FastWillFastWill: Affordable Attorney-Drafted Wills Online
Create Your Legally Valid Will in Under 20 Minutes Starting at $79
Don’t Leave Your Family With Unanswered Questions
When someone dies without a will, the aftermath is predictable and painful. Family members gather, grieving, only to discover they have no legal guidance about the deceased’s wishes. Who gets the house? What happens to the car? Who takes custody of minor children? Without clear documentation, state intestacy laws make these decisions according to rigid formulas that rarely align with what the deceased actually wanted.
According to a 2023 Caring.com survey, 67% of American adults have no will in place. The reasons are consistent: it feels uncomfortable to think about death, the process seems complicated, attorney fees appear prohibitive, or it simply gets postponed indefinitely to “someday.”
But that postponement carries real consequences. Probate courts determine asset distribution based on state law, not your wishes. Judges appoint guardians for minor children without your input. Family members face months of legal proceedings, court costs, and conflict during the most difficult period of their lives.
A will isn’t about death. It’s about protecting the people you love while you still have the power to do so.
Understanding Wills: What They Do and Why They Matter
A last will and testament is a legal document specifying how your assets should be distributed after death, who should care for minor children, and who will execute these instructions. It’s the foundation of estate planning, regardless of age or wealth.
What a Will Accomplishes
Asset Distribution
Your will designates who receives your property: real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, investments, personal belongings, and anything else you own. Without a will, state intestacy laws determine distribution according to predetermined formulas based on family relationships. These formulas don’t account for personal circumstances, special relationships, or your actual preferences.
For example, most state intestacy laws divide assets between surviving spouses and children in specific percentages. If you wanted your spouse to receive everything, or if you wanted to provide more for one child with special needs, intestacy laws won’t honor those wishes.
Guardian Designation for Minor Children
If you have children under age 18, your will is where you name guardians to raise them if both parents die. Without this designation, courts appoint guardians based on state law priorities that may not reflect your preferences.
Family conflicts frequently erupt when multiple relatives petition for guardianship without clear documentation of parents’ wishes. Your will eliminates this uncertainty by naming both primary and contingent guardians, providing reasoning for your choices, and offering guidance about raising your children according to your values.
Executor Appointment
An executor (also called a personal representative in some states) manages your estate after death: collecting assets, paying debts and taxes, distributing property to beneficiaries, and closing your affairs. Your will names this person, giving them legal authority to act on your behalf.
Without a will designating an executor, courts appoint administrators, which adds time, cost, and complexity to the probate process. You can name family members, trusted friends, or professional fiduciaries as executors.
Specific Bequests
Beyond general asset distribution, wills allow specific bequests: leaving grandmother’s ring to a particular grandchild, donating to charities, or providing for pets. These personal touches ensure meaningful items reach intended recipients rather than being distributed according to generic intestacy formulas.
According to the American Bar Association, wills are appropriate for most people and provide the essential foundation for estate planning. While trusts, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives complement comprehensive planning, the will remains central to asset distribution and guardian designation.
Wills Within Legal Systems Governing Asset Distribution
Creating a legally valid will requires understanding how state probate systems process estate documents and distribute assets according to testamentary instructions. The IRS provides tax guidance that affects beneficiaries receiving assets, making proper will planning essential not just for asset distribution but also for minimizing tax burdens that reduce what surviving family members ultimately receive. While federal estate taxes affect only the wealthiest estates, understanding these frameworks helps families appreciate why valid, properly executed wills matter for estates of all sizes navigating state probate systems.
Beyond tax considerations, wills serve as primary documents governing how probate courts distribute assets, appoint guardians for minor children, and settle final affairs when people die. Research on estate planning demonstrates that having legally valid wills dramatically reduces family conflicts, accelerates estate settlement, and ensures that assets reach intended beneficiaries rather than distant relatives or state coffers through intestate succession laws that ignore personal wishes about inheritance distribution.
For families understanding how wills fit within broader estate planning beyond simple asset distribution, comprehensive resources on estate planning fundamentals provide context explaining why affordable will creation platforms like FastWill serve critical functions making basic estate planning accessible to families who might otherwise die intestate due to cost barriers, intimidation about legal processes, or simple procrastination about addressing uncomfortable end-of-life planning topics.
Who Needs a Will?
Anyone with assets to distribute, minor children to protect, or specific wishes about end-of-life matters should have a will. That encompasses nearly everyone over age 18.
