How Much Does a Living Trust Cost in Michigan? (2026)

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A living trust in Michigan costs $2,500 – $5,000 attorney-drafted, $3,000 – $7,000 for a couple’s full plan, or $100–$600 online. Probate in Michigan is cheaper and simpler than in states with statutory fee schedules, so the honest case for a trust here rests on privacy, incapacity planning, and speed more than on avoided cost.

Disclosure: we earn a commission if you buy through the Trust & Will links here, at no extra cost to you. Complex situations belong with an attorney and we say so below.

Michigan Living Trust Cost (2026)

Typical flat fees reported by Michigan attorneys and legal directories, reviewed quarterly. A guide, not a quote.

What Probate Actually Costs in Michigan

• Avoids probate: — assets in the trust pass directly to beneficiaries
• Avoids ancillary probate: — essential for Michigan snowbirds with Florida property
• Note: Trust property is generally protected from standard Medicaid estate recovery (probate-only recovery)
• Court system: Probate Court in each of Michigan’s 83 counties
• Small estate threshold: $51,000 (2025, adjusted for cost of living)
• Small estate affidavit: Available under MCL 700.3983 for estates at or below the threshold
• Creditor claims period: 4 months from date of publication of notice to creditors
• Filing fees: Filing fee + inventory fee (percentage of estate value, per MCL 600.871(1))
• Attorney fees: No statutory schedule — reasonable compensation; typically $200-$450/hour
• Typical timeline: 7-12 months average; complex estates 1-2+ years
• Lady Bird deeds: Available — primary probate avoidance tool for real estate
• Homestead exemption: $3,500 / 40 acres (general creditor; bankruptcy exemption ~$46,125)

Full Michigan probate rules and thresholds: our Michigan estate planning guide.

What each price point buys in Michigan

• $100–$600 (online): A valid Michigan trust document, pour-over will, and directives. You do the funding — every Michigan deed transfer, every account retitling.
• $2,500 – $5,000 (attorney, individual): Custom drafting, review of how your assets are titled, and usually one deed included. Confirm that last part before you sign.
• $3,000 – $7,000 (attorney, couple): Adds marital property planning.

Does your estate even need probate in Michigan?

Before paying for anything, check whether Michigan would require full probate at all. The state’s simplified route: Available under MCL 700.3983 for estates at or below the threshold Estates that fit under it can often transfer by affidavit or summary procedure, with no personal representative and no attorney — which makes a trust a convenience decision rather than a cost-avoidance one. Estates above it are where the numbers above start to bite.

Trust vs. probate in Michigan

Online or Michigan Attorney?

The dividing line is funding, not drafting. Online documents are valid in Michigan; what they don’t do is retitle your assets. See funding your trust.

Other Michigan rules that affect the plan

• Medicaid protection: — irrevocable trusts funded 5+ years before application can protect assets from the 60-month lookback
• Directed trust: — Michigan adopted the Uniform Directed Trust Act (MCL 700.7703a, effective March 2019); family retains investment control, trustee handles administration
• Decanting available: — trustee can modify trust terms by distributing to a new trust (MCL 700.7820a, effective 2012)
• DAPT available: — Michigan’s Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act (MCL 700.1042-700.1051, effective 2017) allows self-settled asset protection trusts
• 360-year trusts: for personal property (MCL 554.91-554.94); real property limited to 90-year USRAP vesting period
• Governing law: Estates and Protected Individuals Code (EPIC), Act 386 of 1998
• No state estate tax: (effectively zero since January 1, 2005)
• No state inheritance tax: (only applies to deaths on or before Sept 30, 1993)
• State income tax: Flat 4.25% (applies to trusts at same rate)
• Real estate transfer tax: $8.60 per $1,000 of value (0.86% combined state + county)
• Tenancy by the entirety: Recognized for married couples
• TOD deeds: Not available for real property

Recent Michigan Changes Worth Knowing

• July 1, 2024 — Uniform Power of Attorney Act Takes Effect: Act 187 of 2023 replaced Michigan’s prior 5-section EPIC provisions with a comprehensive 47-section framework. Includes a statutory form for creating durable powers of attorney. Prior valid POAs remain effective.
• February 2024 — EPIC Omnibus Modernization: Bipartisan legislation signed by Governor Whitmer updated estate, trust, and probate provisions that hadn’t been revised in decades. Included cost-of-living adjustments for small estate thresholds.
• Small Estate Threshold: Increased to $51,000 for deaths in 2025 (adjusted annually for cost of living).
• No Changes to Tax Rules: Michigan continues to have no state estate tax (effectively zero since 2005), no inheritance tax, and no gift tax. The flat 4.25% state income tax rate remains unchanged.
• Federal — One Big Beautiful Bill Act (July 2025): Made the $15 million per-person federal estate tax exemption permanent. With no state estate tax and a $15M federal threshold, very few Michigan families face any estate tax.

Living trust costs in nearby states

Attorney pricing and probate rules shift at the state line — compare Michigan with Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, Illinois.

When to Hire A Michigan Attorney

Online stops being the right answer when the estate has moving parts: property in more than one state, a blended family, a business, or anyone you intend to exclude.

1. Get two or three flat-fee quotes. Identical work varies by $1,000+ inside one metro.
2. Ask what’s included. Deed transfers run $150–$400 each and are often quoted separately.
3. Don’t buy complexity you don’t have.

Three ways to pay less in Michigan

1. Compare two or three flat-fee quotes. Identical Michigan trust packages vary by $1,000 or more inside the same metro, and almost nobody shops it.
2. Count the deeds before comparing prices. At $150–$400 apiece, with properties in multiple counties each needing their own recorded transfer, a quote including one deed can beat a cheaper quote including none.
3. Check the simplified threshold first. Available under MCL 700.3983 for estates at or below the threshold If your estate clears that, you may be buying convenience rather than savings.

Official sources: legislature.mi.gov · legislature.mi.gov · legislature.mi.gov · legislature.mi.gov

FAQ

How much does a living trust cost in Michigan?

$2,500 – $5,000 attorney-drafted, $3,000 – $7,000 for a couple’s full estate plan, or $100 to $600 through an online service. Add $150 to $400 per property for the deed transfers that fund it.

Is a living trust worth it in Michigan?

A trust costs $2,500-$7,000 (one-time trust creation) once, against probate at Filing fees + inventory fees + attorney fees (2-5% of estate).

Can I make my own living trust in Michigan?

Yes — online services produce valid Michigan documents. The risk is funding: a trust that doesn’t hold title to your home doesn’t avoid probate for it.

Can a small estate skip probate in Michigan?

Often, yes. Michigan’s simplified threshold: Available under MCL 700.3983 for estates at or below the threshold Estates under it may transfer without full administration, which changes whether a trust is worth paying for.

How long does probate take in Michigan?

7-12 months average; complex estates 1-2+ years A funded trust typically distributes in weeks to a few months instead, and without the public court file.

More: Living trust costs nationwide · Michigan estate planning guide · Funding your trust

Last updated: August 2026. Educational information, not legal advice or a quote.