Estate Planning AttorneysWills, trusts, and powers of attorney
for Central Texas families
Estate Planning Lawyers in Hays
County & Austin
Working with an estate planning attorney means your wishes are written the way Texas law reads them. Key Law Office drafts wills, living trusts, powers of attorney, medical directives, and transfer on death deeds for families in Austin and across Central Texas, and we walk through every document with you in plain English before you sign.
Why an estate plan matters in Texas
Most people put off estate planning because it feels like something for later, or for people with a lot of money. Texas estate planning does a few practical jobs for almost everyone. It names who receives your property, who manages your affairs if you can’t, who raises your minor children, and who speaks to your doctors when you can’t speak for yourself. Without those documents, Texas statutes and a judge make those choices for you.
Key Law Office is a family law, estate planning, and probate firm headquartered in Austin, with offices in Buda, Bastrop, New Braunfels, and Victoria. Whether you just bought a home in Travis County, are raising kids in Hays County, or are helping an aging parent in Comal County, the same Estates Code applies, and we draft every plan to fit it.
What a Texas estate plan includes
A complete plan is usually a small set of documents that work together. Depending on your family and property, yours may include:
- Will. Names who receives your property, who serves as executor, and who would raise your minor children.
- Revocable living trust. Holds property during your life and passes it to your beneficiaries without a probate case for the assets it owns.
- Statutory durable power of attorney. Lets someone you trust handle money, bills, and property if you can’t.
- Medical power of attorney and directive to physicians. Name a health care agent and record your wishes about life-sustaining treatment.
- HIPAA release. Allows doctors to share your medical information with the people you choose.
- Designation of guardian. Names who should serve as your guardian, or your children’s guardian, if a court ever needs to appoint one.
- Transfer on death deed or Lady Bird deed. Passes your home directly to a named beneficiary at your death.
If you’re starting from zero, our plain-language overview of the core documents is a good place to begin before your first meeting.
Wills under the Texas Estates Code
Any adult of sound mind can make a will in Texas, and so can a younger person who is married or serving in the armed forces (Texas Estates Code §251.001). Under §251.051, a will must be in writing, signed, and witnessed by at least two credible witnesses who are 14 or older. We also add a self-proving affidavit signed in front of a notary, so your executor usually won’t need to track down the witnesses later to prove the will is valid.
Texas also accepts handwritten wills written entirely in your own hand, even without witnesses (§251.052). They are legal, but they often leave out key provisions and can be harder to prove in court.
A carefully drafted will can also ask for independent administration under §401.001, which lets your executor settle the estate with far less court supervision. If you want to understand how Texas probate works after a death, that page explains the process your executor will face and how our team can help.
Revocable living trusts
A revocable living trust is a legal arrangement where you move property into a trust that you control as trustee during your life. In Texas, a trust is revocable unless the document expressly says it is irrevocable (Texas Property Code §112.051), so you can change or cancel it while you’re living. At your death, the successor trustee you named distributes the trust’s assets according to your instructions, without a probate case for those assets.
A trust isn’t right for everyone. It tends to make sense if you own real estate in more than one state, want to keep the details of your estate private, have a blended family, or want a child’s inheritance managed over time instead of handed over at 18. A trust only controls the property actually titled in its name, so funding the trust, meaning retitling accounts and real estate into it, is part of the work.
Powers of attorney and medical directives
Planning for incapacity matters as much as planning for death. A statutory durable power of attorney, governed by Chapters 751 and 752 of the Estates Code, names an agent to handle your finances if an illness or accident leaves you unable to. It must be signed and acknowledged before a notary, and it keeps working after you lose capacity, which is exactly when your family needs it.
For health care decisions, the law uses two separate forms under Chapter 166 of the Health and Safety Code. A medical power of attorney names the person who makes treatment decisions when you can’t. A directive to physicians, often called a living will, records your own wishes about life-sustaining treatment. We pair them with a HIPAA release so your agent can actually get your medical information. You can read more about how advance directives protect you and your loved ones in our guide.
