Author Topic: Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY  (Read 1168 times)

RWTL

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Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY
« on: August 13, 2019, 05:30:30 PM »
Anyone have experience setting up a Living Trust via Legal Zoom or other online option?  Is this something you really need an attorney for or can this be done on your own without too many pitfalls?


legalstache

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Re: Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY
« Reply #1 on: August 14, 2019, 11:48:46 AM »
I'm a lawyer but don't have particular experience setting up living trusts or using Legal Zoom. I have been involved in a lot of estate/trust/probate litigation, though. I'll just chime in to say that if you have a crappy estate planning document (drafted by an attorney or otherwise), often its your heirs/beneficiaries who have to deal with the legal and financial consequences of that. So, I'd just say keep those people in mind as you set something like this up, as they may have to deal with any fallout.

Sibley

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Re: Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY
« Reply #2 on: August 14, 2019, 12:09:05 PM »
Unless you're an attorney who does estate planning regularly, not an DIY-able thing. There are too many examples of screwing it up which will have some pretty bad consequences.

Now, figuring out how to optimize the cost is 100% ok. I was able to sign up for the Legal benefit through my employer and got everything done for the premiums of around $250 for year.

RWTL

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Re: Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY
« Reply #3 on: August 14, 2019, 02:54:46 PM »
I appreciate the comments.  Thanks

socaso

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Re: Living Trust - To DIY or Not to DIY
« Reply #4 on: August 14, 2019, 04:56:48 PM »
I am not an attorney but I know one who does business law and he told me that he has spent a lot of time correcting legal documents prepared by Legal Zoom and he advised people not to use them. My husband and I had our will and a trust for our child prepared by local attorneys and I think we paid about $2500 for all three documents. They did the documents separately and told us there would likely be no need to have them completely redone in the future because even if we divorce the beneficiary's or executors could be change easily just by updating them in the documents and that would likely only cost a couple of hundred dollars.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!