Do you remember when Texas Instruments first introduced hand held digital calculators? The calculators could only perform the most basic functions; addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Yet in the early 1970s to purchase one set you back over $100. Today, for the same inflation adjusted dollars you can instead buy a desktop computer with more computational power that existed in a roomful of computers back then.

How about financial advisors? Years ago only the most wealthy had financial advisors. Who ever thought that so many of us, including the 9 to 5 working class would hold stock, bond and mutual fund investments? It was roughly thirty five years ago when Individual Retirement Accounts were first established. There was no such thing as a company 401(k) plan. Now it seems that financial advisory offices sit at every major intersection, not to mention the internet discount brokerage firms accessible from our laptop computers.

So many conveniences all of us take for granted did not even exist in the not too distant past. Air conditioners. Microwave ovens. Digital television offering hundreds of channels. Air travel. Automobiles with satellite radio and navigational systems. Remember as each was introduced they were only available to those with substantial financial means?

Which leads me to revocable living trusts. I often encounter people who believe that they don’t have enough assets to justify establishing a revocable living trust. Many mistakenly assume that if they don’t have more assets than what the current federal estate tax exemption amount might be, then they don’t need a trust. Whether a trust would benefit someone isn’t really a function of whether that person has federal estate tax planning issues.

Trusts are really a vehicle to accomplish many goals. Titling your assets inside of your revocable living trust avoids the probate process. For those of you who are regular readers of this column, you already understand that probate is the court (public) process wherein your last will is admitted to the probate court, your personal representative is appointed, your creditors and taxes are cleared and finally your estate is distributed to your beneficiaries. Whether or not you have a taxable estate, if you have assets in your name individually at the time of your death, you will have a probate.

At the same time, revocable trusts assist us during our lifetimes. In the event of our incapacity, our revocable trust names a successor trustee who can manage our assets and investments, buy or sell properties on our behalf, write our checks and pay our bills, and accomplish so many things that are otherwise difficult to do. Some folks believe that since they have a power of attorney they don’t need a trust, but my experience is that powers of attorney are problematic, as many banks and financial institutions simply won’t cooperate with the holder of the power, despite an update to the Florida statutes in 1996 designed to assist with this problem.

Revocable trusts can be used to ensure that only those we want to benefit from our estates following our death will benefit. They allow us to protect the inheritance we leave to our surviving spouse, children or grandchildren. We can include provisions that will ensure those we love won’t lose their inheritance if they divorce, become incapacitated themselves, have a business failure or experience a myriad of other setbacks.

In addition to all of that, revocable trusts can be used to accomplish significant estate and income tax planning for ourselves and for those we love.

A common question that I am asked is how much assets should one have before considering putting a revocable trust into place. I often answer that if one has more than three or four hundred thousand dollars of assets, then it is wise to consider a trust. The types of assets, where they are located, your marital situation, your health and a host of other factors affect this answer, so you should consult with competent estate planning counsel before acting. Considering that the current estate tax threshold is $2 million, you can see that one could have significantly less than the exemption amount and still benefit.

So like many other things today, trusts are not exclusively for the super wealthy, and in fact can offer many of us important benefits. Reflecting on how quickly the world has changed, I wonder what conveniences we will consider necessities only ten years hence, in 2018. Now that’s something to consider the next time you surf the internet on your cellular telephone.