Folder 01 · Estate planning for parents
Young family
Kids under 18, a mortgage, and nothing in writing about who raises them if you can’t. Here’s what goes in your folder, what each paper does, and what it costs.
Will package $1,400Trust package $2,400
Illustrative page for a concept design. Fees are examples; the photo is stock.
What goes in your folder
- 01.1
Last will
Says who gets what and who carries out your wishes.
Why it matters: Without one, Colorado law decides, and a court picks who manages money left to the kids.
- 01.2
Guardian nomination
Names who raises your children, plus a backup.
Why it matters: The single most important line for parents. A judge almost always follows it.
- 01.3
Revocable trust
Holds the house and accounts, and pays out on your schedule.
Why it matters: Kids don’t get a lump sum at 18. The house skips probate.
- 01.4
Financial power of attorney
Lets your spouse or a sibling pay bills and sign for you.
Why it matters: A car accident shouldn’t freeze the mortgage payment.
- 01.5
Medical power of attorney
Names who talks to doctors when you can’t.
Why it matters: Hospitals ask for it at the worst possible moment.
- 01.6
Beneficiary check
We review every life insurance and retirement form.
Why it matters: Those forms override the will. Most families have at least one that’s out of date.
Will or trust?
Both protect the kids. The difference is whether the house and accounts go through probate court, and how tightly the money is held for them.
Will package
$1,400
Choose this if you rent or have a modest home, and most of what you’d leave is life insurance.
- Will with guardian nomination
- Testamentary trust for the kids
- Financial & medical powers of attorney
- Living will
Revocable trust package
$2,400
Choose this if you own the house, want to skip probate, or want money paid out in stages.
- Revocable living trust
- Pour-over will with guardian nomination
- Deed of the house into the trust
- Both powers of attorney and a living will
Illustrative flat fees for this concept. Deed recording is passed through at cost.
What we’ll ask on the first call
Who would you trust to raise the kids, and who comes second?
Do you own the house, and is it in one name or both?
Is there life insurance through work, and who is the beneficiary today?
At what age should the kids get money outright: 25, 30, in stages?
No need to have answers yet. Most couples decide the guardian question at the kitchen table, with us.
From first call to binder on the shelf
- 01The first call30 minutes · free
- 02Kitchen-table meeting90 minutes · at your house or ours
- 03Signing dayabout 3 weeks later
- 04The binder on the shelfyours to keep