How do I start the Trust?

How do I start the Trust? Grantor, the person who creates the trust and puts assets into it. Trustee, the person who manages the trust for the benefit of a beneficiary or beneficiaries. Here are the main categories. A trust can be living, testamentary, or specialized. A living trust is either revocable, aka it can be amended without permission, or irrevocable, it can be amended limited to special circumstances. A testamentary trust is created through a will and goes into effect when the grantor dies. Then there are specialized trusts like charitable, special needs, spendthrift, Medicare, etc. But let's focus on a living trust. If it is revocable, you avoid probate, you have flexibility and control over your assets, but you get no asset protection and no tax benefits. If it's irrevocable, you avoid probate, but you lose control and flexibility, but you do get asset protection and tax advantages. So here's where you want to start. Choose a type of trust based on your goals. What do you want to achieve? Avoid probate, minimize estate taxes, protect assets from creditors? Then you want to select a trustee. Decide who will manage the trust. This could be a person or institution. Then you want to identify your beneficiaries. This also could be a person or institution or organization. Then you want to draft the trust document. Work with an attorney. Don't forget to fund the trust. Transfer ownership of your assets into the trust and review and update the trust as your circumstances change.