Simple, straightforward question- what software have you used, and what do you like about it?
Slight hijack, but:
What’s the best software to use for making a will? A lawyer.
Seriously, about half the Wills cases I studied in law school dealt with people who’d tried to write their own wills from forms (which is all the software does), and botched it. The rest were people who died intestate.
Wills are tricky- laws vary from state to state, and Ford knows if the yum-cha will software you bought actually has the correct, up-to-date law for your jurisdiction. If you actually want to make sure that your estate goes where you want it to go when you die, hire a lawyer. At the risk of sounding a smartass, I’d suggest that if you can’t afford a lawyer to draft your will, it’s unlikely that your estate is big enough to actually worry about.
The software is going to cost about $40. For $100, you can go to a lawyer and not only get your will made, but also get your health care proxy and durable power of attorney, if you want them. I’d agree with Mr. Excellent: go to an actual lawyer. It’s not that much more expensive, really.
I know you think you’re helping, and you may have some valid points, but guess what? I HAVE gone through a lawyer (a very reputable one, I should note- NOT Jacoby & Myers or I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-A-Law-Firm), one who charged a LOT more than $100.00, and who did an absolutely shitty job, producing a sloppy document replete with numerous spelling errors and wrongly phrased clauses.
MAYBE the answer is to wave bye byt to the money I’ve already spent and get a better lawyer, but if there’s a decent software package that would let me do the task myself, I’m now inclined to try that.
Microsoft Word is what I’d use! Jejejeje!!!
Seriously. Also, isn’t J&M a PI shop? I’d hope you wouldn’t use them for wills.
No, that’s not a plug. That’s what I used.
The OP is directed to the wrong people. You shouldn’t be asking this question of people who used software and are still with us - they don’t know yet how well the software worked.
The question should be directed to the surviving family members of someone who died having made a will with software. They’re the ones who can tell you how well the software worked.
I didn’t use software for a will, but I used software to write a lease (I was the landlord). I found out that the lease did not comply with the laws in my jurisdiction and I had to hire a lawyer anyway. I will never use software for legal documents again.
Good point. What a great business to be in. You can sell a shitty product and nobody who buys it will ever know.
Microsoft Word and a decent attorney (I married one).
Sounds expensive!
Apple’s iBequeath.
::d&r::
I agree an attorney should be your first choice.
If you absolutely must do it yourself, forget the software, buy a book from NOLO.
I just want to stress that lawyers are a far form perfect solution here. We did the lawyer thing for a will years ago. We had very straightforward things. He screwed it up. (Including getting names wrong. It was that bad.) Had to get it fixed. He then tried to bill us extra for the added time. No way were we going to pay for that!
So from then on it’s just taking that will and updating it. I’m more worried that the original is screwed up in some way that we don’t see than the changes are bad.
It is not a situation where DIY wills are 100% bad and lawyers are 100% good. Very, very far from it.
No, but if you are going to DIY, then you have to know how to correctly DIY. I’ve had to explain to a few clients just why their parents’/siblings’/grandparents’/etc. DIY wills are invalid; and it is never fun.
I’ll add that after examining MrGoodCat’s link, I doubt that the software he is promoting would produce an valid will in my jurisdiction. Caveat emptor.
We had a lawyer make out his will and POA forms and when it came time to take over his care (POA) and later his estate (executor) I was not very satisfited with the same attorneys performance and help. So I am looking for software to do this myself. No attorneys I have met so far are prepared AT ALL for dealing with customers. They start with a clean sheet of paper for each client. No checklists to allow an semi-intelligent customer to select what they want. How do these guys stay in business if it weren’t for sites like this that encourage people to keep going back to the crooks!
Slight hijack, but what are some of the things that can go wrong with wills?
Lets see:
Failing to meet the formal requirements for a valid will.
Rendered invalid by subsequent events (such as marriage).
Gifts void for uncertainty, or that lapse or adeem.
Failing to meet a jurisdictions requirements for taking care of heirs.
Trust clauses that breach the arcane rules about perpetuities and are therefore void. Questions raised about testamentary capacity (at least a lawyer can testify you understood what you were doing when making the will).
I’m sure others will add ot this list. Ideally a properly-prepared will ensures that everyone knows what happens with your stuff after you die so there are no court challenges to eat up your estate.
I’m just glad I got mine done before I
What typically happens in that case? Tiny error means will is thrown out and it’s just like there’s no will at all? Or do the best to follow the will as intended? Something else?