Identifying the best investments and investing strategies is only part of your overall financial well-being. You’ll also want to periodically review how your finances are structured to ensure that assets are aligned with your goals (retirement accounts, college savings, etc.) and intended beneficiaries (how accounts are titled or what beneficiaries are designated).
Tax time and the end of the year are popular times to do it because that’s likely when you have the clearest view of your overall financial picture. That makes this time of year about as ideal as it gets when it comes to reviewing your estate planning.
If you already have a trust or estate plan in place, you may want to confirm that real estate and investment accounts are already titled in the name of your trust or in a manner consistent with your estate plan. Also, any significant life changes (like buying or selling big-ticket items, births or deaths, or changes to your family structure, etc.) should be another impetus to double-check your estate plan.
Seeing your finances clearly should prompt you to consider both the investing case of the stocks you own and to ask questions like, “Is my estate plan strong enough?” or, “Should I have a trust?” If so, you may want to consider the costs associated with living trusts.
If you don’t already have an estate plan in place, the fact that you’re considering it might make now the perfect time to begin working with a will or estate attorney, or to get started with an online service, to make sure that your assets would be distributed in line with your wishes.
How Much Does a Will or Living Trust Cost?
The cost of your will or living trust will vary based on the complexity of the document and how much help you receive. Wills are less expensive than trusts, and you can typically find templates available for download online if you’re inclined to handle a will yourself. If not, plan on spending at least $300 to have an attorney create one.
Because they’re more complex, your living trust will probably be $1,500 to $3,000 depending on the complexity of the trust and the attorney hours required. That figure will also vary by state.
As with wills, you can significantly reduce your living trust cost by using either an online service (such as LegalZoom) or by drafting a trust yourself.
Whether a will or living trust is a better vehicle for estate planning is highly individual. Living trusts can help avoid the inconvenience of going through probate but may require that your designated trustee works with an attorney regardless. Also, a living trust document cannot name a guardian for children, so even if you’ve got a trust established, you may still need a will to manage that aspect of your estate plan.
What Do My Living Trust Expenses Cover?
If you ultimately decide to work with a living trust attorney, those living trust expenses are paying for your attorney’s time and experience. Working with an attorney can help ensure that you’re in compliance with state law and provides an added degree of certainty for your estate plan. Should your estate be challenged in probate, your conversations with the attorney who drew up your estate plan can help demonstrate your intent for beneficiary designations.
Also, using an attorney provides a greater degree of security because your estate can pursue litigation against that attorney if your estate plan was negligently or improperly crafted.
If you’re pursuing the DIY route, it may be more difficult for your estate to establish intent and there’s no way to pursue litigation in the event that you improperly craft a will or trust.
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*This post is periodically updated to reflect market conditions.
