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Do you have a large estate or an interest in more advanced estate planning tools like trusts?

If your estate equals or exceeds a value of $1 million, or needs special estate planning tools like trusts, it may be best to talk with an attorney.
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Our Estate Planning Package includes a Last Will & Testament, Health Care Directive & Living Will, and Financial Power of Attorney to cover all of your basic estate planning needs.
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Do you have a spouse with similar needs?

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Do you have minor children?

If you have minor children, you will want to name a guardian for them.
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Do you have pets?

If you have a pet or pets, you will want to name someone to care for them.
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Do you want to leave gifts to people or a charity?

If you want to give items or money to people or charities, you will want to make what are known as “specific gifts.”
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Do you own a business?

If you own a business or a share of a business, you will want to plan for succession of ownership.
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Do you want to decide how your property is distributed when you pass away?

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Do you want someone to handle your health care decisions if you are unable?

In case you are incapacitated, you will want to list your health care preferences and name someone to handle your health care decisions.
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Do you want someone to handle your health care decisions if you are unable?

In case you are incapacitated, you will want to list your health care preferences and name someone to handle your health care decisions.
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Do you have a spouse with similar needs?

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Do you have a spouse with similar needs?

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Our directory of experienced, local attorneys can help you with circumstances such as:
What’s included:
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  • Caring for children with special needs
  • Establishing and maintaining trusts
  • …and any other concerns you have!
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Estate Planning Package

For one person

$135
What’s included:
  • Last will and testament
  • Health care directive & living will
  • Financial power of attorney
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • A comprehensive plan — for less
  • Free changes and revisions for up to one year after purchase
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Financial Power of Attorney

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$39
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  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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Health Care Directive & Living Will

For One Person

$39
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase
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Last Will and Testament

For One Person

$79
What’s included:
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  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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Estate Planning Package

For two people

$255
What’s included:
  • Two wills, health care directives & living wills, and financial powers of attorney
  • Two free HIPAA release forms
  • You and your loved one create your own estate plans tailored to your individual needs
  • Attorney-approved documents customized to your state’s laws
  • Free changes and revisions for up to one year after purchase
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Financial Power of Attorney

For two people

$78
What’s included:
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  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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Health Care Directive & Living Will

For Two People

$78
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase
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Last Will and Testament

For Two People

$149
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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Health Care Directive & Living Will + Financial Power of Attorney

For one person

$78
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase
  • A financial power of attorney that’s tailored to your needs
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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Last Will and Testament + Financial Power of Attorney

For one person

$118
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
  • A financial power of attorney that’s tailored to your needs
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Last Will and Testament + Health Care Directive & Living Will

For One Person

$118
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase
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Health Care Directive & Living Will + Financial Power of Attorney

For two people

$156
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase
  • A financial power of attorney that’s tailored to your needs
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
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All done! Based on your answers, we recommend:

Last Will and Testament + Financial Power of Attorney

For two people

$227
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
  • A financial power of attorney that’s tailored to your needs
Close

All done! Based on your answers, we recommend:

Last Will and Testament + Health Care Directive & Living Will

For Two People

$227
What’s included:
  • Step-by-step guided process
  • Attorney-approved document compliant with your state’s laws
  • A last will and testament that’s customized to your wishes
  • Free changes and revisions to your will for up to one full year after purchase
  • A health care directive and living will tailored to your needs
  • Free HIPAA release form
  • Free changes and revisions to your document for up to a full year after purchase

What Not To Include When Making a Will

Making a last will and testament is a very wise decision. It tells your surviving loved ones exactly what your wishes are regarding your property and assets in an official legal document.

Table of Contents

Dying “Intestate”

To pass away without a will is called being “intestate” and it can leave many questions about your personal property, real estate, and finances in the event of your death.

However, there are some things that you can’t or shouldn’t include in your will.

Types of Property You Can’t Include When Making a Will

Some types of property carry rules that govern what happens after you die. These rules are independent of your will, mostly because the nature of these types of properties is to name a beneficiary or avoid probate.

Joint Tenancy Property

This type of property grants the right of survivorship to your joint tenant, automatically by law. Therefore, when you die, your share of the property passes directly to the surviving joint tenant, regardless of what your will says.

