{"id":1426,"date":"2010-09-30T05:01:03","date_gmt":"2010-09-30T12:01:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/?p=1426"},"modified":"2018-03-19T19:13:23","modified_gmt":"2018-03-19T23:13:23","slug":"no-cost-will","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/no-cost-will\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Make a Michigan Will at No Cost"},"content":{"rendered":"

I always like to make sure I’m writing about things that are really relevant to the questions everyone has.\u00a0 Well, I recently had someone find my site by searching Google for “how do I make a will at no cost.”\u00a0 I figure they wouldn’t have searched for it if they didn’t have the question.<\/span><\/p>\n

I imagine the first question is, can you create a will at no cost?\u00a0 Well, sure you can.\u00a0 There are a couple of ways the come to my mind immediately for creating a no cost Michigan will: a statutory will, and a holographic will.<\/span><\/p>\n

Michigan has a statutory will that you can find by clicking here<\/a>.\u00a0 The gist is that if you fill out and sign a will in exactly the form that is given in MCL 700.2519(2)<\/a> and otherwise in compliance with the terms of the Michigan statutory will form, it is a valid will.<\/span><\/p>\n

A holographic will (not to be confused with a hologram which is something entirely<\/em> different) is a will that, although not valid according the standard for valid wills\u00a0 stated here<\/a> in section (1), is still, in fact, valid.\u00a0 The requirements for a holographic will are found at MCL 700.2502(2)<\/a>.\u00a0 They are, generally, that the “material portions” of the will must be in the testator’s (the person whose will it is) handwriting, signed by the testator, and dated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, I believe the unsaid question is, is a “no-cost will” right for your family?\u00a0 The answer will be different for everyone, however experience has taught me that very<\/span> few families will reach their planning goals and objectives by using one of the no-cost will options.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Well, think of it this way.\u00a0 Let’s assume you don’t know much about working on your car.\u00a0 How well do you think the car would run if you tried to replace a cylinder, a timing belt, or – going big – the engine?\u00a0 How well do you think you would feel if you tried to perform your own surgery.<\/span><\/p>\n

See, there is a vast body of knowledge on all of these topics that trained professionals have studied and practiced to be able to perform the task correctly.\u00a0 And estate planning is no different.\u00a0 It’s a large part of the reason why I believe working with an attorney who focuses solely (or at least largely) on estate planning is really the way to go.\u00a0 Law is a complex topic, and estate planning is a complex subtopic.\u00a0 Especially if you want someone who will help you plan for creating a legacy<\/a> by planning for your Whole Family Wealth\u2122<\/a> like we do.<\/span><\/p>\n

I’m a firm believer in using professionals who are knowledgeable and focused on the tasks that I don’t focus on.\u00a0 That’s why I take my car to a mechanic, I have a heating and cooling person work on my heating and air conditioning, why I go to a doctor if somethings not quite right with my body, and yes, why I go to another attorney if its not an area of law I practice.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, know that there are no-cost options out there and seriously consider whether you want your families future and your legacy to be decided by what those no-cost options provide.\u00a0 And if you want to talk with someone about other options, call us at 616-827-7596 or contact us here<\/a>.\u00a0 Mention this blog post and your Peace of Mind Planning Session is free (no cost!).<\/span><\/p>\n

Michael Lichterman<\/a> is an estate planning attorney who helps families and business owners create a lasting legacy by planning for their Whole Family Wealth\u2122<\/a>.\u00a0 This goes beyond merely planning for finances – it’s about who your are and what’s important to you.\u00a0 He focuses on planning for\u00a0 the “experienced” generation, the “sandwich generation” (caring for parents and children), doctors\/physicians, nurses, lawyers, dentists, professionals with minor children, and family owned business succession – and he is privileged to do so from a Christian perspective.\u00a0 He takes the “counselor” part of attorney and counselor at law very seriously, and enjoys creating life long relationships with his clients – many of which have become great friends.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I always like to make sure I’m writing about things that are really relevant to the questions everyone has.\u00a0 Well, I recently had someone find my site by searching Google for “how do I make a will at no cost.”\u00a0 I figure they wouldn’t have searched for it if they didn’t have the question. I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-estate-planning"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1426"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1426\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3703,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1426\/revisions\/3703"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lichtermanlaw.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}