Trusts are not just for the rich. Middle and even low income earners can benefit from choosing a trust over a traditional will. Don't let the common misconceptions about trusts keep you from considering the benefits and security a trust might afford you and your family.

Trusts may have been for the Rockfellers, but not anymore. The middle class is increasingly trying on trusts and finding that they fit -- and even look better than the traditional will. So, what are these benefits?

The first benefit: avoiding probate. Probate can be expensive, time-consuming, and a burden on those left behind. The middle class and even low income earners are discovering that their family will benefit from a living trust (a trust set up while you're still alive). By providing a living trust, you can avoid the courts and probate fees.

Incapacity protection . The second and possibly most compelling benefit of a trust is what happens if you become incapacitated. Wills require death, but we don't always make a sudden exit from this life. More and more people enter into a state of incapacity during their lifetimes. Protecting your assets during this time is accomplished either with a guardianship (another expensive and emotionally draining legal process) or by your trust. Your trust can allow for your assets to be controlled in the manner set out by you in the event of incapacity. There are no courts to decide what to do or lawyers appointed to administer your assets. Instead, your wishes are met by a trust.

Privacy is a third benefit of not going to probate. Probate courts are like other courts: open to the public. Trusts are private.

A fourth benefit is protection. A trust can protect your plans from immature, disgruntled heirs, in-laws, ex-wives: all the drama that can come to even the best families when money is involved. Wills, in short, can be contested. This process is emotionally taxing, expensive, and the outcome is unclear. Your "will" could be reversed or changed during this process. Trusts afford more protection from these eventualities and are harder to sucessfully contest.

Fifthly and traditionally, trusts are a way of minimizing taxes (in a will, too). Though this used to be the activity of the rich, the increasing tax burden on the middle class has changed things. Now, the middle class needs tax relief and they are turning to trusts to get it.

Robert Focke and Associates offers free initial consultation on estate planning, so that you can understand your options. Please contact our offices at 713.850.7799.