Property in a Living Trust

One of the ways to avoid probate is to set up a living trust. The property included in a living trust avoids probate; whereas property in your will does not. Additionally, willing property to someone in your will when that property is already delegated to someone by a living trust is inconsistent. The property in the living trust automatically goes to the beneficiaries and is managed by the trustee. If you want to change this arrangement, you must do it through the trust forms and documents and not through your will.

Life Insurance Proceeds That Have a Beneficiary

In this case, like with the trust, the proceeds automatically go to the beneficiary, often a spouse or minor children.

Retirement Plan Proceeds Including Money From a Pension, IRA, or 401(K)

The forms for these plans contain a section for you to include your desired beneficiary.

Stocks and Bonds Held “in Beneficiary”

This is yet another type of property that automatically goes to your named beneficiary. Talk to the brokerage company if you wish to change the named beneficiary.

Proceeds From a Payable-on-Death Bank Account

The form for this account asks you to name your beneficiary. To change the beneficiary, you just fill out another form with your bank.

Avoid Leaving Funeral Instructions When Making a Will

Usually, the settling of the estate and the probate proceedings do not happen until after the funeral. The funeral arrangements are among the first matters of business after someone dies. Therefore, family members may not even notice your funeral wishes stated in your will until after the funeral.

Instead of leaving your funeral wishes in your will, talk with your loved ones about what you want. You can even make a separate document that spells out your wishes for the funeral, and give this document to the executor or executrix of your estate.

Avoid Using a Will to Escape Estate Taxes

A will is still subject to estate taxes. Instead of trying to use a will to avoid the often heavy estate taxes, explore different types of trusts that may work for your situation. Trusts escape a lot of tax subjection, because the property is not passing directly to the beneficiary, rather to the trust account, over which the beneficiary does not have complete control.

Wills Do Not Escape Probate

A common misconception is that wills do not have to go through probate proceedings. This is not true. Wills are still subject to probate proceedings. Probate proceedings can take months. However, having a will does help to speed up the probate process, because your loved ones, lawyers, and the probate court are not left having to divide all of your property for you. You have already explained how it should be divided, and the court will follow your wishes. There are other ways you can avoid probate. One common way is leaving the property to a trust fund, with the desired recipient a beneficiary, instead of granting the property directly to that person.

Be Careful With What Conditions You Put on Gifts

Not all of those conditions are legal. Conditions that include marriage, divorce, or the change of the recipient’s religion cannot be provisions in a legal will. Therefore, a court will not enforce them. You can put certain other types of conditions on gifts. Usually, these types of conditions are to encourage someone to do or not do something. For example, when making a will, you could say, “to Allison, if and when she graduates from college.” You could also say something like, “to Paul, so long as he uses the property as an art studio.” Just keep in mind that putting conditions on gifts can complicate things. Think about who will actually enforce these conditions, for how long, and does the enforcer get anything like an executor’s fee?

Avoid Leaving Gifts or Money for Illegal Purposes

Although this is uncommon, some people will try and sneak in some sort of illegal condition or purpose for the gift. This would not make your will a legal will. For example, you wouldn’t be able to include, “to Mary, so long as she uses the property to grow marijuana,” or “To Jane, so long as she has her first beer before she is 21 years old.”

Do Not Arrange Care for a Special Needs Person When Making a Will

Although it is very possible to arrange such special needs for a disabled person, a will is not the place in which to do it. There are certain types of trusts, such as a special needs trust, that specifically address the management of the specific special needs of a disabled person.

Avoid Leaving Gifts to Pets in a Will

Animals do not have the legal capacity to own property. What many people do instead is leave the pet with someone who they know will provide it with good care. You can also leave that person any property or money to help out with the care of the pet. Certain states do allow for trusts with an animal as the beneficiary. If this makes you more comfortable, check to see what your state’s laws are. However, as long as you believe in the person you are leaving your pet with, you probably do not need a pet trust fund.

Get Legal Help with Making Your Will

Figuring out just the right amount of information to put into a will can be confusing. You’ll want to do it correctly the first time and with the least amount of hassle. The best way to ensure that you’re putting the right information in your will is to contact a local estate planning attorney who will know estate planning laws and can give you advice on what to include in your will based on your specific situation. You can also use our state-specific last will and testament forms to help you get started.

Estate planning solutions to fit your needs.

Written by:

FindLaw Staff

Contributing Author

Ally_Marshall_image

Reviewed by:

Ally Marshall, Esq.

Managing Editor