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Originally Posted by Rainger99
I have spoken to a few attorneys about estate planning and trying to keep costs down such as legal fees; court fees; executor fees; trustee fees; etc. My primary assets are my house, my Fidelity accounts, my Vanguard accounts, and two small checking accounts. That is about 98% of my assets.
Some of them tell me that a living trust is the way to go; others say that probate is a way to go; and others say that I should set up a TOD or POD for the Fidelity, Vanguard, and checking accounts because this will bypass probate. I have been told that if you go through probate, the lawyers will take about 5% of your entire estate. Other people have told me that if you use a living trust, that the lawyers will still take a sizeable portion of your entire estate - but less than 5%
I am more confused now than I was before I started talking to the lawyers. Can someone who has had the actual experience of going through probate or using a living trust or using TOD or POD describe how the process actually works? What were the general costs or fees involved? How long was the process? How difficult was it? Did you have to hire a lawyer? Were the attorney or trustee fees based on the entire value of the estate - or were you able to reduce the amount of the estate for attorney or trustee fees? Thanks.
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A cardinal rule is that there is no one size fits all answer to estate planning. There are lots of possible approaches that are best tailored to the individual situation.
Personally, I think you should select a lawyer you are very comfortable with and trust, and generally rely on them, and not get too distracted by others. Of course, use due diligence in selecting and vetting a lawyer. You probably want an experienced estate planning specialist, and trusted friends might have recommendations. Don't get hung up about having to pay a lawyer. You want a good estate plan that works for you and, very importantly, for your heirs. It may be very simple, and it may not. In any event, the lawyer's time and advice will not be free, and don't expect it to be. Also, a good estate planning lawyer will make sure you attend to other important documents -- such as durable powers of attorney, end of life directions, etc. that may be appropriate.
As for personal experience, my wife and I have opted for personal revocable trusts in order to make the handling of our estates as easy as possible on our spouse and/or children after our death and during what will be a difficult time (one of our overriding considerations), and to minimize probate expenses if possible.
Our experience with trusts is that they are a bit tedious to set up, and real estate and financial accounts must be moved into trust if no other good ownership or transfer on death options are practical or do not achieve what you want for after-death division. Trusts cost us several thousand dollars, but they are easy to modify or amend or terminate if you want to, and we have changed ours several times as circumstances changed.
Probate of my mother in law's simple estate cost 3-4K and was not complicated. The executor divided her assets exactly as she provided in her will, leaving no room for dispute. A trust would have been easier. Joint ownership and transfer on death options for her assets were not really practical for personal family reasons.
Good luck on addressing your concerns.