Boland Law Group, PLLCPassionately Preserving Wealth™
Serving Carefree from the Scottsdale Airpark
Carefree estate planning attorneys
Boland Law Group is an estate planning and tax law firm in the Scottsdale Airpark, about 29 minutes from the Carefree Sundial. We write trusts, wills and powers of attorney for Carefree and Cave Creek households, plan to keep the house out of probate court, and publish our fees before you call.
Estate planning for Carefree households
Boland Law Group, PLLC is an estate planning and tax law firm at 15100 N. 78th Way, Suite 203, Scottsdale, Arizona 85260, about 16 miles and 29 minutes by car from the Carefree Sundial. It serves households in Carefree, Cave Creek and the Boulders area with revocable living trusts, wills, powers of attorney, health care directives, irrevocable trusts and estate tax planning, on published flat fees. The firm meets Carefree clients at that office and by secure video. To book a consultation, call (480) 420-8268.
Carefree was planned in the mid-1950s by K.T. Palmer and Tom Darlington and incorporated as a town in 1984. Planning here tends to turn on three facts the Census Bureau's figures bear out: about half of residents are 65 or older, the median home is valued at more than $1 million, and about one home in five is kept for seasonal use.
Every matter is handled directly by an LL.M. partner, from the first consultation through funding the trust. Grant M. Boland holds an LL.M. in estate planning and Robert W. Boland, Jr. an LL.M. in taxation, and both are admitted to the U.S. Tax Court. Our estate planning services page describes the whole practice.
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Retired couples planning for the years ahead
A successor trustee and powers of attorney that let the family act without a court.
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Families whose children live in other states
Trustees and shares that work for heirs settling the estate from a distance.
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Owners of a company or a practice
The business, the buy-sell agreement and the estate plan drafted as one. Executives with company stock, see senior executives.
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Estates that could exceed $15 million
SLATs, dynasty trusts and life insurance trusts, planned by attorneys admitted to the U.S. Tax Court.
Four census figures that shape a Carefree estate plan
Carefree's households differ sharply from Arizona's as a whole, and each difference below changes what a plan here has to do first.
Residents 65 or older
49%
Carefree 49.3%. Arizona 18.9%.
Plan for incapacity first. A successor trustee and powers of attorney let family act without asking a court to appoint a conservator.
Median value of an owner-occupied home
$1,088,100
Carefree $1,088,100. Arizona $394,500.
Arizona's affidavit of succession reaches only $300,000 of real estate, at the assessor's value less liens. A Carefree home near the median is usually well above that line, so without a trust or a beneficiary deed it goes through probate.
Homes kept for seasonal or occasional use
19%
Carefree 19.2% of homes. Arizona 5.2%.
Part-year residents need a settled domicile and one trust that holds both homes, so neither state has to open a probate.
Married-couple households
66%
Carefree 66.0%. Arizona 46.7%.
Arizona is a community property state. Property held as community property can take a full income tax basis step-up at the first death, and a couple's plan should keep that character intact.
Documents that work while you are alive
With about half of Carefree 65 or older, the papers that act during a lifetime matter as much as the ones that act at death.
Durable financial power of attorney
Names the agent who handles accounts, taxes and property that sit outside the trust, including after you lose capacity.
Arizona requires your signature, one witness who is not the agent, the agent's spouse or the agent's children, and a notary. A power of attorney validly signed in another state is honored here.
A.R.S. § 14-5501
Health care directives
A health care power of attorney names who speaks with your doctors, a mental health care power of attorney covers mental health decisions separately, and a living will records your wishes about life-sustaining treatment.
A directive validly made in another state is valid in Arizona. We still compare it with Arizona's own forms before you rely on it.
A.R.S. §§ 36-3208, 36-3221, 36-3261, 36-3281
A successor trustee instead of a conservator
If you can no longer manage your affairs and your assets are in your own name, your family may have to petition the Superior Court to appoint a conservator.
Assets already in a funded revocable trust are managed by the successor trustee you chose, on the terms you wrote, with no petition and no hearing.
A.R.S. § 14-5401
Keeping a Carefree home out of probate court
A trust avoids probate only for what it owns, so for most Carefree families the plan starts with the deed.
| How the home is held | At death | If you become incapacitated | Suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deeded into your revocable trust | No probate | Your successor trustee manages or sells it | Most Carefree owners. The deed is part of every core plan. |
| Recorded beneficiary deed | No probate, if a beneficiary named on it survives you | Your agent under a financial power of attorney has to act | One property, when no trust is wanted |
| Left by will | Probate, unless your Arizona real estate is $300,000 or less, net of liens | The will does nothing; an agent or a conservator has to act | Rarely the right fit for a Carefree home |
The affidavit value is the assessor's full cash value less liens, and heirs cannot file the affidavit until six months after the death. A.R.S. § 14-3971(E); A.R.S. § 33-405.
