Is there a way to create a legally binding living trust without lawyers. Are copied Living Trust forms legal?
Sunday, January 31st, 2010 at
10:44 pm
Does the State of California provide living trust forms? Why must I pay a lawyer crazy fees to fill out standard forms?
Filed under: Retirement Planning
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
I am with you on this one, but it all depends really on who you ask…
Nolo Press says:
“You may assume that paying $1,000 or more for the assistance of a professional means you’ll receive good value — you get what you pay for, right? Maybe not. If you are willing to invest a couple of hours of your time using a top quality self-help resource, you may end up with a better result than you would achieve with many lawyers.”
“Non-lawyer living trust companies (commonly referred to as trust mills by attorneys who hate their competition) typically come in a few hundred dollars cheaper than attorneys.”
“If you are willing to do it yourself, with a self-help aid such as those offered by Nolo and other publishers, it will cost you about $30 for a book or $50 for software.”
Words of warning from the conglomerate monopoly known as the State Bar of California:
“A qualified estate planning lawyer can help you prepare your living trust, as well as a will and other estate planning documents.”
“While other professionals and business representatives may be involved in your estate planning, a living trust is a legal document, which should be prepared by a qualified lawyer.”
“Consult with a lawyer or other financial advisor who is knowledgeable in estate planning, and who is not trying to sell a product which may be unnecessary-before considering a living trust or any other estate or financial planning document or service.”
*/End of Line.
Get a kit down at staples. its $35 i think. You still have to file it at the county register-recorder’s office for whatever their fee is. they don’t care if the pages are copied. what they do care about is your identity, that the information is accurate, and pages are notarized if necessary.
And there IS no such thing as a standard form which is why even if you fill out the staples form, it couldn’t hurt to pay an attorney to review them after you’ve done most of the work. maybe this is the less expensive, but still safe, medium.
good luck!
(now gimme my ten points for a best answer)