What to Know About Fees for Estate Planning Services

There are a variety of reasons why people tend to put off getting their estate planning done. For some, it’s that they are too uncomfortable considering their own mortality and making decisions about what happens to their belongings after their death. For others, it’s that they do not want (or are not able) to invest the money into preparing their estate plan.

If you’ve been wondering what to expect regarding fees for estate planning services, here’s some information you may find useful.

Expected costs

Of course, every law firm charges different prices for their services. Also, the needs of each client are unique, so one client’s bill may be different from the next, even with similar, but unique, documents.  In addition, some attorney’s charge hourly fees and some charge flat rates.

Estate planning packages can vary widely, depending on what exactly you’re looking to accomplish and the complexity of your estate. Many estate planning packages these days include living trusts for probate avoidance. These trusts are more complicated to set up than wills, but they also provide many more benefits to the testator. Also, because retirement plans like a 401k or an IRA and life insurance are such an important part of the average person’s estate, most estate plans require careful review and careful drafting of beneficiary designations for those plans.

Even if your initial estate plan is based upon a flat fee, some attorneys will also charge hourly fees if your situation requires a certain degree of ongoing legal support. For example, once your estate plan is complete, you may receive hourly charges for any modifications you go back and have your attorney make for you, at any point in the future.

We recommend being direct in asking about fees before working with a lawyer. Any attorney will understand that the fees are a big part of the consideration for you as you prepare to create an estate plan, and should be willing to be completely upfront with you about their fee schedules.

For more information about fees for estate planning services, contact an experienced Tampa, FL estate planning attorney at BaumannKangas Estate Law.