A will is particularly urgent if you:
- Have minor children who need guardian designation
- Own real estate or significant assets
- Want to control who inherits your property
- Have specific wishes about asset distribution that differ from state intestacy laws
- Want to minimize family conflict over inheritance
- Have pets requiring care instructions
- Want to leave bequests to charities or non-family members
- Have a blended family with children from previous relationships
- Own a business requiring clear succession instructions
Wills remain valuable even for:
- Young adults with minimal assets but specific wishes about belongings
- Single individuals who want friends or charities to inherit rather than distant relatives
- Anyone who wants to eliminate uncertainty and spare family members from court proceedings
The National Institute on Aging recommends that everyone have basic estate planning documents in place, regardless of wealth or age. Medical emergencies and unexpected deaths don’t discriminate based on financial status.
What Happens Without a Will?
When someone dies intestate (without a valid will), state law determines everything about estate administration and asset distribution.
Intestacy Laws Take Control
Each state has intestacy statutes specifying who inherits based on family relationships. Typically, assets pass to spouses and children in predetermined percentages, then to parents, siblings, or more distant relatives if no immediate family exists.
These formulas don’t account for:
- Unmarried partners (who receive nothing under intestacy laws)
- Friends who may have been closer than family
- Charities you wanted to support
- Unequal distributions among children based on need or circumstance
- Specific items going to specific people
- Assets placed in trust rather than distributed outright
Court-Appointed Guardians
Without a will naming guardians for minor children, courts make this decision. While judges consider family relationships and children’s best interests, they lack insight into your preferences, family dynamics, or specific reasoning about guardian suitability.
Multiple relatives petitioning for guardianship create contested proceedings that traumatize children and deplete estates through legal fees.
Extended Probate Proceedings
Estates without wills face longer, more expensive probate processes. Courts must appoint administrators, verify family relationships, locate all assets, and distribute according to intestacy laws rather than following clear instructions from a will.
According to the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, probate without a will typically takes 6 to 18 months longer and costs significantly more in legal fees and court costs compared to estates with clear testamentary instructions.
Family Conflict
Ambiguity breeds conflict. Without documented wishes, family members argue about what the deceased “would have wanted,” often projecting their own preferences onto the situation. Relationships fracture over these disputes, creating lasting damage during a time that should focus on healing.
The Will Creation Process: What’s Involved
Creating a will requires thoughtful consideration of several key decisions.
Taking Inventory
List all assets: real estate, vehicles, bank accounts, investment accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, business interests, valuable personal property, and sentimental items. While some assets (retirement accounts, life insurance with named beneficiaries) pass outside the will, understanding your complete financial picture helps ensure comprehensive planning.
Choosing Beneficiaries
Decide who receives what. You can name specific individuals, groups of people (all my children equally), charities, or combinations. Consider both primary beneficiaries and contingent beneficiaries who inherit if primary beneficiaries predecease you.
Naming Guardians
If you have minor children, select both primary and contingent guardians. Consider caregiving ability, financial stability, location, age, parenting philosophy, and willingness to serve. Discuss your choice with proposed guardians before naming them to ensure they’re prepared for this responsibility.
Appointing an Executor
Choose someone trustworthy, organized, and capable of handling financial and legal responsibilities. Executors collect assets, pay debts and taxes, file necessary paperwork, and distribute property according to your will’s instructions. You can name family members, friends, or professional fiduciaries. Consider naming successor executors in case your first choice is unable or unwilling to serve.
Making Specific Bequests
Identify items with monetary or sentimental value that should go to specific people: jewelry, artwork, family heirlooms, collections, or other meaningful possessions. Clear documentation prevents disputes about “who gets what.”
Addressing Digital Assets
Modern estates include digital components: online accounts, social media profiles, cryptocurrency, digital photos, and cloud-stored documents. Provide access information and instructions for handling these assets.
State-Specific Requirements
Will requirements vary by state. Witness requirements, notarization rules, and execution procedures differ across jurisdictions. Effective wills comply with specific state legal standards where you reside.
Online Will Creation: The Modern Approach
Technology has democratized will creation, making attorney-drafted documents accessible to everyone at a fraction of traditional costs.
How Online Platforms Work
Online will-making services use guided questionnaires to gather necessary information, then generate state-specific documents from attorney-drafted templates. Licensed attorneys create and maintain these templates, ensuring legal compliance, but the personalization happens through software rather than one-on-one consultations.
This approach works well for straightforward situations: typical assets, standard family structures, and basic distribution wishes. Complex situations requiring customized legal strategies, tax planning, or sophisticated arrangements still benefit from traditional attorney relationships.
Cost Comparison
Traditional estate planning attorneys typically charge $500 to $1,500 for basic wills, or $1,500 to $3,000+ for comprehensive planning. These fees vary by geography, with urban areas commanding premium rates.
Online platforms reduce costs by automating information gathering and document generation. Most services charge $50 to $200 for individual wills, representing 70% to 90% savings compared to traditional attorney fees for comparable documents.