Every core plan includes the special warranty deed that moves your Carefree home into your trust, recorded with the Maricopa County Recorder. Each additional Arizona property is $350. If a lender ever asks you to deed the home out of the trust to refinance, a beneficiary deed naming the trustee keeps it out of probate until it goes back in. Federal law generally bars your lender from calling the mortgage because you moved your home into your own living trust (12 U.S.C. § 1701j-3(d)(8)).
Winters in Carefree, a home somewhere else
About one Carefree home in five is kept for seasonal or occasional use. If yours is one of them, the first question is not which trust to sign. It is which state you live in.
Your domicile is the one place you treat as your permanent home, and it is shown by facts: where you vote, register your cars, file income tax returns as a resident and spend most of the year. It decides which state may tax your estate. Arizona has no estate tax, while Minnesota, Illinois and Massachusetts each begin taxing estates far below the federal $15 million exemption.
A funded revocable trust that owns both homes keeps both out of probate. Without one, a will is probated in your home state and again, in an ancillary proceeding, wherever the other house sits. We record the Arizona deed and work with a lawyer licensed where the other home is, passing that cost through without markup.
What a complete Carefree estate plan includes
Every core plan, at every fee level, includes these twelve documents and services.
- Revocable living trust
- Pour-over will
- General durable power of attorney
- Health care power of attorney
- Mental health care power of attorney
- Living will
- HIPAA authorization
- Certificate of trust
- Age-gated shares for children and grandchildren, held in trust
- Assignment of personal property
- Special warranty deed of your Arizona home into the trust
- Written funding instructions for every other account
Beyond the core plan
Revocable living trust
The document the rest of the plan pours into. You manage it while you are able; the trustee you name steps in if you are not.
Irrevocable trust
Moves an asset, and its future growth, out of your taxable estate in exchange for giving up control of it.
Spousal lifetime access trust
One spouse makes a gift to a trust for the other, locking in today's exemption while the marriage can still benefit from the trust.
Dynasty trust
Keeps wealth, to the extent of your generation-skipping exemption, free of estate tax at each generation, for up to 500 years under Arizona law.
Irrevocable life insurance trust
Holds a life insurance policy outside both spouses' taxable estates, so the proceeds can pay estate costs or even out what each child receives.
Trust restatement
A trust written by another firm or in another state, replaced in full under current Arizona law without retitling what it owns.
Published flat fees, fixed before drafting begins
We publish what a plan costs. A core plan is a flat fee set by your gross estate and the structure of your trust, and it is fixed in a written engagement letter before drafting begins. Recording fees and other third-party costs pass through at cost.
Gross estate means the full value of what you own at death, including your home, retirement accounts and any life insurance you own, before debts. SLATs, dynasty trusts and other lifetime strategies are quoted separately; see our high net worth planning page.
| Gross estate | Single | Married |
|---|---|---|
| Up to $5 million | $5,000 | $5,500 to $6,500 |
| Over $5 million to $15 million | $6,000 | $6,500 to $12,750 |
| Over $15 million to $30 million | $6,000 | $12,750+ |
| Over $30 million to $45 million | $10,000+ | $18,750+ |
| Above $45 million | $15,000+ | $25,000+ |
| Each additional Arizona deed into the trust | $350 per property | |
2026 minimum flat fees from the published schedule. Married fees vary with the structure of the trust. If this table and the schedule ever differ, the schedule controls.
From Carefree to our office
Our office is in the Scottsdale Airpark, about 14 miles south of the Carefree Sundial in a straight line and 16.4 miles by road.
- 0.0 miCarefree Sundial, Sundial Circle
- 0.1 miSoutheast on Cave Creek Road
- 2.0 miRight on Pima Road, south for 12 miles
- 14.0 miA short jog at Princess Drive, then south on Pima Road again
- 15.3 miRight on Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard, then left on Hayden Road
- 16.4 mi82nd Street to 78th Way: Suite 203, second floor
| Starting point | Miles | Minutes |
|---|---|---|
| Carefree Sundial, town center | 16.4 | 29 |
| The Boulders, Tom Darlington Drive | 15.5 | 27 |
| Desert Forest Golf Club | 16.5 | 32 |
| Cave Creek Town Hall | 19.5 | 32 |
| Where a Carefree probate would be heard | ||
| Maricopa County Superior Court, 101 W. Jefferson Street, Phoenix | 34.2 | 52 |
Directions, parking and access details are on our offices and appointments page. For the communities between Carefree and the Airpark, see North Scottsdale.
