‘How much does a will cost?’ is just part of estate plan

Despite the number of times I have repeated that a client is not buying a will, I still hear as I did a little over a week ago by phone the same question. “How much does a will cost?” This is probably because consumers are constantly asked the question “Do you have a will,” which is meant to say “Have you planned for the future and is your family provided for in the event of your death.”

The question “how much does a will cost?” assumes that preparing a will answers all the questions and closes the book on planning for a future when you are no longer here. It does not.

In fact, completing a will does not even, in most cases, address all of your assets. Here are some reasons why.

First, the likelihood exists that you own assets that will not pass by will. If you are married, you probably titled your house with your wife or husband. If so the title, unless otherwise designated, is held as tenants by the entireties. The house passes automatically to your spouse on your death without involving your will.

Also, as a married person, you probably titled your bank and investment accounts jointly. Again, they pass to the survivor regardless what your will might say. By the way, this automatic passage is also true of joint owners of other accounts. Therefore, if you say in your will that your jointly titled account interest is to pass to someone else, the account nonetheless passes to the joint owner. It does not matter what your will says.

Is this true of all jointly titled property? Not necessarily. If you own real estate, for instance, that is titled jointly with others and all of you hold title as “tenants in common,” then your undivided share does pass through your estate and therefore, can pass by your will. One of the things you “pay” for in a review of your estate is to know the difference. The point is that a will does not cover everything. Jointly titled assets are only one example. If you own life insurance, the proceeds on your death, unless your estate is the beneficiary, go to the beneficiary and do not pass by your will. The same goes for your tax qualified funds — your IRA, 401(k), 403(b) and so on. They pass by beneficiary and unless your estate is the beneficiary, they do not pass by will. These assets often overpower the number and total of assets that pass by will.

The actual question “How much does a will cost,” should be something more like “How much would it cost to review what I have and make certain it passes to the people or organizations I want to receive it when I die?” That could also involve retitling assets and renaming beneficiaries in addition to reviewing your will.

You might also add you want to pass your assets without dispute regarding who is to receive them and while minimizing taxes. Note that for married couples, the major decisions often come regarding the next generation who I playfully refer to as “the kids.” Tax questions regarding inheritances when it comes to children and grandchildren have become more complicated in the past year or two.