The Estate Planning Guide Est. 2026

How Much Does a Living Trust Cost in Michigan?

By The Estate Planning Guide Editorial Team Researched against primary sources

Published June 11, 2026 Updated September 23, 2026 8 min read

Quick answer

No Michigan law sets what a living trust costs, and we found no published source for Michigan trust-drafting prices as of September 2026 that is not a law firm, an online document seller, or a site paid to refer customers to one. Michigan has no state estate tax, but probate court costs, attorney fees, and a statutory inventory fee apply. A funded living trust avoids the court process and keeps the estate private.

⚠️ Educational information only — not legal, tax, or financial advice.

The figures on this page are the ones a statute or a named, dated publisher sets. Laws, fees, thresholds, and prices differ by state and change often, and your own situation may change the result. Before you act, confirm the current numbers and rules for Michigan with a licensed professional — an attorney, tax advisor, or licensed agent as appropriate. Reading this page does not create a professional relationship.

What a living trust actually costs in Michigan

There are three ways to set up a revocable living trust in Michigan. What each includes differs; what each costs is not set by law and is not published by any independent source we could find:

How it’s prepared Price in Michigan What the engagement or the service’s terms state
Attorney-drafted Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 Whatever the written engagement letter lists. It is the engagement, not a market convention, that fixes the scope.
Online service Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 Whatever the service’s own published terms list.
DIY template Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026 The document alone. Drafting and funding are the purchaser’s to do.

We found no published source for this figure as of September 2026. The Michigan trust prices that are published come from law firms, online document sellers, or sites paid to refer customers to them. None is an independent publisher, so none is cited here.

No Michigan statute sets what a living trust costs. Michigan trust law governs how a trust is created and administered; it fixes no drafting charge. What is fixed by law is the probate side of the comparison, below. A trust holds assets outside probate only to the extent those assets are retitled into it, and deed preparation — the step that retitles real estate — is a separate charge wherever the trust is drafted.

What drives the price within Michigan

No Michigan statute sets any of these, and we found no independent published source for how much each moves the price as of September 2026. They are the items a drafting engagement is made of:

  • A joint trust for a married couple, against a single-person trust, against two separate trusts.
  • A new deed drafted and recorded for every property retitled into the trust, and a separate one in each other state where property is held.
  • A blended family, a special-needs beneficiary, a business interest, or estate-tax exposure.
  • Whether the price covers the trust document alone or a package with a pour-over will and powers of attorney.

What probate costs in Michigan by comparison

A funded living trust holds assets outside probate. The figure it is measured against is therefore the cost of Michigan probate itself.

Michigan probate runs through the county probate court and includes a statutory inventory fee based on estate value, plus filing fees, attorney fees, and executor compensation. Michigan has no state estate or inheritance tax, so the main cost of dying with only a will is the probate process itself.

We found no published source for what probate costs in total in Michigan as of September 2026. The ranges that are published come from law firms, online document sellers, or sites paid to refer customers to them, so none is cited here. What is fixed is the inventory fee and the court fees; attorney fees and executor compensation are not.

For the full breakdown, see How Much Does Probate Cost in Michigan?.

How Michigan probate cost compares to trust cost

Michigan has no state death tax. The comparison is between the trust's cost and Michigan probate — including the statutory inventory fee, assessed on estate value, and a months-long public proceeding. Estates within Michigan's small-estate or summary thresholds use those procedures.

A living trust operates on two things: assets retitled into it pass outside probate, and the trust document governs management if the grantor becomes incapacitated. Those are the documented functions; the figures above are what each costs in Michigan.

Michigan-specific things to know

Michigan is not a community-property state, has no state estate or inheritance tax, and has adopted the Michigan Trust Code (part of EPIC, MCL 700.7101 et seq.). Michigan also charges a probate inventory fee on a sliding scale based on estate value, which a funded trust avoids.

Funding. A Michigan trust avoids probate only for assets retitled into it — a new deed for real estate and ownership changes on accounts. Michigan also offers a "Lady Bird" (enhanced life estate) deed and transfer-on-death account designations as narrower probate-avoidance tools. A trust holds outside probate only the assets actually retitled into it; assets left in the grantor’s own name pass through probate whether or not a trust exists.

What affects the price in Michigan

We found no published source for Michigan trust pricing as of September 2026, so this page states no range and no price drivers beyond what the work itself consists of, above. The one price on this page that is fixed by law is the probate court’s, in the section above, with the statute that fixes it cited there.

What determines whether a trust applies in Michigan

In Michigan the operative factors are the inventory fee, probate duration, and public-record exposure. Small estates qualify for the summary procedures.

The circumstances in which a living trust has a documented effect:

  • Real estate, particularly in more than one state — property in another state otherwise requires a separate ancillary probate there.
  • Privacy — a probated will becomes a public court record; a trust does not.
  • Incapacity — a trust governs management during life; a will takes effect only at death.
  • Staged distributions — a trust can direct payment over time; a will distributes at closing.

Where an estate consists of assets that already pass by beneficiary designation or joint ownership, those assets bypass probate without a trust. For the documented differences between the two instruments, see Will vs. Trust: How They Differ.

What the record shows

Item Michigan
Price of a living trust Not set by law; no independent published source found as of September 2026
Governing statutes MCL 700.7101 et seq. (Michigan Trust Code); MCL 600.871 (probate inventory fee); MCL 700.3982–.3983 (small estate procedures)
State authority Michigan Courts (courts.michigan.gov)

A trust holds outside probate only the assets actually retitled into it; an unfunded trust leaves those assets in probate. The Michigan probate figures this is measured against are set out above with their citations. No figure is published here for what a trust costs to draft: we found no independent published source as of September 2026.

Living trust costs in other states

Compare Michigan with living trust pricing in other states:

This page sets out what Michigan law fixes about a living trust and the probate it is measured against, as of September 2026. It is not legal or financial advice; statutes and thresholds change and depend on your situation. Confirm current figures and rules with a licensed Michigan attorney. It states no drafting price, because we found no independent published source for one. Sources: Michigan Courts (courts.michigan.gov); MCL 700.7101 et seq. (Michigan Trust Code), MCL 600.871 (probate inventory fee), MCL 700.3982–.3983 (small estate procedures).

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