At the Airpark office
15100 N. 78th Way, Suite 203, beside the Scottsdale Airport runway, in the building named Lex Capital. Second floor, with an elevator, step-free access and parking at the building. Monday to Thursday, 9am to 5pm, and Saturdays by appointment.
By secure video
For reviews, second opinions and the months you spend away, booked on the same calendar as office meetings.
Around your season
Tell us when you leave for the summer. We schedule the drafting backward from that date, so the plan is signed and the house is deeded before you go.
Ten questions Carefree families ask
Do you have an office in Carefree or Cave Creek?
No. Boland Law Group, PLLC has one office, at 15100 N. 78th Way, Suite 203, Scottsdale, Arizona 85260, in the Scottsdale Airpark. From the Carefree Sundial it is about 16.4 miles, roughly 29 minutes off-peak; from Cave Creek Town Hall, about 19.5 miles and 32 minutes. We also meet by secure video. Visits are by appointment; call (480) 420-8268.
Will our Carefree home go through probate if we only have a will?
Usually. Arizona's affidavit of succession transfers real estate without probate only when the decedent's Arizona real estate, valued at the assessor's full cash value less liens, is $300,000 or less, and only once six months have passed since the death. A Carefree home near the median value is usually well above that line, so it would pass through the Maricopa County Superior Court. A funded trust, a recorded beneficiary deed or survivorship title avoids that.
Is a beneficiary deed enough, or do we need a trust?
For a simple estate, it can be. A beneficiary deed must be recorded before the owner's death, covers only that one property and does nothing if you become incapacitated, and unless it says otherwise it is void if no beneficiary named on it survives you. A funded revocable trust covers the house, the accounts and incapacity together.
Which court handles probate for a Carefree estate?
The Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County, because Carefree is in Maricopa County. Probate matters are heard downtown, at 101 W. Jefferson Street in Phoenix, about 34 miles and 52 minutes by car from the Carefree Sundial. A funded trust lets your family settle the estate without opening a case there.
We spend summers in another state. Which state's law applies to our plan?
Two different things decide that. Your trust names the law that governs it, and we draft Carefree trusts under Arizona law. Your domicile, shown by where you vote, register your cars, file resident tax returns and spend most of the year, decides which state may tax your estate. Real estate in another state also stays subject to that state's rules.
Does Arizona have an estate or inheritance tax?
No. Arizona has no estate tax, inheritance tax or gift tax. In 2026 the federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 per person and $30,000,000 for a married couple, with a top rate of 40 percent above it. Most Carefree plans focus on probate, incapacity and control; larger estates also plan around the federal tax.
What happens if one of us develops dementia?
The successor trustee named in your funded revocable trust takes over managing its assets without going to court. A durable financial power of attorney covers anything outside the trust, and health care and mental health care powers of attorney name who makes medical decisions. Without them, your family may have to petition the Superior Court for a guardian or conservator, which brings ongoing court oversight.
Can you update a trust we signed in another state?
Yes, by restating it. A restatement replaces the trust's terms in full under current Arizona law while keeping its original name and date, so your Carefree home and the accounts already titled to it do not need to be retitled. It is priced from the same published schedule as a new core plan. We do not add amendments to documents another firm drafted.
Can we do everything by video, or do we need to come in?
Consultations, reviews and drafting conversations work well by secure video, which suits clients who are away for the summer. Signings usually happen in person at our office, because wills, powers of attorney and deeds carry witnessing and notarization formalities under Arizona law.
How much does an estate plan cost?
Core plans are flat fees set by the size of the gross estate. In 2026 the minimum for estates up to $5 million is $5,000 for a single person and $5,500 to $6,500 for a married couple. From $5 million to $15 million it is $6,000 single and $6,500 to $12,750 married. Each additional Arizona deed into the trust is $350, and the full schedule is published on our website.
Start with the folder you already have.
Bring your existing will or trust, the deed to your home and the dates you are in Carefree. We will tell you what your plan needs and what it costs before you decide anything.
15100 N. 78th Way, Suite 203
Scottsdale, Arizona 85260
Offices and appointments
Monday to Thursday, 9am to 5pm
Saturdays by appointment
By appointment only
General information about federal and Arizona law as of September 2026, not legal or tax advice. No attorney-client relationship exists until an engagement letter is signed. Census figures are survey estimates. Club and association rules vary; your documents control. Fees are 2026 published minimums, and the published schedule controls. Passionately Preserving Wealth is a trademark of Boland Law Group, PLLC.