Page 35 - Ultimate Guide to Estate Planning
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their creditors would have access to, including
ex-spouses? Likely not, but again, that is the
plan most estate planning lawyers implement.
You should strive to reproduce helping them in
the same exact manner as if you were alive and
able to help them. These triggers can increase
incrementally too.
Most of the time, when people ask about the
cost, they’re talking about the initial cost of
creation and not the total costs associated with
the decision. From an initial cost of creation
standpoint, if you are committed to doing a
simple will, you should expect to pay between
$1000 and $3500. If you want to avoid the
probate costs and do a revocable living trust,
you should expect to pay $2750 at a reasonable
minimum, and that is just for lump-sum
distributions. Be extremely careful about
spending less than the fees mentioned above as
it could be an indication that the person
performing the services is not well qualified, or
is more interested in collecting attorney fees in
probate. If you want to incorporate some of the
values-based triggering events or a more
holistic method of enhancing the lives of your
loved ones in your revocable trust (as opposed
to a cold transfer of assets), you should expect
to pay twice as much or more.
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