Estate Planning in Arizona

Yes, especially if you own a home, have assets, or have children.

If you own a home, that property will go through probate court without a plan, a public, time consuming process your family will have to navigate while grieving. If you have children, a judge you have never met will decide who raises them. And if you have any assets at all, Arizona’s intestacy laws, not you, decide who receives them. An estate plan is simply how you stay in control of the things that matter most to you, at any age.

With only a will, your family must go to court. With a living trust, they do not.

A will is an important document, but it does not keep your family out of court. Under Arizona law, a will must be filed with and validated by a probate court before a single asset can be distributed. That means your family has to go through a legal process that is public, can drag on for months or even years, and comes with real costs. A living trust works differently. Your assets pass directly to your loved ones without any court involvement at all, privately and on your timeline. For most Arizona families, the right answer is both: a living trust as the foundation of your plan, and a will as a safety net for anything that falls outside it.

Simply put, you lose all control. And that is a serious problem for everyone you leave behind.

Without a will or trust, you have no say in what happens to anything you own. Arizona steps in with a fixed legal formula, and it does not know you, your family, or your wishes. Your assets become public record through probate court. A judge who has never met your family decides who raises your children. The people you wanted to provide for may get nothing, while others you never intended receive everything. Everything you worked for ends up in the hands of a process you had no part in designing. The good news is that this is entirely preventable, and easier to fix than most people think.

At least every five years, or immediately after a life event.

Your trust is a living document, and life does not stand still. A marriage, a divorce, a new child or grandchild, the death of a beneficiary, a significant change in your assets, or even a move to a new state can all affect whether your plan still works the way you intended. Arizona law changes too. A trust that was perfectly designed five years ago may have real gaps today. We recommend reviewing yours at least every five years, and calling us right away after any major life event. A quick review now is far easier, and far less costly, than untangling problems later.

No, Arizona does not currently impose a state estate tax.

However, the federal estate tax applies to estates above the federal exemption threshold, which is subject to change by Congress. For larger estates in the Scottsdale and Phoenix area, strategies like irrevocable trusts, annual gifting programs, and charitable planning vehicles can substantially reduce federal exposure. Our attorneys are well versed in these strategies and can design the right approach for your situation.

Yes, you can, but online forms rarely work the way you need them to. Working with an estate planner is the best option for truly protecting your assets.

Online forms are generic by design. They are not built around Arizona law, your family, or your specific assets. A trust that is not properly drafted or funded offers little to no probate protection. Documents with the wrong language can be rejected entirely. And when something goes wrong, the people left to sort it out are the ones you were trying to protect. An estate planner takes the time to understand your situation and builds a plan that actually works when your family needs it most. That peace of mind is something an online form simply cannot give you.