You know that death isn’t simple, and Wills aren’t simple, but now you don’t know where to start. How am I going to help?
It is my goal to help you to prepare a proper, complete Estate Plan. I don’t do “simple” Wills because I have spent 25 years helping families to administer the Estate of their loved ones, and I know that the false security of preparing a basic document is not enough.
While culturally in Australia we are happy to joke that the only certainties in life are death and taxes, we aren’t very good at actually talking about and planning for one of those certainties. Most people don’t realise how difficult and exhausting being an Executor can really be until they have to do it themselves. Most people think my family won’t fight, my family aren’t greedy, so dealing with an Estate won’t be stressful. I know that this could not be further from the truth. Lets help that person out by preparing a proper Estate Plan, lets stop pretending that death is simple.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
I can help you to prepare your Estate Plan either in person or online. I can assist you with your Estate Plan if you are located in NSW, Victoria, Qld, ACT or WA.
-
You can head over to the Services tab to check out my prices, or you can head over to “Book now” if you want to make your first appointment with me. You can choose between an in person appointment, or an online / video appointment.
-
I don’t do simple estate plans or simple Wills, and I don’t just give you a bunch of homework or paperwork and leave you to sink or swim.
-
That is fine, but I don’t do those. If you want to know why I don’t do simple Wills then you could read more about that here.
-
You can see my prices at my Services tab, but an online Estate Plan for a single person costs $3,500 plus disbursements.
-
While I understand that not everyone can afford an expensive estate plan right now, I also don’t do discounted Estate Plans. If you wanted to use the contact tab and reach out to me and tell me what suburb you are in I could tell you who is doing discounted Wills there.
What will we do?
If you are wondering what I mean by a complete Estate Plan, or not a simple Will, some of the things we will cover include -
Discussing you and your family or loved ones, your beneficiaries, and who you want included in your Will
Looking at your asset and debt position, what is in the Will, what is out of the Will, and what documents you need
Deciding between an “I love you” Will and a Discretionary Testamentary Trust
Discussing your retirement and aged care plans, and how that fits into your Estate Plan, and we will actually start with your retirement and aged care plans because this is where most clients get overwhelmed and try to do the minimum
Some of the steps we will take together include -
We start with two appointments, the first appointment is about your Power of Attorney, your Appointment of Enduring Guardian, your superannuation, and your retirement plans including how you would fund aged care, and what your preferences are
In the second appointment we will discuss your Wills, what I mean by a comprehensive Estate Plan, and whether you should have a discretionary testamentary trust
After the second appointment I will have the necessary information to draft your documents, which you can read and then come back to me with questions
After we have signed the Will and other documents we will finalise work on other things, like your Letter of Wishes, your superannuation details, and choosing a place to store your important documents
I want to help
I know that you are probably sick of hearing this, but I want to help. That is why I am no longer interested in doing simple Wills, because I don’t think they are helpful.
At this stage in my career I can say no to doing those types of documents, so I do. If you aren’t in a position to spend this much money at the moment that is fine, I understand, there are plenty of lawyers who will provide cheaper alternatives.