You don't go into a lot of detail about your situation, so I can't really answer this question specifically for you.  But here is some general information you can chew on and (below) some important things to remember if you decide to go it alone:

I will admit that there may be some cases where, because of the size and uncomplicated nature of a person's estate (single person with relatively few assets), a do-it-yourself will kit found online on the Internet or in a book will suffice. However, let me emphasize that I do not recommend do-it-yourself wills. If you want to save money, shop at Wall-Mart or brew your own coffee, don't risk messing up something as important as your estate plan.

 Especially if you have children, because of issues related to their physical and financial care, do-it-yourself wills seem like a very bad idea to me. For example, even if your online will deals with the issue of who will care for your children if you and/or your spouse die, a basic trust may be a better tool for planning for the care and needs of children.  Follow this link to a post with more information about establishing a trust in your will for the care of children.

I believe you can get a will drafted by a Massachusetts estate planning attorney (and some advice on how to proceed when your estate planning needs become more complicated) for $300 to $600.  However, if you truly believe you cannot afford to pay an attorney, go to our Information Links page for information about organizations that can help you find legal assistance at a reduced rate.

Effective estate planning requires both an expertise in federal and state tax law and an understanding of some truly complicated and concepts that are codified in mind-numbing statutes. It can be a trap for the unprepared, and more than a few lawyers have stumbled. Even with a "simple" will, seemingly small errors in drafting or execution can result in a huge disparity between what you want to accomplish and what you actually get.

One of my colleagues told me a sad story about a relatively young man who discovered he had a terminal illness and wanted to prepare a will that would leave all he owned to his wife. He downloaded a form from the Internet, filled it out, signed it, and had it witnessed by two competent adults. Unfortunately, one of the witnesses was his wife. In Massachusetts, if a beneficiary of a will acts as a witness then the will is still valid, but the witness/beneficiary cannot take any property under the will. Although Massachusetts law allowed the wife to claim her "spousal share" (a statutorily mandated portion of the deceased spouse's estate that the surviving spouse may elect to claim even if she has been specifically excluded by the will), instead of getting all of her husbands estate, the wife had to hire an attorney to claim a small percentage of the estate.

I don't have space to describe all the other traps you can fall into, but if you simply must do it yourself, at least make sure you follow these guidelines for proper execution of your will:

1) The testator must be of sound mind and at least 18 years old;
2) The execution must be witnessed by two competent adults
who are not beneficiaries;
3) The witnesses should be in the room when the testator signs
and watch the actual signing of the document; and
4) A will with a self-proving affidavit (in which the witnesses
acknowledge they witnessed the signing of the document
by a testator who appeared to be old enough and of sound
mind) must be notarized to be effective.

If I haven't talked you out of a do-it-yourself-will, then happy shopping!