When they hear about estate planning, many people think of wealthy celebrities needing special documents that handle the distribution of their immense amount of money and assets — their estate. While an estate plan does help with determining distribution of money and assets after death, it also does much more.

Here are five reasons why you need to have an estate plan, even if you don't believe you are wealthy.

Simplifies distribution of personal assets after death

Your estate consists of everything you own when you die, including your home, personal property, investments, bank accounts, retirement plans and any interests in a family business or partnership, as described in an article by Forbes.

When creating an estate plan, there will be beneficiary designation forms that dictate who will gain control of your money, including retirement and bank accounts, life insurance proceeds, etc. For other physical assets, you need a will or living trust that says who gets your stuff.

If you die without a will or living trust, state law will decide how most of your belongings are distributed, which may not be what you would want. Dying without these important documents not only will be a headache for your posterity, but could also turn them against each other in a battle for your assets, something no one wants to be the cause of.

Protect your family privacy

Unlike a will, a trust allows your estate to be administered without the need for probate, a legal proceeding required if there is no will or just a will. In order to be valid, a will must go through probate to be authenticated by a judge. The judge then gives authority to someone to administer the estate. In the probate process, the names and addresses of the surviving spouse and all children must be disclosed and the will must be attached.

Because they can see who received an inheritance and how much, some companies and individuals use this information to solicit surviving family members for products and services.

In contrast, trusts are not required to go through the probate process because they are contracts and all of the authority necessary for someone to administer the estate is contained in the terms of the trust agreement. By avoiding probate, the trust agreement is never made public, protecting the privacy of all parties.

Protect beneficiaries

When it comes to estate planning, people want an estate plan to protect the beneficiaries in your plan from bad decisions, stress, outside influences and creditor problems.

If some of your beneficiaries are minors, all 50 states have laws that require a guardian to oversee the minor's needs and finances until that minor becomes an adult. The Guardian suggests that by designating a legal guardian to oversee your minor beneficiary's finances, family discord and expenses can be prevented if there is an estate plan to work from, as opposed to having to go through legal processes to appoint a guardian and trustee for your minor beneficiary.

Estate planning can also protect adult beneficiaries by ensuring that the money is managed how you wish and not be squandered by their own, or others', bad financial decisions.

To protect yourself if you become disabled

Many Americans experience a disability before they die. Having an estate plan in place allows you to arrange for this sort of scenario well in advance. Kiplinger explains that this will make sure that you have a person you trust in control of your assets rather than having a legal guardian appointed who may not act in your best interest or who mishandles your assets.

Avoiding bad feelings

Dealing with a deceased person's assets can be extremely stressful, especially if there are questions about who gets what. Not knowing who should get what can lead to intense ill will among family members. As you set up your estate plan, consider meeting with your beneficiaries beforehand and letting them know what to expect, suggests Forbes. This will allow time for understanding to be reached while you are living, thus hopefully eliminating family discord once you have passed and the time comes to manage and divide your assets.

If you do not have an estate plan, now is the time. Contact the Mountain View Law Group today for all your estate plan needs.

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