The Pitfalls of Online Estate Planning Services

Why not use an online service to draft your important estate planning documents? While it is true that online services are extremely inexpensive and fast, you get what you pay for…a subpar product that may not fit your needs. Online services are incomplete services; they have severe drawbacks, and can even contravene your estate planning goals! Without an attorney to review your assets, family situation, recent life changes, Colorado law and other factors, you could be making blunders in estate planning by using an online service without even knowing it.

Only a live attorney can recognize the individual needs that affect your estate planning documents, unlike a computer program or website. Attorneys do not just take your identifying information and put it in a form; they get to know you, your individual situation, your family situation and your estate planning goals, and then develop a plan, with you, to accomplish those goals.

Live attorneys can also alert you to tax consequences of certain estate plans, beneficiary designation issues, how non-probate transfers can be used in your estate plan and other factors specific to you that can affect your plan. An attorney can analyze the character and value of your assets and advice you on how to accomplish your goals for those assets. Speak with a live, Colorado licensed attorney who can help you develop a plan that is specific to you.

Finally, how safe do you think your personal information is on an online estate planning site? Is the online site secure? Is there a human being who is responsible to you for protecting your privacy and taking care of your needs? Colorado licensed attorneys have an ethical obligation to protect your privacy and can be punished, up to and including disbarment, for failing to protect your private information. We take your privacy seriously. Speak with one of the experienced professionals at Coaty and Woods, P.C. about your estate planning needs.