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Valor Tax Relief Team
Estate planning articles
Published: September 20, 2026
Last Updated: September 20, 2026
The Short Answer
There is no required net worth. Anyone can create a trust. The costs have to be worth it for your facts. That is the right frame. Search results that wait for a million-dollar portfolio are mixing two jobs: avoiding probate on a house, and planning for the federal estate tax.
For deaths in 2026 the IRS basic exclusion is $15 million per person. A simple revocable living trust does not cut that tax by itself. If you own a house whose title you want in a trust, you can be well below that line and still have a reason. More situations: who needs a trust instead of a will.
Two Different Dollar Lines
Not the living-trust test
$15 million (2026)
IRS estate tax FAQ. Federal estate tax generally starts here per person. A revocable trust does not hide you from that tax. Some states tax estates at a lower number.
The living-trust test
Do you own a house?
Probate is a court file for property in your name. Equity of $180,000 in one county can be enough reason. Two states is enough reason. A second spouse is enough reason. Net worth is a poor proxy.
A median “trust fund” size you see in marketing is a statistic about existing accounts, not a membership fee. Do not wait to “hit” that number. See tax on a revocable living trust if the tax-cut myth is why you searched net worth.
The House Test
Is the house (or a cabin in another state) titled in your name, and would probate in that county be slow or public enough that you want to skip it?
If you were in the hospital for months, would someone need to refinance, sell, or manage that property without a conservatorship?
Is there a second marriage, a child from a prior relationship, or a beneficiary who should not receive a lump sum the day after you die?
If you answered yes to any of those, net worth is not the gate. Funding still is. An unfunded trust at any net worth fails. Read living trust on a house.
Darnell’s $220,000 Equity
Darnell owns a paid-down house in Ohio and a modest IRA. He waits because a video said “trusts are for millionaires.” He dies. The IRA goes by beneficiary form. The house goes through probate. His net worth never reached anyone’s marketing number. The court file did not care.
Cost still matters. If probate in your county is cheap and you have no real estate, a will may be enough. Compare that to how much a living trust costs before you buy a kit to look wealthy.
When a Will Is Enough
Renters with one bank account and named beneficiaries on retirement accounts often do fine with a will and hospital papers. Small-estate shortcuts exist in many states for leftover personal property. Real estate often cannot use those shortcuts. A will still names a guardian. A trust does not replace that job.
Do not buy an irrevocable “asset protection” trust because a blog said high net worth requires it. Valor forms revocable living trusts. Medicaid shelters are not a product on this site.
How Valor Helps
The consult asks what you own and in which state, not whether you crossed a marketing threshold. If a funded living trust fits, we quote fees before you hire. If a will plus a living will is enough, we will say that.
IRS debt on the house does not disappear because your net worth is “too low for a trust” or “high enough for a trust.” Title and liens are separate from the blog-post number people argue about on forums.
Two states is another false “I’m not rich enough” trap. A cabin deed in a second county can force a second probate even when the checking account is small. The trust is for that title problem. It is not a club for high balances. If the cabin is the only reason, say that. We will not upsell an irrevocable wrapper to make the file look expensive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Skip the Net-Worth Guess. Bring the Deed.
Request a consult. We will look at the house, the state, and whether a funded living trust is worth quoting. Not a million-dollar cutoff.
Request a consult