- 1). Contact a California estate-planning attorney. Have him create the trust document and list the assets the trust will control. He should also obtain for you, on behalf of the trust, a trust employer identification number. The trust functions as an individual legal entity and owner of the assets you will place in it. It needs this number to file taxes.
- 2). Gather the documents needed to change the title of assets listed in the trust. Just because an asset is listed in the trust does not mean the trust is the owner. Contact banks, brokerage firms and real estate records offices for the proper forms.
- 3). File the forms naming the trust as the new owner of the asset. For example, a brokerage account would read "Jane Doe TTEE for the Doe Family Revocable Living Trust." ("TTEE" is an industry abbreviation for "trustee.") Submit the forms to the institution where the assets are held, and maintain a copy with the trust document. You will need to provide banks and brokerage firms with a copy of the trust naming you as the trustee.
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