Estate Planning by State

For wills, healthcare proxies, and powers of attorney—yes. Your state determines how many witnesses you need, whether notarization is required, and who's disqualified from witnessing. Trusts are different. You can establish a trust in a state other than where you live. SimplyTrust creates Nevada-situs trusts because Nevada offers no state income tax on trust income, strong asset protection, remote online notarization, and some of the most progressive trust laws in the country—regardless of where you live.

Your will, healthcare proxy, and power of attorney should be reviewed after any move. Witness requirements, executor bond rules, and healthcare directive forms vary by state. A will perfectly executed in Texas might be missing formalities that California expects. Your trust is unaffected. A Nevada trust remains a Nevada trust no matter where you relocate—that's one of the advantages of establishing trust situs in a jurisdiction with favorable laws.

In the nine community property states (AZ, CA, ID, LA, NV, NM, TX, WA, WI), most assets acquired during marriage are owned 50/50 by both spouses regardless of who earned them or whose name is on the account. In common law states, assets belong to whoever earned them or holds title. This affects what you can give away in your will, how property transfers at death, and how you fund a trust. If you're in a community property state, both spouses typically need to consent to transferring marital assets into a trust.

Nevada has spent decades building the most trust-friendly legal framework in the country: no state income tax on trust income, no rule against perpetuities—trusts can last 365 years, strong asset protection from creditors, remote online notarization available statewide, and digital asset provisions baked into statute. You don't have to live in Nevada to benefit. SimplyTrust creates Nevada-situs trusts for customers in all 50 states.

A will takes effect at death and must go through probate—a public, court-supervised process that can take 6–18 months and cost 3–8% of estate value in some states. A trust takes effect when you create it, avoids probate entirely for assets it holds, and stays private. No court involvement, no public record. Most complete estate plans include both: a trust as the primary vehicle for asset transfer, and a pour-over will as a backstop that catches anything not already in the trust.

Probate is the court process for validating a will, paying debts, and distributing assets. It's public—anyone can look up what you owned and who inherited it. It's slow—typically 6–18 months, sometimes years. And it's expensive—California and Florida probate can consume 3–8% of estate value in attorney and court fees. Assets held in a trust skip probate entirely. They transfer according to the trust terms without court involvement.

Not legally required for most situations. Wills, healthcare proxies, and powers of attorney can be created using forms that meet your state's execution requirements (signatures, witnesses, notarization as required). Trusts, blended families, business succession, estates over $1 million, or anything involving real estate in multiple states—consult a licensed attorney. SimplyTrust is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.

Yes. A will created online and properly executed with witnesses (and notarized, where required) meets the execution requirements of all 50 states. The "online" part refers to how you draft it, not how you execute it. Fully electronic wills with digital signatures are a separate category recognized only in some states. SimplyTrust documents use traditional execution: you print, sign, have your witnesses sign, and have a notary acknowledge—either in person or via remote online notarization.

California and Florida are notorious for expensive, slow probate—often 3–8% of estate value in fees alone. New York probate can also drag on due to court backlogs. Texas, Wisconsin, and states that have adopted the Uniform Probate Code generally have simpler, faster processes. Most states offer streamlined procedures for smaller estates (typically under $50K–$150K depending on the state). The simplest probate is no probate. Assets in a trust don't go through the process at all.