What to Expect
Whether you are looking to grow and protect your family, your business or both, we know legal issues can be daunting. Yet we also know, as famously quoted by Benjamin Franklin, that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Unlike medical tragedies, which are typically unexpected, legal tragedies can often be completely prevented or at least their damage minimized or eliminated.
We are here to provide you with clarity. We will educate and shepherd you through the process with as much support as you need. This is why, provided you are willing to do some homework, we are happy to meet with you for a consultation to discuss your concerns and help identify your exact needs. Even while handling the details for you, we remain focused on the forest through the trees - ensuring that you feel confident and secure in your decisions.
How Much Does An Estate Plan Cost?
As you can imagine, we get the question “how much should my estate plan cost” quite frequently. And, it’s a good question that I want to answer for you as clearly as I can, given that there is not a “one-size fits all solution” for every family, and I would run quickly away from any lawyer who can tell you exactly what your plan would cost via email or over the phone, without a comprehensive discovery process. You see, this is exactly why most estate plans fail. Families shop around based on price (because they don’t know any other way to shop for an estate plan), and end up with a traditional plan, which is a set of documents that do not actually work when the family needs them.
In the meantime, here’s what I can assure you:
We've priced our estate planning for you and your family at the intersection of affordability and effectiveness.
We start all of our plans with an Estate Planning Session, which is designed to ensure that no matter what happens, none of your hard-earned assets will be lost to the State Department of Unclaimed Property, when something happens to you.
Even if you never do any planning with us, the preparation alone for this session alone is a hugely valuable process for you and your family, because you will create a full inventory of your assets and ensure your family knows what you have.
Then, when we meet in person, we will review everything you own, and discuss everyone you love and your family dynamics, and you will understand exactly what would happen to everything you own and everyone you love, in the event of your death or incapacity.
If you do not have a plan, we will cover the plan the State has for you. If you do have a plan, we will review your current plan with you. (We call this an Estate Plan Review and Check-up). If you are not happy with your current plan (or the plan the State has for you), you will tell us what you would want to change, and we will look at the most effective, efficient and affordable way to achieve your goals.
Here’s the most important part for you to know about this: you will be making informed, educated, empowered decisions for the people you love, not just shopping around based on price. And the best part is that as part of this process, you will actually choose your own fee based on your budget and the planning options that are most important to you and your family. There truly is no one size fits all choice.
We have created a process, though, to educate you quickly and effectively so that you can make empowered, informed choices about what you want for the people you love, so that you aren't simply choosing the cheapest option because you don't have any other basis for making your decisions. Okay, now having said all that, you probably want to at least know a range of what estate planning will cost.
Our three levels of planning for a comprehensive plan (or update of your existing plan) range between $1,500 for a single person up through $6,500+ for a married couple with minor children who are interested in a complex estate plan with multiple-level-trusts. Cost depends on the choices you make during the Life and Legacy Planning Session.
We are happy to offer the following discounts:
Bundled Service Discount: If you are interested in more than one service, such as an estate plan and a small business plan, you will receive 10% off both services.
Veteran Discount: If you or your spouse is a veteran, you will receive a 10% discount.
Estate Planning Session
Embarking on the estate planning process is a critical step to protecting your family and your assets. We understand the doubt, anxiety and fear that accompanies contemplating your mortality and the potential of incapacitation. Often people avoid estate planning because of this trepidation or because they are unsure about how to navigate making the best decisions. Rest assured your decisions will be 100% better than what the state will decide if you do nothing. And you can always make adjustments to your documents as situations and circumstances change.
Your initial Estate Planning Session will be a working meeting that has two purposes:
1. To educate you about estate planning law and what would happen if you became incapacitated or died with your current (or no) estate plan in place; and
2. To determine whether there is a good fit for a working relationship between us.
Estate Planning Questionnaire
In preparation for your Planning Session, you’ll need to complete a Questionnaire designed to help you focus on the important information and questions that are necessary to get your legal and financial affairs organized. Even if you choose not to use our service, this Assessment process will provide you with a valuable resource moving forward. As of 2016, there was over $4.5 billion in unclaimed tangible and intangible property that resides with the State of New Jersey from assets that have been abandoned. This largely due to loved ones not knowing about certain bank/investment accounts or other assets. Similarly, many life insurance policies are never collected upon because they are unknown.
Action Steps:
- Schedule an Estate Planning Session
- We will forward you the Questionnaire. Fill in as much information as you can.
- Return the Questionnaire to us along with any existing plan documents that you already have at least 7 days before our Session.
We look forward to working with you!