Estate Planning Attorney Serving Andover, MA

Andover sits in Essex County, which means estates here are administered through the Essex Probate and Family Court rather than Middlesex. The practical consequences are procedural, but the planning question is the same one every Massachusetts family faces: are your instructions written down in a form the Commonwealth will follow, or will default rules apply?

Andover households frequently have the profile where trust planning earns its keep. A long-held home with substantial equity, retirement accounts built over a career, life insurance, and sometimes a second property or a business interest — assets that add up past the Massachusetts estate tax threshold well before they come anywhere near the federal exemption. Add the probate exposure that comes with real estate held in individual names, and the case for a properly funded revocable trust becomes concrete rather than theoretical.

That said, we do not sell trusts to people who do not need them. Many Andover families are well served by a well-drafted will, correct beneficiary designations, and thoughtful titling. The point of the first consultation is to work out which category you are in — and it is free either way.