Formation

• A person can create a living trust in Oregon if she is at least 18-years-old and mentally competent. To form a trust, she must sign a declaration of trust. Next, any property that will be part of the trust must be transferred, usually by deed or by opening a new bank account in trust for someone else. In Oregon, a living trust is revocable, which means a person can change or cancel the trust at any time until her death.
  
  

Parties

• There are three parties involved in a trust. The grantor is the person who creates the trust. The grantor then selects the trustee to manage the trust. The grantor can serve as the trustee himself if he wants to maintain control over the property, or he can appoint anyone else he trusts. The last party is the beneficiary, the person who will receive the property in the trust after the grantor's death.
  
  

Benefits

• One benefit of a trust is that property will automatically pass to the beneficiary after the grantor's death, avoiding a long and expensive probate process. Additionally, a trust is confidential. The only people that need knowledge of its contents are the grantor, trustee and beneficiary.