What Probate Attorneys Don’t Want You to Know
Follow The Money I’m seeing more attorneys these days at least reference a revocable living trust when speaking with their clients if they are asked about estate planning options. However, it is still the norm if clients call up a law office and ask to get a Will done that attorneys will just go through […]
My Mom is on Her Deathbed… What Do I Do?
No Will – No Beneficiary Unfortunately, many people leave planning their estate to the last minute, or they never make a plan at all. In this edition, Jeff examines options and advice from other attorneys to a son on Reddit trying to frantically get his mother’s wishes in place as she lies on her deathbed. […]
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate Probate costs a lot. When given the statistics, my clients are usually appalled that their estates going through the probate court system would cost so much. On average, the probate court system will eat up about 4-10% of an estate. Many states allow a standard 5% fee for an executor or administrator, but in […]
But The Will Says …
The Lasts Will & Testament When it comes to a Last Will and Testament, it only controls what ends up in probate. This review of a Reddit thread in r/estateplanning makes it clear that a Will does NOT control everything. In this post, Jeff is reacting to a post from Reddit R/Estate Planning. This is […]
Should I do a Will or Trust
This question of a will or trust comes up all of the time when it comes to estate planning. Unfortunately, many attorneys and other professionals try to cram and squish this very subjective square peg into an objective round hole with a sledgehammer. The fact is that there is no simple “one-size-fits-all” number answer to […]
The Probate Red Tape Estate
The Probate Red Tape Process Explained Ever since my grandfather passed on and my grandmother had to deal with a year and a half of uncertainty, convoluted procedures, and legal bills, I made it my mission to find ways for my clients to avoid the probate red tape. But not only did I want to […]
Schedule A is Missing
You know a plan is broken into a thousand-piece puzzle when the pages of the trust were taken out of the binder, put back out of order, and some pages are missing. But what happens when the “all-important” (sarcasm inserted here) Schedule A is one of those missing pages? It turns out in California that […]
I Want a Revocable Living Trust
I Want a Revocable Living Trust… Do I Need a Will? “Well, if you have a Revocable Living Trust, don’t you also need a Will?” the other attorney asked. “Yeah, you need a Will,” I responded. “Ah ha!” the other attorney exclaimed as if he has just made some profound and overriding point to justify […]
How Much Is An Estate Plan?
When approaching something new and unfamiliar, people tend to think of things like estate planning in the simplest terms possible. However, it’s not like going to the grocery store to buy a gallon of milk where there may be some small differences, but by and large, there is not much of a price difference and […]
Declare Independence From Probate
I wrote this blog back on Independence Day, but I wanted to share it with everyone. I Want You to Declare Independence From Probate I know it sounds like a stretch to compare our country’s independence to estate planning, but hear me out on this. In 1776, our colonial leaders decided they didn’t want government […]