Is an affidavit of execution required as part of wrapping things up?
Let us know how it works out when it becomes effective won’t you?
Filling in a few boxes in an online form, printing out the results and signing it in front of witnesses is incredibly easy. Having the resulting document receive probate and be used to successfully divvy up your estate may not be. And it’s far too late for you to fix things personally when the flaws become apparent.
In my state, just a form and notarized is an invalid will. In my state, among other things, you need two witnesses to the will.
As an attorney, I think my firm has made more money off of poorly written do it yourself wills than we’ve ever made from drafting wills*.
- Slight exaggeration, but litigation is very expensive, and some of those poorly written do it yourself wills really mucked things up. Throw in some unhappy theirs who are looking to fight, and the costs can get ridiculous very fast.
As an alternative you can hire the same attorney as Seward Johnson did. That will was still being contested 12 years after his death with several persons who were not named as beneficiaries getting huge settlements that were not in the will.
Which state is that?
To be frank, if you have significant assets, of course you need a will, done by a lawyer. But all most of us have is some furniture, some 2 year old electronics, a 5 year old car, and some bills.
For most of us, our biggest assets are our 401k (which is easy to leave to a bene) and a life insurance policy, and you sure as fuck dont need a lawyer to fill out the line which sez “Name of beneficiary” on that.
Other than those two assets most Americans are insolvent.
What are you gonna probate there? Your real legal advice is for someone to spend a $1000 in legal fees for that estate? Really? :dubious:
Now, like I said- if you have significant assets or real property, you do need the services of a lawyer. But I helped my dad draw up the paperwork, making me sole heir (he had no other relatives) and had him just add me in as bene on all his accounts.
Other than a worthless piece of crap desert land (which is that real estate I mentioned) everything went smooth.
Incidentally, my will is a simple holographic will. *On the advice of my attorney. *
Many locations have community education classes that last 2-4 evenings, about How to write your own will. Usual cost is around $325-$50. Generally taught by a lawyer with experience in estate law. They will teach you something about wills, help you write one, and review & correct your draft will. And also advise you to see a lawyer when your situation requires it.
I did this years ago, and produced a very serviceable will.
But I’m single, no dependents, only a brother & sister as immediate family members, and mainly easily accessible assets. A rather simple situation for q will.
A will isn’t the only option BTW. You can also create a revocable trust, transfer your assets to the trust and administer them. You just have to make sure that someone else is the beneficiary otherwise it won’t be valid.
You will probably need a lawyer for this but the advantage is that there are no probate issues since there is nothing to probate.
That’s more than a lot of lawyers charge for drafting a simple will in the first place.
Typo.
Should have said $25-$50.
Many/most lawyers charge a flat fee for preparing a will, and it’s a lot less than $1000. If you look around, I’d wager you can find one who’ll do it for under $200 in most places.
What are you going to probate? Unpaid debts, taxes, any property not controlled by a beneficiary assignment. The OP is from NC, where every estate is required to go through the probate process in the courts. There are court fees and filing requirements, and a small estate can get eaten up pretty quickly. That’s why one prepares.
You can do a will yourself, or even choose not to have one, and in some cases things will work out okay. But I think folks should be advised that saving a couple hundred dollars today is likely to cost a lot more than that later.
If one’s kids are minors, inheriting money or property outright can sometimes result in complications and court visits continuing until they reach majority, and there are estate-planning steps one can take in some circumstances to reduce that hassle. Particularly if one has very young children, there may be value in a legal consultation even over assets that pass without probate.
Disclaimer: I am not anyone’s lawyer here. I do not do estate planning. Nothing in this post constitutes legal advice or creates a lawyer-client relationship. This is just an anonymous comment.
I am not your lawyer, this is not legal advice. If you don’t have a great deal of assets call several lawyers and get general ideas of costs because it could be as simple as filling out a form, but a form they know the nuances of. Small town lawyers that are kind of jack-of-all-trades lawyers are great for handling simple wills.
Once you get into estate taxes, trusts, trying to disinherit an heir, definitely consult a higher-end estate and probate lawyer. I have heard of Legal Zoom forms, but if it’s something as simple as filling out a form, it’s always nice to have the added protection of actual legal advice that shouldn’t cost much more.
Plus your heirs can’t sue Legal Zoom if the will is jacked.
Well, Ok, how do you find a lawyer? I too need to set up a will, and mine is even easier than the OP’s, but I’d prefer to go through a lawyer. I mean, do I just go through the phone book, or what? I’d rather not pay a lot.
First, ask friends and family members for recommendations. Then try www.martindale.com, and click through the ‘find a lawyer’ section. Put in your city and state and in practice areas look for wills/probate/estate. You’ll probablyget a ton of results. If your needs are not complex avoid big firms and look for someone that handles other matters too. If all they do is probate/estate stuff they are likely to be high dollar.
If rated, look for an ‘av’ rating. Then maybe look at the firm website, google for negative reviews, and check the state bar website for complaints. Compile your list and call. You won’t likely get to talk to the lawyer, but can possibly get an idea as to cost although you’ll get a shit ton of disclaimers.
Also, your state bar website might be a better place to start if they have a ‘find a lawyer’ option based on practice areas. As I recall Martindale requires payment to be listed and there may be some great lawyers that aren’t listed on Martindale.
I just went on my state bar website and on the top in big letters it says:
“We do not list attorneys in: Albany, Bronx, Brooklyn, Broome, Dutchess, Erie, Monroe, Nassau, New York, Onondaga, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Sullivan, nor Westchester”
Whaaaaaaat?! I live in Albany.
This group looks legit, but I would double check.
Apparently, New York has some sort of attorney referral service, not a simple listing of lawyers and practice areas. Martindale lists 17 in Albany. Some are clearly high-end some seem like they’d be good to call for a simple will. Also, I saw at least 1 bv’ rating, but that isn’t at all bad either. Good luck.
Yes, see a skilled probate lawyer. A (relatively) little investment now will avoid a lot of problems for your executor and heirs after you’ve snuffed it.
In my law school, this course was called “Stiffs and Gifts.”