Real estate operating acct for 3 trusts

[Guest Dave Peckham]

Our company is a TPA and I am the trustee of TPA 401(k) PS Trust. Along with two other plan clients, we invested in a Multi-Lender first trust deed transaction. The property went into foreclosure and the three unrelated retirement trusts now own the real estate. We plan to rent it for 5-7 years, then sell the property. In the meantime, there are lots of costs associated with managing real estate. Repairs, taxes, insurance, on-site property manager, etc. I told the other two plans' trustees that I would be willing to serve as an unpaid property agent, receiving rent from the on-site property manager, and paying bills, and making distributions to the 3 owners. To do this, I need to set up a bank account.

Question: am I allowed to set up the bank account in the name of the TPA 401(k) PS Trust? I would then make distributions to the other two trusts as positive cash flow allows. Or does this violate the standard trust document found in most plans, which requires that the trust hold assets only for the beneficiaries of the TPA 401(k) PS Trust? On the one hand, my duty as trustee is to safeguard the asset partially held by my trust, and safeguarding includes facilitating careful management. On the other hand, the only explicit language I can find permitting commingled trusts is when a single employer sponsors more than one plan.

Any thoughts?