If you get too sick to act, or you die, someone has to handle the deed, the accounts, and the hospital. Geoffrey D. Plourde prepares the papers. Trusts only in six licensed states.
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From the owner
Karim covers wills, living trusts, probate, and what the first call at Valor includes. About a minute twenty.
About one in four adults has a will. About one in eight has a living trust. Most households never write this down. If you never do, state law generally decides who inherits. That default is called intestacy. A house titled in your name alone may still go through probate court even if you later add a will. Probate is a public court process. It can take months. A will only speaks after death. It does not give anyone authority to pay bills or manage accounts if you later cannot act. Who inherits, who can act during incapacity, and how the house is titled are separate legal jobs. Those choices get made while you can still review them, not after you lose the ability to sign. The first call at Valor Tax Relief is a review. We take how the house is titled, what accounts you have, and any will or trust already in place. An attorney who is also a CPA and an IRS Enrolled Agent lays out why this applies to you, what you already have, what you still need, and what you would receive if you hire, with a quote before you decide. If you want more detail, call Valor Tax Relief for a detailed, accurate, and complete consultation.
Start here
You can ask about the others on the call. Most people begin with the house or with hospital instructions.
Start here if
A funded living trust is often how the deed leaves probate. Six licensed states only.
Living trust
Start here if
A living will speaks if you cannot. It is not a last will, and it does not give away the house.
Living will
Start here if
The consult maps what you have and what is missing. Bring the last will, trust, and deeds if you have them.
Call (800) 252-0141Trust formation is the practice of law. Offered only in these states, where Geoffrey D. Plourde is licensed. California is confirmed (State Bar No. 331734). Each matter still has to be accepted.
If you live somewhere else, say so on the call. We will not form a trust where he cannot practice.
Who writes the papers
Geoff writes the documents. California Bar 331734, active, certified in tax law. He handles trusts, estates, wills, and probate.
A will in a drawer does nothing while you are in the hospital.
If the deed is in your name alone, the house typically goes through probate unless you used a tool that actually changed title, such as a funded trust.
A living will states your treatment wishes. Naming a person to talk to the hospital is a related paper. Ask on the consult if you need that too.
Owners often skip this until a stroke or accident makes it urgent. Who runs a business or pays bills if you are out.
Cost and timeline vary by state. A funded living trust is one way many people try to keep the house out of that court file. An unfunded trust does not.
Tell us your state and which documents you think you need. We do not start legal work on that call.
Geoffrey D. Plourde's practice checks license, scope, and fees. You decide whether to hire after that quote.
After you hire, the practice drafts. You sign with the witness or notary rules that apply. Then you retitle the house so a trust actually holds it.
We are not the IRS, CFPB, or Mayo Clinic. These links are the public pages we used for the tax and medical facts on this site.
Estate planning is the set of documents that say who handles your money and health care if you cannot, and who inherits when you die. A will is one piece. A living trust and a living will are others.
A will still goes through probate court. A funded living trust usually does not. You still want a will as a backup for anything left out of the trust, and to name a guardian for minor children.
Yes. A pour-over will catches assets that never made it into the trust. A will is also how most states let you name a guardian for a minor child. A trust does not replace that.
It can, if you fund it. That means retitling the house and other titled assets into the trust while you are alive. An empty trust sitting in a folder does not move the house out of probate.
A typical revocable living trust does not hide the house from your creditors while you are alive. You still control the assets, so they remain yours for collection purposes in most cases.
A simple revocable living trust does not cut the federal estate tax by itself. For deaths in 2026, that tax generally applies only above a $15 million exclusion per person (IRS). Some states have their own estate or inheritance tax with a lower threshold.
A living will is a written statement of the medical treatment you want, or do not want, if you cannot speak for yourself. It is not the same document as a last will, which deals with property after death.
Trusts are formed only in Arizona, California, Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, and Wyoming. California is confirmed on the State Bar site (No. 331734). A matter still has to be accepted by the law practice. Ask on the call before you pay for a trust.
The law practice quotes after it knows which documents you need and which state you live in. Fees are set before you hire. We do not publish a menu price on this page.
Say so on the call. Bring the last will, trust, and deeds. A move, a marriage, a house sale, or a new business is often a reason to review. The attorney will say whether a rewrite is the job.
State intestacy law picks who inherits. That list may not match the people you would have named. A house in your name alone typically still goes through probate.
Usually you do not retitle a 401(k) the way you retitle a house. Retirement accounts pass by beneficiary designation. Putting the trust on the account without tax advice can create problems. Bring the latest statement to the consult.
Forming a trust is the practice of law. Online templates are not the same as an attorney-prepared trust for your state. We do not sell blank forms.
Ready to talk
Call (800) 252-0141 or request a consult. We will say whether we can take the matter in your state, and quote fees, before you hire.
