Are DIY Wills and Trusts a Good Idea?

Qualifications matter. Just as you wouldn’t call an electrician to fix a plumbing problem, you shouldn’t create estate planning documents yourself. Doing so might subject your estate to costly  litigation by disgruntled heirs. You might also run the risk that the documents don’t do what you actually want.

Wills and trusts must be executed according to New York law and must be prepared properly to carry out your wishes and obtain the estate tax results you desire. Online do-it-yourself (DIY) services have you fill in blanks and do not consider the nuances of family dynamics and consequences. Experienced trust and estate lawyers can use their knowledge and prior experience with many families to help you fashion the estate plan that is right for you.

Estate tax rules, rates and exemptions vary from state to state, and some states have some unusual tax laws. For instance, in New York, if you make a taxable gift to someone and die within three years of making that gift, that gift is brought back into your estate to compute only the New York estate tax. If that happens and additional New York estate tax is due, who should pay it? Estate tax clauses in wills and trusts are extremely important and can result in some beneficiaries receiving less than you intended because they must pay estate taxes on the assets they receive from you.

How assets are titled also affects how your estate planning documents should be structured. A will can only direct what happens to assets in your own name with no beneficiary designations. A trust can only direct what happens to assets owned by the trust. Your estate planning documents must be properly coordinated with how your assets are held. For example, Mary and her daughter, Susan, have a joint account with right of survivorship. Mary wants all of her assets at her death to be held in trust for Susan to protect Susan from Susan’s potential creditors, including those of a possible future ex-husband. Under these facts, Mary and Susan’s joint account will be transferred directly to Susan, thereby frustrating Mary’s desire to have all assets pass to Susan’s trust.

Legalese is real, and estate planning documents can have differing results depending upon the words chosen. When preparing a DIY estate planning document, you may not be fully aware of the consequences of using certain terms on the disposition of your assets. An experienced trusts and estates lawyer can guide you through the morass of legalese, so your estate plan really does carry out your wishes. Saving money by doing DIY estate planning documents can often have disastrous, costly consequences for your heirs.

This article appeared in the May 2026 issue of Stroll Lloyd Harbor.