Got questions about estate planning? Of course you do. And the first is usually: what does it cost? But that's the exact wrong way to think about it.
We see the results first-hand — when it's too late — after a loved one becomes incapacitated or dies with a failed plan due to cheap planning that was purchased based on price alone.
So I created this guide to help you take the next right steps and make the right decisions for yourself and your family.
It's for the people you love.
The truth is that when you need your estate planning to work, you're not the one who will be handling things at that point. It's the people you love who will be handling everything — and they really need you to have done your part now.
Yes, good planning makes it more likely that your wishes are honored, your assets aren't lost, and that you are cared for the way you would want. But you may not even know what's going on at that moment. They will.
They deserve to be supported by a trusted advisor you chose now, who guided you throughout your life.
Begin With the End: Why Are You Really Doing Estate Planning?
Your life is going to change. Your assets are going to change.
If you need to pay a fee for an advice call every time something changes in your life, it's our experience that you don't call. That means we get the call from your loved ones — after it's too late to fix anything — and they need us to help them with a broken plan that ends up far more expensive than if it had been well-maintained over time.
Estate planning isn't "done" when you sign your documents. That's when you're just getting started.
The Law Is Going to Change, Too.
Not only do your life and assets change, but so does the law. We are in the midst of great economic upheaval, and the way the government manages it with legal changes. It's why the IRS code is 75,000 pages when you include regulations and guidance. We can barely keep up with it ourselves — but we track what's most important so you don't have to.
"One and Done" Planning Isn't Sufficient
A plan bought once and never revisited is a plan waiting to fail. Hourly fees for updates mean you'll avoid calling when life changes — and life always changes.
Forms and Documents Get Out of Date
Automation is great — I use it for efficiency too. But your family is unique and needs a human, not a bot. When you use a firm that is all automated and doesn't have systems in place to make time for you to receive the human, heart-centered experience that planning for what matters most should have, you don't end up with a plan that takes into account your heart and humanity the way it should.
You can have both: an affordable plan within your budget, and the heart-centered human experience you and your family want and deserve.
It's why I start all planning with a Life & Legacy Planning Session — where we look at your assets, your family dynamics, and educate you on the law, so you can choose the right plan for yourself and the people you love.
You Get What You Pay For — A Set of Documents Is Just the Beginning
I believe the documents should essentially be free. In today's world, producing documents isn't the hard part of estate planning. We use technology, not typewriters and triplicate carbon copies.
The hard part — which I make easy with a heart-centered, education-based approach — is ensuring you understand the decisions that go into the documents, make wise decisions, and that those decisions get revisited over time as your life changes.
The harder part is making sure your assets stay up to date within your planning, so that when something happens your assets aren't lost.
The hardest part is making sure you actually get a plan in place that will work for you and your family when they need it — and that won't get stale, outdated, or become meaningless when it matters most.
I've got all of that covered for you.
What Working With Me Looks Like
- 20+ years, tens of thousands of completed plans across the Personal Family Lawyer network
- Trusted as the go-to lawyer in our community
- Flat-fee, everything agreed to in advance — no surprises, ever
- Will + Trust options with long-term asset protection and the guidance to know which you need
- Strategic counsel with a heart-centered process
- Free 15-minute call to make sure you like me, and that your family will love working with me
Ready to build a plan that actually works when your family needs it?
Book Your Free 15-Minute Call →