Click here for a great Estate Planning Checklist: Creating an Estate Plan Checklist
Most Americans know they should have an estate plan. Most still do not have one.
A 2026 survey of 5,000 American adults found that 56% had no estate-planning documents at all. That means no will, trust, medical power of attorney, or financial power of attorney. Only 26% had a will, even though 73% said estate planning was important to them. A separate 2025 survey found that only 24% of Americans had a will. (Trust & Will’s 2026 Estate Planning Report; Caring.com’s 2025 Wills and Estate Planning Survey)
I do not think the problem is that people believe estate planning is unnecessary. Most people simply do not know where to start, do not want to think about it, or assume they will get to it later.
Others have a will and believe the job is finished. A will is a good start, but it is only one part of a complete estate plan.
A good estate plan should answer three basic questions:
- What happens to your property when you die?
- Who can make decisions for you if you cannot make them yourself?
- How can you make the process easier for the people you leave behind?
The best place to start is not by deciding whether you need a will or a trust. Start by thinking through the people, property, and decisions your plan needs to address. The following questions can help you identify what you have already handled and where gaps may still exist.
Who Gets What—and How?
Your will explains how certain property should be distributed after your death. However, not everything you own is necessarily controlled by your will.
Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, annuities, jointly owned property, and payable-on-death accounts generally have their own transfer instructions. In many cases, the beneficiary designation on the account determines who receives the money, even if your will says something different.
This creates an important question: Do your beneficiary designations still match your intentions?
Beneficiaries should be reviewed after a marriage, divorce, death, birth, or major change in a family relationship. You should also name contingent beneficiaries in case your first choice dies before you.
You may also need to decide what should happen if one of your children dies before you. Should that child’s share pass to their children or be divided among your surviving children? It may feel like an uncomfortable possibility to discuss, but making the decision now can prevent confusion later.
What Happens If You Are Still Alive but Cannot Make Decisions?
Estate planning is not only about death. It should also prepare for the possibility that you become temporarily or permanently unable to manage your affairs.
Who would pay your bills, manage your investments, speak with financial institutions, or make medical decisions for you?
A financial power of attorney, healthcare power of attorney, and advance healthcare directive can help answer those questions. Without the proper documents, even your spouse or adult children may have difficulty acting on your behalf.
It is also important to choose the right person for each responsibility. The person you trust most may not be the best person to manage money, handle medical decisions, or settle your estate.
Ask yourself:
- Is this person organized?
- Will they have enough time?
- Can they make difficult decisions?
- Will other family members respect their authority?
- Have I named a backup?
These roles can require a significant amount of work. The person you appoint should understand what you are asking them to do.
Are You Leaving Assets or Leaving Problems?
An inheritance can create problems when the plan does not account for the people receiving it.
One beneficiary may be financially responsible, while another may struggle with spending, debt, addiction, divorce, or creditor problems. A beneficiary with special needs may be receiving public assistance that could be affected by an outright inheritance.
Equal inheritances may not always produce equal results either. A traditional IRA can create taxable income for the beneficiary, while other inherited assets may receive different tax treatment. Two assets with the same current value may not provide the same amount of after-tax value.
This does not automatically mean you need a complicated trust. It does mean you should think carefully about who is receiving each asset and whether additional protections are appropriate.
Does Your Estate Have Enough Cash?
Some estates have plenty of value but very little available cash.
For example, a large portion of your net worth may be tied up in your home, rental properties, land, or a business. Your family may still need cash for final bills, funeral expenses, legal fees, taxes, property maintenance, and other costs.
Illiquid assets can also be difficult to divide. If one child wants to keep a family property and the others want their inheritance in cash, where will that money come from?
A good estate plan should consider both the value of your estate and the liquidity available to settle it.
What About Personal and Digital Property?
Families do not always fight over the largest assets. Sometimes the hardest disagreements involve jewelry, photographs, firearms, vehicles, collections, or family heirlooms.
If certain items matter to you, write down what you want to happen to them and discuss the proper way to include those instructions with your estate-planning attorney.
Digital property also needs a plan. That may include:
- Online financial accounts
- Email and cloud storage
- Social-media accounts
- Cryptocurrency
- Digital photographs
- Online businesses
- Passwords and subscription services
A secure password manager can help organize this information, but someone still needs the legal authority and instructions to handle it.
Do You Need to Avoid Probate?
Probate is not automatically bad, and not every estate needs a trust. However, it is important to understand which assets will go through probate and which will transfer outside of it.
Beneficiary designations, transfer-on-death instructions, joint ownership, and revocable living trusts may allow certain property to pass without probate. Each option has advantages and potential problems.
A living trust also needs to be properly funded. Signing the trust document does not accomplish much if the appropriate assets are never transferred into it.
The goal should not simply be to “avoid probate.” The goal is to create a transfer process that works for your property, your family, and your wishes.
Washington Residents Have Additional Issues to Consider
Estate-planning laws vary by state. Washington residents should consider the state’s community-property rules, probate procedures, property-titling rules, and separate state estate tax.
Washington’s estate-tax threshold is considerably lower than the federal threshold. This means some families who do not expect to owe federal estate tax may still need to consider Washington estate-tax planning.
State and federal laws can also change. Your estate plan should be reviewed periodically rather than placed in a drawer and forgotten.
My Role in the Estate-Planning Process
As a financial advisor, I do not draft estate documents or provide legal advice. My role is to help you organize the financial side of your estate plan.
That can include helping you:
- Identify the accounts and property you own
- Review account ownership and beneficiary designations
- Consider whether your estate has enough liquidity
- Identify potential conflicts between your financial accounts and estate documents
- Prepare questions to discuss with your attorney or tax professional
Your attorney is responsible for recommending and drafting the legal documents. Your tax professional can advise you about the tax consequences. You are responsible for making the personal decisions about whom you trust and what you want to accomplish.
Start With the Questions
You do not need to solve every estate-planning issue today. Start by identifying the questions that still need answers.
Use the attached checklist to review your current plan. Mark the items you have already addressed, the ones you are unsure about, and the ones that require a conversation with your family, attorney, tax professional, or financial advisor.
The goal is not to create the most complicated estate plan possible. The goal is to make your wishes clear, protect the people you care about, and leave them with fewer difficult decisions.