There are a million reasons that people put off signing a will. This cool infographic says the three biggest reasons are: procrastination, too expensive and “I don’t need one.”
I can testify that the days of clients coming into a lawyer’s office for two appointments to sign a will are long gone. Clients are too busy. Instead, many prepare wills online, like they do everything else.
Unfortunately, only about 40% of the population signs a will during their lifetime.
Recently, I started offering to clients the convenience of online preparation of wills, power of attorneys and living wills. No office visits are necessary but of course, you are free to come in and sign it if it’s convenient for you.
Why shouldn’t I just order a Suzie Orman kit for $29.95? Because it is a canned form and too hard to choose the options that are right for you. Clients are always concerned that the end result will be messed up or totally invalid.
Why shouldn’t I go to Legalzoom and order a will? Because if takes almost a week to get it, it’s expensive and no attorney reviews it.
I charge a flat fee of $150 (single person) or $300 (married couple)for an attorney-prepared will-based estate plan that includes a will, power of attorney for property, power of attorney for health care, living will and HIPPA authorization. Use the coupon code “closing” to reduce the cost to $125 and $250.
The 5 steps to getting this done are shown in the graphic above. Clients register, fill out a questionnaire and pay by credit card. I review the information, draft the documents and they are sent to a secure web site and mailed to the client. You can fill it in the information from any computer, even your Ipad. The documents are emailed to you and signed in the privacy of your home.
Here’s a comparison of Legalzoom against my fees:
Legal Zoom $178 (single) and $356.00 (married)
Vs.
Law office prepared estate plan: $125 (single) and $250.00 (married).
That’s almost a 30 per cent savings.
It only takes a few minutes to fill out the questionnaire. Now that it’s convenient and inexpensive, there’s no reason to procrastinate on getting that will done, right?