I had mine re-done about 8 or so years ago (changed beneficiaries), and just to change a couple names cost $500.
Lawyer fees for a will
- Thread starter OPButtrey
- Start date
Each jurisdiction has ranges of probate attorney fees. Some people use their estate lawyer to draft a will as part of the deal or for a small fee. In my experience, real estate attorneys charge anywhere from $200 to $1,000 for standard wills. I work as a military lawyer, like https://ucmjdefense.com/military-se...t-explained-by-a-military-defense-lawyer.html, so wills and probate issues are not my specialty. I can speak from the word of my colleagues. FYI, wills are written not only by older people, but by younger people as well, so don't write yourself off.
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CycloneFanatic has a sponsorship from Hope Woods for a Will in a Day. Might be worth looking into if you're in the DSM metro.
My wife and her brother are about to go through a mess over a will. Her dad passed and told them specifically what they were getting. Well over a year later, they just found out their stepmom had done absolutely nothing towards executing the will (and didn't see what the problem was).
I work in the legal industry, specifically in Family Law and I think the cost is a consideration, but getting it done properly is worth it. You‘re family is important and taking the time to find someone who suits you is key. Good on you for getting this taken care of now.
Yep, they are giving her a week to present a plan to get this done, and if that doesn't happen, they'll hire an attorney to file for probate.
I'm not sure of the situation, but if the terms of the will are clear, there really shouldn't be too much of a mess. Probate may be in order if the executor fails to do their duty.
*Edit* - I was typing the very same thing that you responded to BC about.
For a basic will it shouldn't be more than $500.00. Its all going to depend on how complex your estate is and exactly who your hoping to pass your assets onto.
He told the kids what they were getting in the presence of the stepmom, but they haven't seen the will (they just requested a copy). Hopefully the will clearly states the same as they were told.
UUUUhhhhhh........that doesn't sound good. Generally the attorney will send them to each person associated with the will. Either they were left out or the step-mom hasn't even contacted an attorney.
Executors get to charge 2% for their work (if they choose to, I didn't for my mom's). Attorneys will charge either a percent or hourly. If the estate is 1MM or more, go hourly and do the lions share of work yourself. If it is under 1MM, find a percentage attorney and let them do all the leg work. Just because an attorney writes the will doesn't mean they have to the one to open it.
The 2% is sometimes why people will fight to remain executor pretty hard. Why bank officers are more than happy to be the executor for a widow or an heirless farmer. They can really charge bank on it for minimal work.
Her attorney is a bit of a clown from everything we've read about him, and she's the type to take 2 months to make a decision on paint color. She said he told her that she didn't have to do probate (which I believe is incorrect), but it also wouldn't surprise me if she never talked to him. Good news is that she is not disputing what they are supposed to get.
If the assets are already assigned to people, you can skip probate. The county will take 0.2% of the estate in fees. Percentage attorneys should include that in their percentage.
My BIL insisted on doing one of those even though what he wanted was totally covered by intestate statute. Then called my husband for hours at a time with questions even though again, what he wanted already covered by state law.
We only got wills when we got a kid and then we wanted a better structured trust. But that was in 1990 and our two wills cost us $80 lol.
I am a client of Hope Wood (prior to the CF partnership). It was a REALLY painless process and she was extremely accommodative to some unique requests we have in our family planning.
I highly recommend her services. I have recommended her to serval people and have yet to hear anything negative.
Also, please take care of your estates. My wife's family is still cleaning up the estate of her family member who passed years ago. Lawyer fees have drained about 20% of the estate and it has caused unnecessary division. Be responsible and take care of it so your family members can remember the joy you brought them and not the continued headaches you still provide.
I highly recommend her services. I have recommended her to serval people and have yet to hear anything negative.
Also, please take care of your estates. My wife's family is still cleaning up the estate of her family member who passed years ago. Lawyer fees have drained about 20% of the estate and it has caused unnecessary division. Be responsible and take care of it so your family members can remember the joy you brought them and not the continued headaches you still provide.
I need to update ours. Our third kid is covered by future children from this union. I also don’t want my in-laws to raise him. My sister and our oldest would be best.
Also at the time, my wife was told her parents were equally dividing stuff so we had inherited stuff go to a life estate but only owned by the kids. When the FIL died, turned out to be about an 88/6/6 split in favor of her bro and the MIL thinks it’s fine so the wife gets enough to have a nice car from.
Sounds about right, it's been awhile since we created ours but most law firms pretty much have a standard document for a living will and testament on file they can plug in your names and make slight changes to at your direction. Was a pretty simple process when we did it after we had our 1st born and I don't recall the exact amount we paid but seemed like only a couple hundred dollars or so.
One of my brothers and his wife couldn’t have kids so the other siblings all were leaving the kids to them. Some massive disaster and they would have had 24 kids. But all are now adults so they are off the hook.
