cost to have a revocable trust and accompanying paperwork

frank

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I was wondering if anyone in the midwest had a revocable trust for me and wife, will for both , warranty deed to transfer things to trust recently. I was trying to get an idea as the prices where I am seem to be all over the place. The things needed to be put in the trust are one property, some cd/s , vehicles, and some cash. any thoughts?
 
Gonna vary greatly by location and state.
 
We got quotes in the Islands between $4K and $6K to set stuff up. THEN we had to do the "funding" (that is, transferring assets INTO the trust.) SO far, we've not done anything. Hoping to do "something" next year but we'll see. It all seems to make sense, but it's a hassle and it's easier to do nothing. Right now, dying intestate should accomplish mostly what I want - that is, DW getting everything.
 
We spent 5K in NJ 20 years ago, but that was for 2 Revocable Trusts and 2 ILIT's. Yes it's a pain , but nothing really that difficult.
 
I would think around $5K. It’s pretty straightforward work for an estate attorney. They have templates set up and can produce the documents quickly. Ours was closer to $3K but I’m sure the rates have increased in the last 5 years since we had ours done.
 
I'm going through this with my aunt and uncle and they were quoted $3-5k but I think it will be closer to $5k.
 
Ours cost $3500 in NC, a very complete package from a highly regarded attorney. The base package was $2500 and there were options that could have taken it to $5000 if we had complicated family and/or business issues. FWIW
 
DW and I just did this last month with OATH...they have offices in many cities/states. Cost was $5K including giving us the docs for funding, transferring our 3 properties to the trust, and also included POA, health directives, and trusts for each of our 6 grandkids. We went to county office to submit the forms for our properties, about $40 had to be paid to the county clerk.

They allow 6 months to pay, with no interest and provide 3 year reviews at no additional cost.
 
I know we have kicked this around before, but what are the advantages of a revocable trust? We have one DS. He will get everything. We have beneficiaries set up on virtually everything (not cars, but I think we can in MO). We have a spill over will leaving all to him. Are we missing something? We have not set him up with POA powers yet, but I see that soon.

Is it primarily to avoid probate? I know it is a state by state thing, just trying to figure out if it might be worth a looksee.
 
I know we have kicked this around before, but what are the advantages of a revocable trust? We have one DS. He will get everything. We have beneficiaries set up on virtually everything (not cars, but I think we can in MO). We have a spill over will leaving all to him. Are we missing something? We have not set him up with POA powers yet, but I see that soon.

Is it primarily to avoid probate? I know it is a state by state thing, just trying to figure out if it might be worth a looksee.
Probate is one reason. With a large estate the attorney probate fee can be greater than the cost or a trust. Trusts are generally not probated.

A trust is private, and probate estates are public info, so if privacy is desired, a trust works better.

The final reason is if there is a desire to control assets after death. This might be who gets what, or when, or how.

If these are not needed there’s no real need for a trust.
 
Probate is one reason. With a large estate the attorney probate fee can be greater than the cost or a trust. Trusts are generally not probated.

A trust is private, and probate estates are public info, so if privacy is desired, a trust works better.

The final reason is if there is a desire to control assets after death. This might be who gets what, or when, or how.

If these are not needed there’s no real need for a trust.
Thanks.
 
Here’s a table of probate fees in Florida. It applies when the court appoints a probate attorney. The fees are not mandatory and a private practice attorney will probably charge less for a simple estate. One can make arrangements or leave clear instructions regarding probate, but still, there’s lots of opportunity to spend an outrageous sum.
 

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For us, the value of the trust is in how we are handling our remaining assets. We expect to live long lives, and our children will be 60-70 years old. Our children are doing very well financially. The trust allows us to pass our assets directly to our grandchildren, bypassing our children. The restriction on the grandchildren is they cannot get the funds until they are 30 years old...and the trust handles that for us.
 
I was wondering if anyone in the midwest had a revocable trust for me and wife, will for both , warranty deed to transfer things to trust recently. I was trying to get an idea as the prices where I am seem to be all over the place. The things needed to be put in the trust are one property, some cd/s , vehicles, and some cash. any thoughts?
We had an atty prepare our revocable trust and wills back in 2017. He prepared the documents but we elected to do the legwork...more like paperwork...to re-title the house, bank and investment accounts...everything but the vehicles.

