What Does Estate Planning Cost in New York?
An attorney-prepared revocable trust in New York runs $4,250Estimate: 10 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $6,375Estimate: 15 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a simple will $1,344Estimate: 3 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,688Estimate: 6 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
Estate planning costs in New York depend on the provider. An online service runs $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription. An attorney in New York charges around $425Clio Compare Lawyer Rates, New York: Trusts rate (2025 data)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source an hour for trust work, which puts an attorney-prepared trust at $4,250Estimate: 10 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $6,375Estimate: 15 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for an individual plan.
A marriage, a divorce or a new child means updating the plan. Some providers require a whole new plan; others amend the existing one. An attorney amendment in New York typically costs $1,700Estimate: 4 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $3,400Estimate: 8 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for a major change.
An online service costs less up front ($0 to $549) than an attorney in New York (around $425Clio Compare Lawyer Rates, New York: Trusts rate (2025 data)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source an hour for trust work). The lifetime figure turns on the subscription ($49 to $199 a year with most online services), the amendment charges, and how often life events require an update.
A trust costs more up front than a will and saves the probate the will route pays. In New York, an attorney-prepared trust typically costs $4,250Estimate: 10 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $6,375Estimate: 15 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source and a will $1,344Estimate: 3 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,688Estimate: 6 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source. Assets passing under a will go through probate, which adds about $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source on a $500,000 estate for the heirs. The New York trust cost calculator carries the breakdown.
Probate in New York costs about $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source on a $500,000 estate, counting attorney fees, executor fees, court costs and publication. An estate held in a funded trust bypasses probate and that cost entirely. The New York probate calculator estimates the fees for a given estate.
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New Baby or Adoption
Your family is growing. Your protection should too. Guardian nominations, trusts for minors, beneficiary updates, and the documents new parents need in place.
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Marriage
What married couples need in place: one joint trust or two, wills, beneficiary updates, and the spousal rights your state grants you automatically.
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New Home
How to put your house in a revocable trust: the deed you record, what it does to your mortgage and property taxes, and when a TOD deed is simpler.
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Retirement
Retirement changes your financial picture. Healthcare directives, beneficiary reviews, long-term care planning, and protecting what you've built.
Learn moreForms for Planning Your Estate in New York
Free forms for planning your estate in New York: a will, living trust, pour-over will, both powers of attorney, living will, and TOD deed.
Last Will and Testament
In New York, a will is signed before 2EPTL § 3-2.1Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, and a self-proving affidavit signed with it lets the court admit it without witness testimonyEPTL § 3-2.1Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
New York requires 2NY PHL § 2981(5)(d)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source witnesses for a healthcare power of attorney; notarization is not requiredNY PHL § 2981(5)(d)Verified Oct 15, 2026View source.
Financial Power of Attorney
New York treats a power of attorney as durable by defaultNY GOL §§ 5-1501, 5-1501A, 5-1501B, 5-1502A through 5-1502N, 5-1504, 5-1512, 5-1513Verified Sep 18, 2026View source, and it is signed before 2NY GOL §§ 5-1501, 5-1501A, 5-1501B, 5-1502A through 5-1502N, 5-1504, 5-1512, 5-1513Verified Sep 18, 2026View source witnesses and a notary.
Transfer on Death Deed
In New York, a transfer on death deed is signed before a notaryN.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source and 2N.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source witnesses, then recorded with the county before the owner's deathN.Y. Real Prop. Law 424Verified Oct 19, 2026View source.
Tools for Planning Your Estate in New York
Free tools for planning your estate in New York: what a will or trust costs, whether you need a trust or TOD deed, and how documents are signed.
How Much Life Insurance Do I Need?
In New York, four years at a public university cost about $101,592NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 330.20, public 4-year in-state tuition, fees, room and board, academic year 2022-23Verified Oct 17, 2026View source and the cost of living is 8% above the U.S. averageBEA Regional Price Parities, all items, by state, 2024Verified Oct 17, 2026View source; the state levies an estate taxN.Y. Tax Law §§ 951–971Verified Sep 15, 2026View source above $7,350,000N.Y. Tax Law §§ 951–971Verified Sep 15, 2026View source.
Are My Beneficiary Designations Protected?
New York automatically revokes an ex-spouse as beneficiary at divorceNY EPTL § 5-1.4Verified Sep 15, 2026View source; employer plans under ERISA follow federal rules either way, so a 401(k) beneficiary changes only by a new designation.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Probate on a $500,000 estate in New York costs an estimated $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Attorney fees run 2.5%SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 4%SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate under a reasonable-compensation standard.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Without a will in New York, a surviving spouse takes the first $50,000 plus half of the restEPTL § 4-1.1Verified Sep 10, 2026View source when every child of either spouse is a child of both, and descendants divide what passes to them per capita at each generationEPTL § 4-1.1; EPTL § 1-2.16Verified Sep 10, 2026View source.
How Much Does a Revocable Living Trust Cost?
An attorney-prepared revocable living trust in New York runs $4,250Estimate: 10 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $6,375Estimate: 15 hours at $425, Clio's New York Trusts rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source for an individual, against $0 to $549 up front plus a subscription with an online service.
How Much Does a Will Cost?
An attorney-prepared will in New York runs $1,344Estimate: 3 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source to $2,688Estimate: 6 hours at $448, Clio's New York Wills and Estates rate; Compare Lawyer Rates, 2025 dataVerified Oct 15, 2026View source, against $0 to $299 up front with an online service, and probate on a $500,000 estate adds about $35,992SCPA § 2110 (reasonable compensation; no statutory percentage)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source.
How Does SimplyTrust Compare to LegalZoom, Trust & Will, and Other Services?
Compare what it costs to make a trust official across SimplyTrust, LegalZoom, Trust & Will, Rocket Lawyer, and Quicken WillMaker.
How Do I Name a Guardian for My Minor Children?
In New York, a parent names a guardian for a minor child in a will or a separate signed writingN.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 81; N.Y. SCPA §§ 1707, 1710Verified Sep 16, 2026View source, and the nomination covers the child until the age of majority, 18N.Y. SCPA § 1707(2); N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law § 81Verified Sep 16, 2026View source.
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New York Estate Planning Resources
In-depth guides covering New York probate laws, trust requirements, and estate planning strategies.