California's Probate System Is Designed to Take a Cut of Everything You Built
Here's what most California families discover too late: probate fees are calculated on the gross value of your estate. Not your equity. Not what you actually own free and clear. The gross number.
A home appraised at $1,000,000 — even with a $900,000 mortgage — triggers roughly $46,000 in combined statutory attorney and executor fees. Your family pays that out of pocket or sells the house. There's no negotiation, no sliding scale based on ability to pay. It's written into Probate Code Sections 10800 and 10810.
And since Proposition 19 took effect, inheriting the family home can mean a property tax reassessment that turns a $1,200 annual bill into $10,000+ if your children miss a single filing deadline.
Most people know they should "do something about estate planning." The problem isn't motivation — it's knowing exactly which documents California law requires, how they interact, and which mistakes silently invalidate them.
The California Estate Protection System
The California Basic Estate Planning Kit is a complete, plain-English walkthrough of every document and decision that stands between your family and California's probate courts.
This isn't a stack of blank forms with a "good luck" sticker. It's a step-by-step system that shows you which documents to complete, in what order, and exactly how they work together — so nothing falls through the cracks when it matters most.
The kit covers the full spectrum of California estate planning: statutory wills, durable powers of attorney, advance health care directives, POLST forms, trust evaluation, probate avoidance strategies, community property titling, Proposition 19 deadlines, Medi-Cal estate recovery protection, and the specific county-level recording rules that trip up most do-it-yourself planners.
What You Get — 9 Printable PDFs
- Complete Estate Planning Guide — 14 chapters covering California statutory wills, durable powers of attorney, advance health care directives, POLST, trusts, probate avoidance, community property, Proposition 19, Medi-Cal estate recovery, and special situations. Plain-English walkthrough of every document and decision, with the California code sections and thresholds that apply.
- Quick-Start Checklist — a compact reference of every document and deadline in priority order, with the California-specific thresholds that determine which steps apply to your situation.
- Document Signing Checklists — printable checklists for all four major signings: the statutory will (two-witness rule), DPOA (notarization rules), advance health care directive (skilled nursing facility requirements), and TOD deed (60-day recording deadline). Bring to each appointment.
- Trust Funding Tracker — fillable worksheet to track every asset as you re-title it into your revocable living trust. Covers real estate, bank accounts, brokerages, insurance, and vehicles with the specific deed or form required for each.
- Prop 19 Compliance Checklist — the exclusion cap, the strict one-year primary residence occupancy deadline, and the county assessor filing requirements. Missing any step triggers a full market-value property tax reassessment.
- Medi-Cal Planning Checklist — pre-death planning steps and post-death deadlines for protecting the family home from estate recovery under SB 833. Includes the 90-day Notice of Death and 60-day Hardship Waiver deadlines.
- Digital Asset Inventory — fillable worksheet organized by account type (financial, communication, subscriptions). Catalog every digital account before California's 3-year escheatment clock runs out.
- Annual Review Checklist — yearly review protocol covering assets, beneficiary designations, people and roles, life events, and legal threshold changes. Print and complete once per year.
- Form Reference Directory — all California forms, deadlines, current thresholds, and estimated costs on one printable sheet. Judicial Council forms, county recorder forms, health and incapacity forms, DMV forms, tax forms, and vital records.
Who This Is Built For
- Homeowners who want to keep their property out of California's statutory fee system — whether your home is worth $600,000 or $3,000,000
- Parents who need to name guardians for minor children and set up basic protections now, not "someday"
- Married couples who want to preserve the community property double step-up advantage and avoid titling mistakes that cost six figures
- Adult children helping aging parents get documents signed while they still have legal capacity — because once capacity is gone, you're looking at conservatorship court
- Blended families who need to protect both biological children and a surviving spouse from California's default intestacy rules
- Unmarried partners who currently have zero legal standing if their partner becomes incapacitated or passes away
Why Not Just Use the Free State Forms?
California offers free statutory will and advance directive templates. They're real legal documents — no question about that.
The problem is what they don't include. The free will form explicitly warns that any handwritten changes, crossed-out text, or custom clauses will invalidate the entire document. It doesn't support minor's trusts. And it exists in complete isolation — no guidance on how a will coordinates with beneficiary designations, no explanation of when a will alone doesn't avoid probate, no Prop 19 checklist, no DPOA, no county-level recording instructions.
The state gives you the pieces. The kit shows you how they fit together.
Why Not LegalZoom or Trust & Will?
Those platforms charge $149 to $499+ for initial document creation, then quietly bill your credit card every year — $49 to $299 annually — just to maintain the ability to edit or re-download your own files. Cancel the subscription and you lose access to the documents you already paid to create.
The California Basic Estate Planning Kit is a one-time purchase. No subscriptions, no annual renewal, no paywall between you and your own estate plan.
— Less Than One Hour of Attorney Time
California estate planning attorneys charge $300 to $500 per hour. A basic revocable living trust runs $1,500 to $4,000+. Even a simple will review starts at $200 to $500.
The kit doesn't replace an attorney for complex situations — and it tells you exactly when you need one. But for the vast majority of California families who need clear, legally compliant documents and a structured plan, the kit provides immediate protection at a fraction of professional fees.
And if you do decide to hire an attorney later, the asset inventory, beneficiary audit, and decision worksheets you've completed become your intake package — saving hours of billable time.
30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Download the kit, review the checklists and guides. If the plain-English instructions don't clarify the exact steps needed to protect your family — or if you decide to hire a local attorney for a custom trust instead — email us within 30 days for an immediate, full refund. No questions asked.
Important notice: Bereavement Start Guide is a publisher of educational resources and legal templates. This kit assists individuals in organizing their estate affairs and completing standard statutory forms. It does not provide personalized legal, financial, or tax advice, does not act as a law firm, and does not establish an attorney-client relationship. For complex assets, multi-state property, or custom trust structures, consultation with a licensed California attorney is strongly recommended.