Fill this out together before the first attorney meeting. Every decision you make here is one you are not paying a lawyer by the hour to help you make in the room.
A flat-fee living trust package in the Bay Area runs roughly $2,000 to $3,500 and covers the whole plan: the trust, two pour-over wills, financial powers of attorney, and healthcare directives. The cost creeps up when the meeting turns into discovery. Walk in with the answers below and the deed paperwork, and the first meeting becomes confirmation, not exploration.
Almost certainly you chose how to hold title at purchase, not a trust. Confirm it in five minutes.
You two are the trustees while you are alive and able. A successor trustee steps in only if you are both gone or unable to act. Pick someone organized and trustworthy with money. Name a backup.
Who raises the boys if something happens to both of you. This is the single most important reason a young family builds a trust, and it is a decision only the two of you can make.
You do not want assets handed to an 18 year old outright. Most families stagger it. Pick an approach.
| Approach | What it means | |
|---|---|---|
| A | Staggered | A portion at each milestone age, e.g. one third at 25, one third at 30, the rest at 35. |
| B | Single age | Everything held in trust, then distributed outright at one age (e.g. 30). |
| C | Lifetime trust | Held in trust for their lifetime, distributions at trustee discretion. Strongest protection, more to manage. |
The package includes powers of attorney and healthcare directives. Decide who acts for each of you if you cannot.
| Role | For Dan | For Minnie |
|---|---|---|
| Financial agent (power of attorney) | ||
| Healthcare agent |
The attorney needs to know what the trust will hold. You do not need account numbers yet, just what exists and roughly where.
| Asset | Where / institution | Approx. value |
|---|---|---|
| Home (Montclair) | ||
| Mortgage balance | ||
| Bank / checking / savings | ||
| Investment / brokerage | ||
| Retirement (401k / IRA) | ||
| Life insurance | ||
| Other |
Bring this list. It keeps you from being upsold and makes sure nothing is billed as an extra later.
Three real, licensed East Bay estate planning firms below. Call all three, give each the same short brief (simple joint revocable living trust, one home, two minor kids), and ask the flat-fee questions from section 7. Note: none of them publish a flat fee online, which is normal. You ask for it. The market for a couple's full package is roughly $2,000 to $3,500, so hold the quotes against that.
| Firm | Where | Why it's on the list | Contact |
|---|---|---|---|
| CunninghamLegal | Montclair Village, Oakland 6200 Antioch St, Suite 202 |
Literally in your neighborhood. Established estate-planning firm, handles minors and guardianship, offers in-person, phone, or Zoom. | (510) 339-0233 online booking available |
| Davidson Estate Law | Downtown Oakland 1300 Clay St, Suite 600 |
Boutique, estate-planning focused. Eric E. Davidson, well rated. Free initial consultation. | (510) 405-3505 free consult |
| Barr & Douds | Danville (serves Oakland) 318 Diablo Rd, Suite C |
Explicitly does guardianship designations for minor children. Free consultation. Good third comparison quote. | (925) 660-7544 free consult |
Details pulled from each firm's own website, July 2026. Confirm the current fee and what's included when you call. This is not an endorsement or legal advice, it's a starting shortlist to compare.
Two things to protect yourself on.
Do not get upsold. With one home and no estate tax exposure (the federal exemption is in the tens of millions per person, and California has no estate tax), a young family almost always needs only a simple joint revocable living trust. Push back on irrevocable or tax-driven structures unless there is a concrete reason.
The finish line is the recorded deed, not the signed trust. A trust that does not actually own the house still sends it through probate. Make sure the home is deeded in and recorded before you consider this done.