We had several meetings with the lawyer determining how the trust would operate, naming successor trustees and who had health and property Power of Attorney.

Re-titling assets was not difficult, just time consuming...mainly filling out forms, copying and including a few pages of the trust document and a few phone calls answering questions. Of course, none of the IRAs and 457 accounts were re-titled but we made sure the beneficiary list for each was accurate.

As I recall we paid ~ $2K to the lawyer.
 
If you work or worked for a big company, you might see if there is a legal perk where you pay a fixed annual fee and get free legal advice. This perk allowed us to get a living trust as well as wills done by a decent firm for the cost of a dinner out for the two of us.
 
I know we have kicked this around before, but what are the advantages of a revocable trust? We have one DS. He will get everything. We have beneficiaries set up on virtually everything (not cars, but I think we can in MO). We have a spill over will leaving all to him. Are we missing something? We have not set him up with POA powers yet, but I see that soon.

Is it primarily to avoid probate? I know it is a state by state thing, just trying to figure out if it might be worth a looksee.
how does a spill over will avoid probate? I thought it had to be in a trust to bypass probate.
 
the idea of a pour over will is that it only has to 'pour over' any assets that were not previously transferred to the trust...it also normally designates only the trust as beneficiary.

so the public doesn't know the identity of the actual beneficiaries.

imho privacy is the biggest advantage of a trust.
 
how does a spill over will avoid probate? I thought it had to be in a trust to bypass probate.

You may want to check out if you can title your house and cars TOD. You can do that I know in Minnesota, and it avoids probate.
 
how does a spill over will avoid probate? I thought it had to be in a trust to bypass probate.
The will does not avoid probate, but with everything of significant value designated POD/TOD/Beneficiary, the will only really covers the cars and other "stuff" in the house.
 
When I looked into this, a lot had changed in the last few decades. Unless you have a VERY large estate or complex family issues, you don't really need a trust.

Most states you can have a Beneficiary deed on your house & cars.
For brokerage accounts, designate a beneficiary (IRA) or TOD/POD on taxable accounts & bank accounts.
All those avoid probate.
All this can be done by you, no lawyer needed.

Most states have a "small estate probate" where your will can bypass probate if it is under a certain amount, typically $100,000 or $50,000.

It isn't difficult to be under that limit even for a $2+ million estate. Just whatever happens to be in your local bank checking account, if you don't had a TOD on that.
 
The problem, like I am going through now, is on benificary accounts , some places take time to process the transfer of assets. I have been waiting for mogan stanley to transfer funds since the end of February. They have all needed documents, they are just dragging thier feet. I belive they said they are waiting for the estate to clear probate, even though the accounts have named benificarys. This is in case the estate owes more then it has. If that happens they said the money needs to come out of the other accounts.

With a trust, you have to drop off a copy to the bank or financial office beforehand. This way the transfer is immediate upon proof of a death certificate. you trustees are listed in the trust. Along with there information. Other benifits are if you have minor children and want them to be taken care of if you die early. So, I have provisions to pay off college, disburse money as needed for upkeed and well being and lump sums to be paid at certian milestones. In NJ I don't think you can TOD on the deed to a property.
 
I may have missed but I do recall anyone pointing out the benefit of empowering a designated party of your choice in case of disability or inability to manage your assets. Think severe accident or medical stroke that leaves you alive but materially impaired
 
I may have missed but I do recall anyone pointing out the benefit of empowering a designated party of your choice in case of disability or inability to manage your assets. Think severe accident or medical stroke that leaves you alive but materially impaired
This is a good reason for a trust, because you can also name a Trust Protector who can fire a trustee if they are not acting in the best interest of the beneficiaries. Ours is our attorney.
If there are multiple properties in different states involved, rather than go through probate in multiple states, a trust can transfer or sell properties in the various states without probate. We have property in three states, so it was a no brainer for us.
 
I have pod's on my cd's, ira, and bank accounts. In Iowa they do not have a deed that you can tod. same with cars. These are the reason that I am looking at a trust for my one property and then personal property, like my house and cars. I read in a previous post by slim11 that he was having problems with a pod on an account. anyone else here that has experienced long wait times to have access to money left to you as a pod? just curious to see how common of a problem it is or if his is just the exception. thanks
 
I believe Iowa has in inheritance tax like where I live in Pennsylvania. Beneficiaries are required to pay this. The amount depends on the relationship to the deceased.
 
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