Guides › Estate, Probate & Inheritance › Living Trust Cost
Updated September 23, 2026. Quick answer: A revocable living trust drawn up by a Michigan attorney runs a median $2,350, $1,950–$2,800 for the middle half of the 909 firms LegalTemplates surveyed in 2026. That ties with Ohio for the joint-cheapest end of the middle of the pack, just below the national median. A DIY platform runs $149 to $649. What that spend buys locally: Michigan charges a flat $150 statewide to commence an estate, before a separate later inventory fee applies at closing.
Whether the state taxes the trust’s income is a separate question: does Michigan tax trust income.
Fast routes: National living trust cost guide | Michigan probate filing fee | Michigan probate cost | Is a living trust worth it in Michigan?
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How our partner relationships workLiving trust cost in Michigan: attorney vs DIY
Set against the national median and the DIY platforms:
| Figure | Amount |
|---|---|
| Attorney median, Michigan | $2,350 |
| Attorney middle-50% range, Michigan | $1,950–$2,800 |
| National median, all 50 states and DC | $2,475 |
| DIY document platform range | $149–$649 |
Attorneys who bundle the trust into a fuller package (pour-over will, financial power of attorney, healthcare documents) charge a national median of $2,700 for that package. DIY document platforms run $149 to $649 and do not vary by state; the national living trust cost guide has the full platform comparison table (LegalZoom, Trust & Will, Quicken WillMaker, FreeWill) with what each one includes.
Attorney figures: LegalTemplates, September 23, 2026.
What a living trust avoids: probate in Michigan
Michigan’s probate system is what a funded trust bypasses entirely; here is what that system actually charges. Michigan charges a flat $150 statewide to commence an estate, before a separate later inventory fee applies at closing. Full filing-fee breakdown.
Michigan publishes no percentage schedule for probate compensation: the personal representative and the attorney are each paid what the court finds reasonable (MCL 700.3719, part of Michigan’s Estates and Protected Individuals Code), but it does levy a separate value-scaled probate court inventory fee on every estate (MCL 600.871). Full Michigan probate cost guide, including how small an estate has to be to sidestep probate on its own.
Michigan living trust: signing, notary and the deed
Each line is a short extract quoted from, or a plain summary of, the statute cited; the section has the exceptions.
- Creating the trust. MCL 700.7402: “The settlor indicates an intention to create the trust…”
- Writing rule. MCL 566.106 (summarized, not quoted): a trust or power concerning land can be created only by operation of law or by a deed or other written conveyance signed by the party creating it, or by that party’s agent authorized in writing.
- Deed and notary. MCL 565.8: “…before any judge, clerk of a court of record, or notary public…”
- Certification of trust. MCL 700.7913: “…the trustee may furnish to the person a certificate of trust…”
For what the court side costs if a trust is not used, see Michigan probate cost.
Funding the trust in Michigan
The trust protects only what is actually inside it, which for real estate means a recorded deed change, not just the trust paperwork. A typical zero-consideration deed into your own trust is exempt from both Michigan’s state and county real estate transfer taxes, which exempt any deed under $100 of consideration (MCL 207.505(a) and 207.526(a)). Michigan’s homestead-style Principal Residence Exemption specifically continues when the grantor places the home in a revocable trust (MCL 211.7dd(a)(vi)). The deed still has to be recorded with the county register of deeds, for a base fee of $30.
Is a living trust worth it in Michigan?
$2,350 up front buys out of the probate costs above, and buys privacy and speed a will cannot: no public court file, no waiting on a judge’s calendar. The full worth-it analysis for Michigan runs the trade against your own real estate and estate size.
Sources
- LegalTemplates, 2026 Estate Planning Costs in the US (909 firms, read September 23, 2026).
- Michigan probate filing fee, Michigan probate cost, national living trust cost guide (Clear Money Guide).
- Statute/agency source, transfer-tax/recording source.