NOLO Estate Planning Kits?

[SunnyOne]

I've wondered if anyone here has any experience with using a will and/or trust planning kit? DIY?

My situation is somewhat straightforward and not complicated, but for the fact that I want to leave a significant part of my estate to minor grandchildren (who may not be minor when I bit the dust). I understand that for this, I will need a trust.
I have been investigated testamentary vs. living trusts and trying to understand the differences - post-execution.

Many would suggest I see an estate planning attorney - I've met with two different local attorneys this week - both want nearly $1500 to plug in my information and spit out forms they have on file.
When I discussed the customizing of the forms - i.e. one type of trust vs. the other - the discussion went cold.
Basically both were not forthcoming in anyway and were unhelpful.

SO.....I am looking at DIY. Yes my situation is straightforward, but it seems for the fees they want to charge, at least brief discussion to hear what I have to say - might be in order.
Any comments from anyone who has done the same are appreciated.

 

[Sunset]

My thought is, for simple wills, meaning leave $X to Joe, $Y to Harry, etc , things like Nolo are fine.

I had a lawyer do a Will when the kids were young, now that they are adults and things changed I did my own Will as don't need the special situation of young children.

I also use TOD/POD to directly transfer some things, which takes them out of the Will control.

Biggest issue I think is knowing definitions and how things work. People are often confused about stuff, example thinking POD/TOD bank accounts/brokerages are all part of the Will.

 

[tulak]

For $80, it doesn’t hurt to try Quicken Willmaker (NOLO) and see what happens.

I used Willmaker for the trust I created to buy iBonds and found the legal document to look fine. I’m planning on using it to create a Will, which in my case is straightforward.

The worst case is that you end up getting a lawyer anyways, but for $80 you’ll get a chance to create your own set of legal documents that you can compare to the lawyers to make sure everything looks ok.

 

[DrRoy]

I think the only kind of trust you could do on your own is a revocable living trust. There are sites like Rocketlawyer and Lawdepot that offer this. However, the risk of making some kind of mistake is high, and then the trust does not exist. Also, I understand that many people create a trust and then never get around to having their assets assigned to it, which is a necessary extra step, so the trust sits empty and useless.

 

[Bamaman]

Willmaker is fine for those who keep their business simple. The tutorial is fantastic, and it is a great source of knowledge about wills, trusts and avoiding probate.

You're probably right about many attorneys having a will computer program--and just changing the names. But there are still a number of different angles to the subject where knowledge comes into play and an attorney is needed.

In one's lifetime, there will be changes in family structures where numerous wills will be needed. Seldom can spouses do a pair of mirror image wills and that be the one and only wills they'll ever have. Preparing wills is an ongoing process.

Of our 3 children, they're not going to get equal inheritances. And we have to provide for 2 grandchildren--one of which we're raising. So we need a pair of wills and a Special Needs Trust that stipulates exactly where our money goes so we can take care of the grandchildren's needs--until they become of age and are grown. And an attorney will be required to setup the trust.

What's difficult for us is just making decisions on who gets what, and what's equitable. We're a family in the middle with sufficient assets for life, but not enough assets to squander.

 

[pb4uski]

We recently went through an estate planning exercise, principally to try to make things easier for DD if we both get run over by an 18-wheeler while traveling. About 65% of our assets, mostly IRAs and other financial accounts, can be inherited by our kids once the second of us dies using beneficiary designations. Another 15%, being our two homes, can be inherited using enhanced life estate deeds (aka LadyBird deeds). So 90% will go directly to them without going through probate. We'll work on the other 10% over the course of the summer.


We recently created 3 revocable living trusts, his, hers and joint, using Willmaker. While I initially planned to use the joint trust for the homes we decided to use LadyBird deeds instead, so at this point the three trusts only own $10 of ibonds each.

The lawyer who did our LadyBird deed advised us to not put our vehicles in the joint trust as we had planned because it is easy to change the title of jointly owned vehicles outside of probate with just the title, wills and death certificates.

Our wills were old (2005) and are now every simple... 100% to surviving spouse and 50/50 to our two kids after the second of us dies... so we used Willmaker for our wills too.

 

[perinova]

Thank you for the information. The 'Lady Bird Deed' seems a nice tool to transfer a house to children, and inexpensive to set-up.
However it is only legal in the following states
Florida, Michigan, Texas, Vermont, and West Virginia.

 

[perinova]

Thank you for the information. The 'Lady Bird Deed' seems a nice tool to transfer a house to children, and inexpensive to set-up.
However it is only legal in the following states
Florida, Michigan, Texas, Vermont, and West Virginia.

Since I got interested in this subject, I did some research and, many states generally allow TOD deeds. _Except_, apparently, in the following states it is not possible:

Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana,
Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee

 

[Which Roger]

For $80, it doesn’t hurt to try Quicken Willmaker (NOLO) and see what happens.

I used Willmaker for the trust I created to buy iBonds and found the legal document to look fine. I’m planning on using it to create a Will, which in my case is straightforward.

The worst case is that you end up getting a lawyer anyways, but for $80 you’ll get a chance to create your own set of legal documents that you can compare to the lawyers to make sure everything looks ok.

This is the approach DW and I are taking. Get as far as we can doing it ourselves, then see where we end up, then hire a professional as necessary.

 

[ncbill]

I would look at DIY first...e.g. Nolo's offerings.

I used revocable living trusts for the last couple of relatives I buried once they got sick, but the cost was ridiculous...$2,500 for the last one which just made things a little more convenient after death (probate here is not the bear it can be in other states)

 

[CountryGal]

I have a sticking point in my head that I can't get past when it comes to a will. Generally the will is simple with one adult child and their spouse. What happens if we all go together? All of the children in our families will likely be well taken care of by their parents or grandparents. I feel guilty picking any one or two to leave our estate to.

Anyone else go through this and come up with a rationale for their will?

Another point is the executor. Would be daughter, but if she isn't there I'm not sure who.
Appreciate hearing what others have done.
C.

 

[Sunset]

I have a sticking point in my head that I can't get past when it comes to a will. Generally the will is simple with one adult child and their spouse. What happens if we all go together? All of the children in our families will likely be well taken care of by their parents or grandparents. I feel guilty picking any one or two to leave our estate to.

Anyone else go through this and come up with a rationale for their will?

Another point is the executor. Would be daughter, but if she isn't there I'm not sure who.
Appreciate hearing what others have done.
C.

I see two choices. Will be interested if there are more.
All Wills I've seen have a time clause, so there is no fighting over who died first, if everyone dies in a car/plane crash.

1. Specify in the Will the extra beneficiares if Spouse and child are not living. Could be as simple as " Equal division of assets to following people;" and name them all.
   There is the per stirpes thing to decide as well.
   
2. Or ignore it, as unlikely, and let the State rules take over on division.

On my Will I named the executor and 2 other people as alternatives, after that, I'll let the State decide.

 

[CRLLS]

We used Willmaker for our wills. I can recommend it. Very easy as it walks you thru many questions you may not have thought about.

Recent experience with MIL's Will and Trust tells me that even educated experts (lawyers) can very easily get things wrong. However, unless a Will or Trust is contested in a court of law, some errors of detail could be overlooked by the executor or trustee, especially if the Will is handled via a Small Estate Affidavit.

My brother handled our father's will. In the end, all I saw was a check. No explanation of what it was for. No copy of the will. No accounting balance sheet for sale of real estate or bank accounts. Nothing. Very unprofessional IMO. But it was what it was, and I didn't push for more.