Designating a guardian
If you become incapacitated without a power of attorney, a court may need to appoint a guardian. A written designation under Estates Code §1104.202 lets you name the person you want, and the court must give that person preference unless it finds a legal reason not to. Parents can also name a guardian for their minor children in a will or in a separate written declaration under §1104.053, so the person who raises your kids is someone you chose.
Transfer on death and Lady Bird deeds
For many families the home is the largest asset, and Texas offers two simple ways to pass it outside of probate. A transfer on death deed under Chapter 114 of the Estates Code names a beneficiary who receives the property at your death. It must be recorded in the deed records of the county where the property sits before you die, and you can revoke it while you’re living. You keep full ownership until then.
A Lady Bird deed, also called an enhanced life estate deed, works in a similar way. It isn’t created by a specific statute, but it is widely used in Texas, and you keep the right to live in, sell, or mortgage the home without your beneficiary’s consent. We help you decide which deed fits your situation and how it fits with the rest of your plan.
What happens without a plan
If you die without a will, Texas intestacy law in Chapter 201 of the Estates Code decides who inherits, and the results surprise many families. If you are married and have a child from a prior relationship, your half of the community property passes to your children rather than your spouse. Separate property is split between your spouse and your children, and your spouse may receive only a life estate in one third of your land. Our guide explains what Texas intestacy law does with your property in more detail.
How we build your plan
Every plan starts with a conversation about your family, your property, and what worries you most. From there, our attorneys recommend the documents that fit, draft them, and go over each one with you in plain English. We supervise the signing with the witnesses and notary Texas law requires, so your documents are valid the day you sign them. We also encourage you to review your plan after any big change, like a marriage, divorce, new child, move, or major purchase, so it keeps working in the future.
Planning ahead won’t remove every hard moment for your family, but it gives them clear instructions and some peace of mind. If you’d like to talk through your situation, we offer free consultations, and there’s no pressure to decide anything on the spot.
Frequently Asked Questions
iWhat does an estate planning attorney do?
An estate planning attorney reviews your family, property, and goals, then drafts the legal documents that carry out your wishes under Texas law. That usually means a will, powers of attorney, and medical directives, and sometimes a trust or a deed. Your attorney also makes sure each document is signed, witnessed, and notarized correctly, because a missing formality can make a document hard to use later.
iHow much does an estate planning attorney cost?
Cost depends on what your plan needs. A will-based plan for a young family takes less work than a trust plan with real estate in several counties. We’ll talk through which documents make sense for you, and what the plan will cost, during a free consultation before you commit to anything.
iDoes a will avoid probate in Texas?
No. A will is a set of instructions for the probate court, so it still has to be probated. A well-drafted will can make probate simpler, for example by requesting independent administration. Assets in a living trust, accounts with named beneficiaries, and property passing by transfer on death deed generally skip probate.
iIs a handwritten will valid in Texas?
Yes, if it is written entirely in your own handwriting and signed by you. It doesn’t need witnesses. Handwritten wills often leave out an executor, a guardian for children, or independent administration, which can make probate slower and more expensive for your family.
iDoes divorce change my will in Texas?
Yes. Under Texas Estates Code §123.001, once your divorce is final, your will is read as if your former spouse, and any of their relatives who aren’t also your relatives, died before you, unless your will says otherwise. Other documents, like beneficiary designations and powers of attorney, follow their own rules, so it’s wise to review your whole plan after a divorce.
iWhen should I update my estate plan?
Review your plan every few years and after any major life change, such as a marriage, divorce, birth or adoption, a death in the family, or buying or selling significant property. If you moved to Texas from another state, it’s worth having your documents reviewed under Texas law.
We Stand By You
Every Step of the Way
Each estate plan is unique and takes caring attention to detail based on each individual’s circumstances.
It is important to seek the counsel of an estate planning attorney with experience in this field before beginning the estate planning process. Reach out to us for trusted support.
