Estate Planning includes Last Will and Testament, Power of Attorney, Designation of Healthcare Surrogate, and HIPAA Waiver. Some clients prefer to make a Revocable Living Trust, which includes something called a Pour-Over Will, for any items that for some reason were not titled in the Trust. We can help you either way, but since we are not Attorneys, we cannot advise if you should choose a Last Will and Testament or a Living Trust. Only an Attorney can provide you with legal advice, however, nothing stops you from Googling about the subject and making such determination yourself.

We can assist you with legal document preparation for individual Estate Planning documents, or you can choose one of our popular packages and save even more!

If you pass away without a Will in place, your estate will be subject to Florida’s “Rules of Intestate Succession”, which may not necessarily be what you wanted. Are you married, but have children from a former marriage? If the answer is Yes, then your spouse only receives 50% of your estate, according to these Rules. Your children from a former marriage will receive the other 50%. This becomes especially complicated when Real Estate is involved, because your spouse would receive either an undivided one-half interest in your home, or, a Life Estate, allowing them to live in the home for the rest of their life, with your children becoming “remaindermen”.

There are ways to avoid Probate entirely. Some people mistakenly believe that having a Trust avoids Probate. Technically, it does, but a Trust still needs to be administered after the last Trustee passes away, and Trust Administration is not all that different from Probate Administration. Both can cost your beneficiaries a great deal of money. The standard (by Florida Law) rate for Probate Administration is 3% of the value of the estate, and for Trust Administration, it’s 2.25%. Many Attorneys charge an hourly rate which can greatly exceed these statutory rates.

You can avoid this entirely by either having nothing solely in your own name, or by designating a beneficiary or beneficiaries. If you have a spouse, you can title your home or car as “Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship”. That means that if one spouse passes away, the other spouse comes to own the house and car without having to go through Probate. If you do not have a spouse, but have children, you can also title your home or car as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship. Another option for a house is a Lady Bird deed, which we can also prepare for you. Please visit our section for Real Estate Deeds for more information and pricing. The Lady Bird deed gives you a Life Estate, meaning that you live in the house for the rest of your life, and when you do pass away, it goes to your beneficiary outside of Probate. A Lady Bird deed can be written to give you the full right to sell your property during your lifetime, without the permission of the beneficiary, if you choose to do so. Some Attorneys prepare Lady Bird deeds all the time, however, other Attorneys frown upon Lady Bird deeds. We are not Attorneys and cannot give you legal advice, such as, is a Lady Bird deed right for my particular circumstance? However, nothing prevents you from asking Mrs. Google for the pro’s and con’s of a Lady Bird deed. Bank and financial accounts allow you to designate a beneficiary for each account. Simply consult with your bank or brokerage and ask them about it. Following these simple steps can help your loved ones avoid the lengthy delays and costly expenses of Probate or Trust Administration!

Last Will & Testament: Allows you to name a Personal Representative for your Estate, and who you want to be your beneficiaries. Our price is $99.

Power of Attorney: Allows you to name a person and an alternate to make decisions for you and write checks or make payments, as well as apply for benefits. Our price is $99.

Designation of Healthcare Surrogate: Similar to a Power of Attorney, but for medical decisions. Our price is $79.

HIPAA Waiver: Allows your doctors to speak with who you designate. Our price is $79.

Complete Package of the above 4 documents. Our price is $299, a savings of $57 versus ordering the documents individually. For married couples ordering at the same time, a total of all 8 documents for only $499.

Revocable Trust: Allows you to place your property and accounts in the name of the Trust. The successor trustee does not have to administer the Trust, avoiding Probate. The successor trustee can then “amend” the Trust to name a new successor trustee, if applicable. Our price for single person or married couple is $399 and includes a Pour-Over Will. If you choose this package we will add a Designation of Healthcare Surrogate and HIPAA Waiver at a 50% discount off our regular price. If you need to amend the Trust, the cost for an amendment is $99.

Disclaimer: We are not Attorneys and therefore cannot provide you with legal advice. If you require legal advice, you must contact an Attorney. We can provide you with legal information, that is generally available to the public.