Estate planning mistakes can be expensive to fix — that is, when they can be fixed at all.
Full caveat, I work in this area when I’m not writing for this site. I’ve seen expensive mistakes due to lack of planning and I’ve seen expensive mistakes due to over-planning.
Most people who visit an estate planner view their estate as simple. In our world, blended families are more common than ever. The administration cost of not having a Will or Trust is usually double the cost of having a properly executed document.
All that being said, this site is created to provide a rational guide to life. So what options do you have for Estate planning?
- Go see an estate planning attorney. Most will charge you a flat rate for the package including Wills, Powers of Attorney, and Physician’s Directive. If you want a living trust, the cost will should be slightly more due to increased complexity. Costs generally vary between $300-$1,000 for most cases. Costs should be transparent and up front.
- Draft your own will based on some form you find on the internet. I usually see these in the fill-in-the-blank form. Once again, if these are drafted correctly and executed with two witnesses and a notary, these work fine. I’ve never seen a properly executed DIY Will. At the very least, have an attorney review this document for validity. Most attorneys should review the document for half an hour to an hour of time. If you choose to draft your own will, look up your state’s particular Will requirements. Google is your friend in these cases. This site has a pretty good list of laws for probate and estate issues. Note: it’s slightly out of date.
- Use a robo-law site like legal zoom, etc. Once again, if you follow the instructions on the site, you are probably in good shape here. Especially single people or married couples with no children. The cost on legal zoom tends to be around 75% of using an actual attorney. You also have the option to ask a local attorney to review the document you drafted for validity. In some cases, this costs you additional fees. At Rocket Lawyer, another self-help service that runs on a subscription model, users pay $40 a month for planning software and unlimited access to attorneys.
- Prepaid legal plans, often offered by employers, may be another alternative. (Quicken Willmaker, among the best-known software products, doesn’t offer advice as part of its $70 cost, but its publisher, Nolo, offers a directory of lawyers that users can hire to review their wills.) If your employer offers this service, take advantage of it today.
For many, though, do-it-yourself options may be better than not having any plan. A 2016 Gallup Poll survey found that only 44 percent of Americans have a will, which means most don’t have a plan to guide their families or determine who will take care of minor children. People who don’t have estate plans are stuck in denial, sure, but many are also intimidated by the perceived complexity and cost.
Going straight to an attorney will be costlier, but prices vary. A basic will might be $300 to $1,000. The cost for a living trust, which is an alternative to wills designed to avoid probate, starts at about $1,500 and goes up from there, depending on an estate’s complexity.
Here are some cases where a DIY plan may not be advisable: people with multimillion-dollar estates, disabled children who require special needs trusts, blended families (especially where there may be animosity between the kids and the new spouse), property in foreign countries and complex family businesses, etc.
Google is your best friend for finding an attorney but never doubt word of mouth suggestions from friends or family.
Stay rational.
-B&T