How Much Does Estate Planning Cost in Maryland?
$1,500. That is what SoMD Estate Planning charges for the Essential Estate Package — a will, an Advanced Medical Directive and a Power of Attorney — for your household, whether you are single or a married couple. Flat, published, quoted before we start.
We lead with the number because almost nobody in Southern Maryland will give you one. Search for an estate planning attorney around here and you will find a great deal of writing about peace of mind and very little about price. That is not an accident: hourly billing does not produce a price, it produces a rate, and a rate is not something you can compare or budget against.
The Three Ways This Work Gets Priced
Hourly. You are quoted a rate. The total depends on how long it takes, which depends on things you cannot see from the outside. For document drafting — which is largely a known, repeatable process — this transfers all the uncertainty to you.
Per document. A price per will, per directive, per power of attorney. Better, but it prices the paper rather than the plan, and it creates an incentive to add documents.
Flat fee per household. One price for the set of documents a household actually needs. This is how we do it, and the reason is simple: the number of questions you ask should not change what you pay.
What the $1,500 Covers
- A last will and testament — who receives what, who administers the estate, and who raises your minor children
- An Advanced Medical Directive — a living will plus a named healthcare agent
- A Power of Attorney — authority over banking, property and benefits if you cannot act
- Guardianship designations for minor children, which live inside the will rather than costing extra
- The meetings to gather your information and the signing appointment, with the witnesses and notarization Maryland requires
One price for a household means a married couple pays $1,500, not $3,000.
What Costs Extra
Trust drafting is quoted separately, because what a trust costs depends on what the trust has to do. Deed preparation to retitle real property is a separate matter. So is estate administration after a death. And the Register of Wills charges filing fees set by statute that scale with the size of the estate — those are the State’s, not ours.
Why “We Don’t Have Much” Is Usually Wrong
People skip planning because they assume their estate is too small to bother with. Maryland’s own thresholds are a useful reality check. An estate with gross probate assets of $50,000 or less opens as a small estate — the short, cheap filing. That ceiling is $100,000 when the surviving spouse is the sole heir or legatee. Above the applicable figure it is a regular estate, with inventories, accountings and creditor notice periods.
A house in Charles, Calvert, Prince George’s or St. Mary’s County with any real equity in it clears that line by itself. Most families who think they have a small estate do not have one.
The other half of the reality check is that those thresholds count probate assets. Accounts with a living beneficiary named, and property held jointly with right of survivorship, pass outside probate entirely. Getting your beneficiary designations right costs nothing and is frequently the highest-value thing in the whole exercise. It is part of what we review.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does estate planning cost in Maryland?
Our Essential Estate Package is $1,500 flat for the household — will, Advanced Medical Directive and Power of Attorney, individual or married couple. Firms billing hourly quote a rate, not a price, so the total is not knowable until the work is finished.
What does the $1,500 include?
The three documents above, guardianship designations inside the will, and the meetings and signing appointment. No separate charge for the consultation.
What costs extra?
Trust drafting, deed preparation, and estate administration after a death — each quoted separately. Register of Wills filing fees are set by statute and scale with the estate.
Is a will enough, or do I need a trust?
Most Maryland households are served by a will plus correct beneficiary designations. A trust earns its cost when it has a specific job — a blended family, a beneficiary who should not receive money outright, out-of-state real property, or privacy.
Get the Number in Writing
Contact SoMD Estate Planning or call (301) 818-0389. Attorney Kathryn Batey, 10665 Stanhaven Pl. Ste. 108, White Plains, MD 20695. Serving Charles, Prince George’s, Calvert and St. Mary’s counties.