When Online Services Work Best
Online will creation serves millions of families effectively when:
- Family structure is straightforward (married couples, single individuals, typical parent-child relationships)
- Assets are typical (home, vehicles, bank accounts, retirement accounts, personal property)
- Distribution wishes are uncomplicated (everything to spouse, then children equally)
- No special needs trusts or complex tax planning is required
- No business succession beyond basic provisions is needed
When Professional Counsel Is Needed
Certain situations require personalized legal advice from licensed attorneys:
- Estates exceeding $1 million requiring tax minimization strategies
- Special needs beneficiaries needing trust structures that preserve government benefits
- Business ownership requiring buy-sell agreements and valuation strategies
- Blended families with complex inheritance wishes and potential conflicts
- International assets or beneficiaries
- Anticipated will contests from disinherited family members
- Asset protection concerns involving creditors or lawsuits
The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys recommends professional counsel for estates with unusual complexity, significant value, or family dynamics requiring customized solutions.
FastWill: Streamlined Online Will Creation
FastWill launched as an online estate planning platform focused on making will creation fast, affordable, and accessible. The service specializes in streamlined questionnaires that generate state-specific, attorney-drafted documents in 15 to 20 minutes.
What FastWill Offers
Last Will and Testament
FastWill’s core service is will creation. The platform uses a guided questionnaire addressing personal information, family structure, assets, beneficiaries, guardian designations, executor appointments, and specific bequests. Questions are written in plain English with explanations of legal terms.
The questionnaire takes most users 15 to 20 minutes to complete. You can save progress and return anytime. Once submitted, FastWill generates state-specific documents complying with your jurisdiction’s legal requirements.
Pricing for individual wills starts at approximately $79, with couples’ packages available at higher price points. This represents significant savings compared to traditional attorney fees for comparable documents.
Advanced Healthcare Directives
FastWill offers healthcare directive documents (also called living wills) specifying medical treatment preferences if you become incapacitated. These documents address end-of-life care decisions, life support preferences, organ donation wishes, and healthcare agent designation.
Healthcare directives ensure your medical wishes are honored and spare family members from making difficult decisions without guidance during crisis situations.
Financial Power of Attorney
The platform provides durable power of attorney documents designating someone to manage financial affairs if you become incapacitated. Your appointed agent can pay bills, manage investments, file taxes, and handle other financial matters according to your instructions.
Without financial powers of attorney, family members must petition courts for conservatorship, an expensive and time-consuming process requiring ongoing court oversight.
Remote Notarization Services
FastWill includes encrypted remote notarization services, allowing you to complete the entire will creation process without leaving home. Remote notarization became widely accepted during the pandemic and remains valid in most states.
The service uses bank-level encryption to protect sensitive information during the notarization process, maintaining security while providing convenience.
Optional Attorney Support
For situations requiring professional guidance, FastWill offers optional attorney support packages. For a flat fee of $299, you receive unlimited access to licensed attorneys for personalized advice, document review, trust guidance, and help navigating probate or other legal questions.
This hybrid approach allows customers with straightforward needs to use self-service options while providing professional counsel for those wanting additional guidance.
State-Specific Compliance
FastWill generates documents specific to your state of residence, accounting for variations in witness requirements, notarization rules, and legal provisions. The platform’s attorney-drafted templates are maintained by licensed estate planning professionals and updated regularly to reflect changes in state law.
Proper execution requires following state-specific instructions provided with your documents. Most states require two witnesses (sometimes three), and some require notarization or self-proving affidavits. FastWill provides clear signing instructions tailored to your jurisdiction.
Platform Security
The platform uses bank-level 256-bit encryption for data transmission and storage, protecting sensitive personal and financial information. FastWill holds an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau and employs security protocols consistent with financial services industry standards.
Completed documents are stored in your online account, accessible anytime for download or printing. Original signed copies should be stored securely at home or with your attorney, with your executor and family members knowing the location.
Document Updates
Life circumstances change, requiring will updates. Marriage, divorce, births, deaths, relocations, and asset changes all necessitate document revisions. FastWill allows customers to update documents, though specific policies about ongoing access and update fees may vary.
Most estate planners recommend reviewing wills after major life events and every three to five years even without significant changes.
Will Execution: Making It Legally Valid
Even perfectly drafted wills are invalid if not executed properly according to state requirements.
Witness Requirements
Most states require two witnesses to observe you signing your will. Witnesses must be adults who aren’t beneficiaries under the will. Some states require three witnesses or have specific rules about witness eligibility.
Witnesses sign the will after watching you sign, attesting that you appeared to be of sound mind, weren’t under duress, and voluntarily executed the document.
Notarization and Self-Proving Affidavits
Some states require or allow notarization in addition to witnesses. Self-proving affidavits (notarized statements attached to wills) streamline probate by eliminating the need to locate witnesses years later to verify signatures.
