Davis & McCann
  • Home
  • Practice Areas
  • About
  • Attorney Profiles
  • Blog & News
  • Contact Us - Directions
  • Make a Payment

Does Having A Will Avoid Probate?

3/21/2019

 
Picture
​If the probate process confuses you, you’re in good company. Here are some common misconceptions surrounding probate:

1. If you have a Will, your family will not have to go through a probate. Not true! In fact, if you do Will-based planning, you are planning for a probate. This means your estate will go through a court process, open to public examination, before your beneficiaries will receive their inheritance. According to a 2018 EstateExec survey, on average it takes almost 16 months to settle a U. S. estate.  That’s a significant wait time for beneficiaries to receive the assets you intended them to have. 
 
2. Probate is a simple and speedy process. While this sometimes can be true with ​​uncomplicated estates or low value

estates, most probates will require at least a minimal amount of legal and financial counseling. Professional help from a good probate attorney and certified public accountant will be your best insurance for preventing unnecessary expenses and delays during the probate process.

3. Probate will be cheaper than having a Trust. You may save money initially by choosing a Will-based plan over a Trust-based plan. However, you must consider that upon your death, your estate will pay for the probate process. According to the 2018 EstateExec survey, the average U.S. estate was valued between $50,000 and $250,000. The average legal and accounting fees paid were $12,400 and average executor fees were around $18,000. 

With a Trust-based plan, you pay more initially to draw up the Trust documents, but the cost to administer the Trust after your death will be significantly less than a probate action. Court approval is not required to distribute assets or pay bills. In the end, many individuals save money by creating a Trust, due to the avoidance of the probate process. Additionally, with a Trust-based estate plan, distribution of assets to beneficiaries generally is significantly faster than a Will-based plan. Creating a Trust may seem overly complicated, but a good estate planning attorney can walk you through the process, minimizing expenses, errors and confusion.
​
The attorneys at Davis & McCann, P. A. can help you sort through common misconceptions about Kansas probate. We’ve been helping Western Kansas clients work through the probate process, since 2003. We are members of Wealth Counsel, a national consortium of Estate Planning Attorneys. Our focus is to provide the best legal advice on Estate Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Medicaid and Long-term Care Planning, Corporate Formation, Business and Agri-Business Succession Planning, Real Estate Transactions, and related matters.

Comments are closed.
    Picture

    NEWS YOU CAN USE

    Davis & McCann, P. A.,
    ​A Premier Estate Planning law firm in Western Kansas

    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    May 2017
    August 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    September 2014

    Categories

    All
    10 Year Anniversary
    Attorney
    Business
    Conservatorship
    Dodge City
    Elder Law
    Estate Administration
    Estate Planning
    Executor
    Firm News
    Guardianship
    Kansas
    Kristina Crawford
    Long Term Care Planning
    Long-term Care Planning
    Medicaid Planning
    Megan-l-mccann
    National-academy
    Probate
    Real Estate
    WealthCounsel

    RSS Feed

107 Layton Street, Suite A
Dodge City, KS 67801
620-225-1674

Davis & McCann,P. A. is a premier Estate Planning law firm in Dodge City, Kansas, assisting Western Kansas clients with Estate Planning, Probate, Trust Administration, Business Formation, Business Succession Planning, Farm and Agricultural Business Succession Planning, Real Estate, Elder Law (Medicaid and Long Term Care Planning).  The information found on this website is for informational purposes only and is not a legal opinion, does not provide legal advice for any purpose, and neither creates nor constitutes of an attorney-client relationship.
© 
  • Home
  • Practice Areas
  • About
  • Attorney Profiles
  • Blog & News
  • Contact Us - Directions
  • Make a Payment