the fee decision like any other. The state-specific side you can read about in our guide to trust minutes requirements in New Jersey.
TrustMinutes writes one meeting’s minutes free. If your trust needs ongoing governance (distributions, records, year after year), TrustOffice is the paid platform built for that. Take a look at trustoffice.app.
Some fees end up contested. Our sister service WingPoint takes trust administration end to end, and it’s living at wingpointtrust.com.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice for your specific trust. For guidance on a live matter, see our disclaimer and consult a New Jersey estates attorney.
Updated October 2026.