FastWill provides state-specific execution instructions detailing exactly what’s required in your jurisdiction.
Proper Storage
Original signed wills must be stored securely but accessibly. Options include:
- Fireproof home safe (with family members knowing the location and access codes)
- With your attorney
- Some states allow will deposit with probate courts
- Safe deposit boxes (though access can be complicated after death)
Never store wills in locations only you can access. Your executor and family members need to locate the document when needed.
Common Execution Mistakes to Avoid
- Insufficient witnesses or witnesses who are also beneficiaries
- Signatures not properly witnessed
- Missing required notarization
- Alterations or cross-outs after signing (create new wills rather than modifying existing ones)
- Failing to follow state-specific requirements exactly
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Most users complete FastWill’s questionnaire in 15 to 20 minutes. The platform uses guided questions that move quickly, and you can save progress if you need to gather information about assets or beneficiaries. Once submitted, documents are typically available within 24 hours. The total time investment from start to signed, executed will is usually less than an hour, including printing, signing, and securing witness signatures.
Yes, if properly executed according to your state’s requirements. FastWill generates attorney-drafted documents specific to your state’s legal standards. However, the documents are only valid if you follow execution requirements: obtaining the correct number of witnesses, ensuring witnesses meet eligibility requirements, completing any required notarization, and signing according to state procedures. FastWill provides state-specific execution instructions to ensure proper completion. As long as you follow these instructions exactly, your will is legally valid and enforceable in your state.
For straightforward situations, online platforms like FastWill provide legally valid wills without attorney involvement. If your family structure is typical, your assets are standard (home, accounts, personal property), and your distribution wishes are uncomplicated, self-service online tools work well. However, you should consult an estate planning attorney if you have a large estate requiring tax planning, own a business, have special needs beneficiaries, face potential will contests, have a blended family with complex wishes, or need asset protection strategies. FastWill offers optional attorney support for $299 if you want professional review of your situation.
A last will and testament specifies asset distribution after death, names guardians for minor children, and appoints an executor. A living will (also called an advance healthcare directive) specifies medical treatment preferences if you become incapacitated and unable to communicate. Despite similar names, these are completely different documents serving different purposes. Most comprehensive estate plans include both: a will for asset distribution and a living will for healthcare decisions. FastWill offers both types of documents.
Yes. You can update your will anytime by creating a new will that explicitly revokes all previous versions, or by creating an amendment called a codicil (though most attorneys recommend new wills rather than codicils to avoid confusion). You should review and update your will after major life events like marriage, divorce, births, deaths, relocations, or significant asset changes. Most estate planners recommend reviewing wills every three to five years even without major changes. Check FastWill’s specific policies about ongoing access and update fees for your documents.
Wills that are valid where executed generally remain valid when you move to another state. However, state laws differ regarding execution requirements, estate administration, and property distribution. After relocating, you should have your will reviewed by an estate planning attorney in your new state to ensure it complies with local law and achieves your intentions. Some provisions that were effective in your previous state may work differently under new state law. You may need to create a new will conforming to your new state’s requirements.
Choose someone who is trustworthy, organized, financially responsible, and capable of handling legal and administrative tasks. Many people name spouses, adult children, or trusted friends. Professional fiduciaries (attorneys, banks, trust companies) can serve if you lack appropriate family members or prefer neutral third-party management. Consider practical factors: Does this person live nearby or in another state? Are they young enough to likely outlive you? Do they have time and willingness to handle estate administration? Always name at least one successor executor in case your first choice is unable or unwilling to serve.
FastWill’s basic will packages start at approximately $79 for individuals, while traditional estate planning attorneys typically charge $500 to $1,500 for comparable documents. For comprehensive planning including healthcare directives and powers of attorney, attorneys charge $1,500 to $3,000+, while FastWill offers these services at a fraction of that cost. Optional attorney support through FastWill costs a flat $299 for unlimited access. The trade-off is personalization: traditional attorneys provide customized guidance for complex situations, while online platforms offer standardized templates for straightforward circumstances. For typical families with standard planning needs, the cost savings with FastWill are substantial without sacrificing legal validity.
Take Control of Your Legacy Today
A will protects your family during the most difficult time of their lives. It eliminates uncertainty, prevents conflicts, expedites asset distribution, and ensures your wishes are honored. The process doesn’t need to be expensive, complicated, or emotionally overwhelming.
Online platforms like FastWill have made attorney-drafted wills accessible to millions of families who previously delayed this critical task due to cost or complexity concerns. For straightforward situations, these platforms provide legitimate legal protection at a fraction of traditional costs.
The hardest part is starting. Once you’ve committed to protecting your family, the actual process takes less than an hour. That small time investment provides lifelong peace of mind knowing you’ve handled one of life’s most important responsibilities.
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