• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.

Attorneys & Counselors

Call Now: (281) 759-3213

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS
LP Payment button
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • About The American Academy
    • Advantages of Working With Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • Mission Statement
    • Multimedia
    • Published Books
    • The Academy Fellow Designation
  • Services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
      • Are You A Caregiver
      • Coping With Alzheimer’s
      • Guardianship & Conservatorship
      • Hospice Care
      • Emergency Medicaid & Nursing Home Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Veteran’s Benefits
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Seminars
  • Testimonials
    • Client Testimonials
    • Representative Clients
    • Review Us
  • Resources
    • Areas We Serve
      • Baytown
      • Conroe
      • Galveston
      • Houston
      • Pasadena
      • Woodlands
      • West University Place
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Elder Law Resources
      • Galveston Elder Law
      • Houston Elder Law
      • Sugar Land Elder Law
      • West University Place Elder Law
      • Woodlands Elder Law
    • Estate Planning Resources
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top Estate Planning Techniques
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Avoidance Tax Planning
      • Avoiding Probate
      • Business Succession Planning
      • Charitable Gifting
      • Elder Law
      • Estate Planning
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • IRA and Retirement Planning
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Living Trusts
      • Medicaid
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Planning
      • Pet Planning
      • Power of Attorney
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Trusts
      • Veterans Benefits
      • Wills
    • LGBTQ Resources
    • Probate Resources
      • Houston Probate
      • Sugarland Probate
      • Woodlands Probate
      • West University Place Probate
    • Probate & Trust Administration Resources
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Special Needs Resources
    • Newsletters
  • Contact Us
  • BLOG
Home » Estate Planning Articles » Which Costs More: Probate or Trust Administration?

Which Costs More: Probate or Trust Administration?

September 9, 2014 by Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Compliments of Our Law Firm,
Written By: The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

There is no question that a Living Trust allows you to avoid probate – if, of course, the Trust is properly drafted and funded. But does this mean a Living Trust is more cost-effective than a Will?

Some people say that a Living Trust offers no net savings over a Will. In their opinion, the cost of preparing a Living Trust plus the cost of Trust Administration at death, equals or exceeds the costs of preparing a Will and probating an estate. Is this the truth?

In 2002, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals released an opinion in the case of Estate of Grant v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue Service. This opinion contained some interesting findings about the cost of probate as compared to the cost of administering a Trust.

Here’s what happened:

Mrs. Grant, a Maryland resident, established a Living Trust. When she died, most of her assets, including her home, were included in the Trust. These assets, with a total value of approximately $866,000, avoided probate. Mrs. Grant also left assets totaling $11,253 that were not included in her Trust. These assets were subject to probate.

Mrs. Grant’s children served as personal representatives for her estate. On the estate tax return, her children deducted a total of $48,102 in administration expenses. Personal representative and executor fees accounted for $16,875 of the deducted amount.

Since only $11,253 of Mrs. Grant’s estate was subject to probate, the IRS disallowed most of the $16,875 deduction. The Tax Court agreed, making these determinations:

  • Under Maryland law, the maximum executor fee for an estate totaling just over $11,000 was roughly $1,103.
  • The maximum Trustee fee for a Trust totaling $866,000 was $5,720 under Maryland law.

The Tax Court reduced the $16,875 deduction for personal representative and executor fees to $6,733. The children argued that their fee was reasonable and that it was less than what the executor’s fee would have been if Mrs. Grant’s entire estate had been subject to probate. They appealed to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Tax Court’s decision was upheld.

One of the lessons from this case is that in Maryland, all things being equal, the cost of administering a Trust is significantly less than the cost of probating an estate.

Is the same thing true throughout the country? Between 2000-2001, the American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys conducted a nationwide survey of probate costs and found that, on average, probate fees approximate 2 percent of the value of the estate. According to the same survey, Trust administration expenses were much lower – ½ to 1 percent of the cost of the estate, on average.

Are Trust administration costs always less than probate costs? The facts in Mrs. Grant and the American Academy survey do not indicate this, but what they do indicate, that in most situations, it is less expensive to administer a Trust than to probate an estate.

Which is the best choice for you, a Will or a Living Trust? The best way to determine this is to seek the advice of an experienced, qualified estate planning attorney. He or she can walk you through all of the relevant factors, including cost, and help you establish an estate plan that meets your unique needs.

About Stephen A. Mendel, Estate Planning Attorney

Mr. Stephen Mendel is an attorney who focuses a substantial part of his practice on estate planning. Mr. Mendel’s guiding principle is to provide his clients with quality legal services tailored to each client’s specific needs and goals.

Primary Sidebar

The Mendel Law Firm

Follow Us

  • FB
  • TW
  • IN
  • RSS

Plan For Your Future and Protect Your Legacy

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

HOUSTON

The Mendel Law Firm, L.P.
1155 Dairy Ashford, Suite 104
Houston 77079
United States (US)
Phone: (281) 759-3213
Fax: 281-759-3214

Map

map

Office Hours

Monday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday8:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Footer

The Mendel Law Firm

The information on this website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an
attorney-client relationship.

© 2023 Mendel Law Firm, All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys