Johnson County Courthouse — Iowa City
417 S Clinton St, Iowa City. You don't file an estate plan with the court while you're alive — wills are kept private. But when you die, your will is opened in probate at the Johnson County Courthouse if you lived in Coralville, North Liberty, or anywhere in Johnson County.
Why estate planning matters
You already have an estate plan — it's the one the State of Iowa wrote in the absence of yours, called intestate succession. The default plan:
- Doesn't name guardians for your minor children. A judge picks.
- Doesn't avoid probate. Everything goes through court.
- Doesn't reflect blended families, stepchildren, or anyone outside the bloodline.
- Doesn't speak for you in the ICU when you can't speak for yourself.
- Doesn't protect a child with special needs.
- Doesn't minimize federal estate tax or build in long-term-care planning.
A proper plan does all of that. The right plan for a 32-year-old with a baby and a starter home is not the same plan as the right plan for a 68-year-old with a paid-off house and a brokerage account.
The core documents
Last will and testament
Iowa requires a will to be:
- In writing. Iowa does not recognize holographic (handwritten, unwitnessed) wills. A handwritten note will fail.
- Signed by the testator (the person making the will).
- Witnessed by 2 competent witnesses who sign in the testator's presence (Iowa Code 633.279).
A notary is not required for the will to be valid — but it should be added as part of a self-proving affidavit (see below). The will names a personal representative (executor), names guardians for minor children, and directs how property is distributed.
Self-proving affidavit
An optional but highly recommended add-on. The testator and both witnesses sign a sworn statement before a notary at the time of signing. The benefit: when the will is later admitted to probate, the witnesses don't have to be tracked down or testify. The will "proves itself." Iowa Code 633.279(2). Skip this and your kids may someday be looking for a college roommate who witnessed a document 40 years ago.
Revocable living trust
A trust is a separate legal entity that holds your assets. While you're alive and competent, you are the trustee and beneficiary — nothing changes day to day. When you die or become incapacitated, a successor trustee takes over and distributes assets without probate court involvement. Reasons to use a trust:
- Avoid Iowa probate — saves time, attorney/executor fees, and keeps the disposition private.
- Out-of-state real estate — avoid a second probate in the state where the cabin or rental property sits.
- Blended families — control how a surviving spouse can use assets while protecting the kids' shares.
- Special-needs beneficiaries — protect a child's eligibility for Medicaid or SSI.
- Privacy — wills become public when probated. Trusts do not.
A trust only works if it's funded — meaning your house, accounts, and other assets are actually retitled in the name of the trust. A drafted-but-unfunded trust is the most common estate-planning failure.
Durable power of attorney (financial)
The financial POA names someone to handle your money — pay bills, manage accounts, sell property — if you can't. Iowa adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (Iowa Code Chapter 633B).
- Immediate POA: effective the moment it's signed.
- Springing POA: effective only on a triggering event (typically a physician's certification of incapacity).
"Durable" means the POA survives your incapacity — which is exactly when you need it. A non-durable POA dies when you become incapacitated, which makes it useless for estate planning.
Healthcare power of attorney
Names a healthcare agent to make medical decisions when you can't (Iowa Code Chapter 144B). The agent talks to your doctors, accesses your records (HIPAA authorization is usually built in), and decides about treatment, surgery, and end-of-life care within your stated wishes.
Living will / advance directive
Your written instructions about life-sustaining treatment when you have a terminal condition or are permanently unconscious — separate from naming a healthcare agent. Iowa's living-will statute is at Iowa Code Chapter 144A. UIHC and Mercy Iowa City both ask for a copy at intake.
Beneficiary designations and transfer-on-death deeds
Many assets pass outside the will — directly to whoever you named on a beneficiary form:
- Life insurance proceeds
- 401(k), IRA, and other retirement accounts
- Payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts
- Transfer-on-death (TOD) brokerage accounts
- Real-property TOD deeds — Iowa allows beneficiary deeds for real estate under Iowa Code 558.83. Recorded while you're alive, the deed transfers the property automatically at death without probate.
What does it cost?
| Plan type | Typical Iowa fee range |
|---|---|
| Simple will package (will + financial POA + healthcare POA + living will) | $400 – $1,200 |
| Will-based plan for a married couple with minor children | $800 – $1,800 |
| Trust-based plan (revocable living trust + pour-over wills + POAs) | $1,500 – $5,000 |
| Complex plan (irrevocable trust, special needs trust, business succession, tax planning) | $5,000+ |
Many Coralville-area estate attorneys charge a flat fee for standard packages rather than hourly. Ask up front what's included — particularly whether funding the trust (deed preparation, beneficiary changes) is included or extra.
"Simple" vs. "complex" — which describes you?
A "simple" estate plan typically fits if all of these are true:
- Married or single, traditional family — no blended marriages with children from a prior relationship.
- Total estate well under the federal estate tax exclusion (currently around $13M per individual).
- No business ownership beyond a simple LLC.
- No special-needs beneficiaries.
- No out-of-state real estate.
- No anticipated long-term-care or Medicaid planning needs.
If any of those don't apply, you probably need a more complex plan — typically trust-based.
When to update your plan
Estate plans aren't "set and forget." Update yours when:
- Marriage or divorce. Iowa's omitted-spouse and pretermitted-heir rules can rewrite your plan unintentionally.
- Birth or adoption of a child or grandchild.
- Death of a named beneficiary, executor, trustee, or guardian.
- Move to or from Iowa — state laws differ.
- Major asset changes — selling a business, buying a vacation home, large inheritance.
- Change in tax law, especially federal estate tax exemption changes.
- Every 5 years at minimum, even if nothing else changed.
Common mistakes
- Joint titling everything to "avoid probate." Works until the joint owner gets divorced or sued.
- Naming a minor as a beneficiary — triggers a court-supervised conservatorship.
- Out-of-date beneficiary forms — see warning above.
- Drafting a trust and never funding it.
- DIY wills from online templates that don't satisfy Iowa's witness rules.
- Hiding the originals. If nobody can find your will, it's as if you didn't have one.
Choosing a Coralville estate planning lawyer
- Does meaningful estate work — not just litigation with an estate sideline.
- Asks about your family, goals, and assets before quoting a price.
- Explains will vs. trust without a sales pitch.
- Offers a flat-fee package with funding instructions included.
- Provides a written summary of what each document does.
- Will store originals or give you clear storage instructions.
FAQ — Iowa estate planning
Does Iowa recognize handwritten (holographic) wills?
No. Iowa requires a written will signed by the testator and witnessed by two competent witnesses. A handwritten note without witnesses will not be admitted to probate.
Do I need a trust or is a will enough?
Depends on your situation. A will is enough for many young families with modest assets. A trust makes sense for probate avoidance, blended families, out-of-state property, special-needs beneficiaries, and privacy.
What happens if I die without a will in Iowa?
Iowa's intestate succession rules decide. Generally, a surviving spouse and children share. If you have no spouse and no descendants, parents and siblings inherit. The court appoints a guardian for minor children — not you.
Is the will valid without a notary?
Yes. Iowa requires two witnesses, not a notary. But adding a self-proving affidavit (notarized) makes probate much easier later.
Can I avoid probate completely?
Largely yes — through a funded revocable trust, joint titling, beneficiary designations, transfer-on-death deeds, and POD/TOD accounts. Even with a trust, a small "pour-over" will handles anything missed.
How long is an Iowa power of attorney good for?
Until you revoke it or die. A durable POA survives your incapacity. A non-durable one ends when you become incapacitated — making it useless for the purpose most people want.