What Documents Do I Need for Estate Planning?
Almost every adult needs five estate-planning documents: a will, a durable power of attorney for finances, a health care power of attorney, an advance directive or living will, and up-to-date beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance — which pass outside your will regardless of what it says. You don't need to be wealthy or hire a lawyer for the basics. If you own anything, care about anyone, or would want a say in your own medical care, you already have an estate to plan.
Quick answer
A basic estate plan comes down to five documents almost everyone needs: a will, a durable power of attorney for finances, a health care power of attorney, an advance directive or living will, and up-to-date beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance — which pass outside your will. You don't need to be wealthy or hire a lawyer for the basics; keep everything where your family can find it, and review it every 3–5 years.
The five documents almost everyone needs
A will, a durable power of attorney for finances, a health care power of attorney, an advance directive (living will), and current beneficiary designations. If you have those five and the people you trust know where to find them, you've done the core of estate planning — everything else is refinement.
What is estate planning, really?
Estate planning is simply deciding — in writing, while you're able — who makes decisions for you if you can't, who receives what you leave behind, and how. That's it. It has nothing to do with how much money you have. A modest home, a car, a checking account, a couple of retirement accounts, and people you love is already an estate. Without a plan, the state's default rules decide who's in charge and who gets what, often slowly and not the way you'd have chosen.
What documents do I need for estate planning?
Here are the core documents, roughly in the order they matter for most people. You don't have to do them all at once — but each one closes a gap that would otherwise fall on your family.
- A will. Names who inherits your things, who's in charge of carrying it out (your executor), and — if you have dependents — who cares for them. Without a will, state law decides all of this for you.
- A durable power of attorney for finances. Lets someone you trust pay your bills and manage money if you're unable to. “Durable” means it stays in effect if you become incapacitated — which is exactly when you need it most.
- A health care power of attorney. Names the person (your “health care proxy”) who can make medical decisions for you if you can't speak for yourself. Choose someone who knows your values and will honor them.
- An advance directive, or living will. Puts your wishes about life-sustaining treatment in writing, so your family isn't left guessing at the hardest possible moment.
- A HIPAA authorization. Gives your doctors permission to share your medical information with the people you name — without it, even close family can be shut out.
- Up-to-date beneficiary designations. Retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death bank accounts pass to whoever is named on the beneficiary form — not to whoever is named in your will. This is the single most-overlooked piece: an ex-spouse or a deceased relative left on an old form overrides everything else.
| Document | What it does | Who it names |
|---|---|---|
| Will | Directs who inherits and who carries it out | Your heirs, your executor, and guardians for dependents |
| Durable power of attorney for finances | Lets someone pay your bills and manage money if you can’t | Your financial agent (attorney-in-fact) |
| Health care power of attorney | Lets someone make medical decisions when you can’t speak for yourself | Your health care proxy |
| Advance directive / living will | Puts your wishes for life-sustaining care in writing | No one — it states your own treatment wishes |
| HIPAA authorization | Lets doctors share your medical information | The family or friends you allow to see your records |
| Beneficiary designations | Pass accounts directly, overriding your will | Who inherits each retirement, life-insurance, or POD account |
Aging without a spouse or children?
Naming who decides is harder when there's no obvious person to name. The free Solo Ager's Document Kit walks you through building a care network, choosing your decision-makers, and putting these same documents in place — built for people aging solo.
You probably don't need a living trust — but some people do
A common myth is that everyone needs a trust. For many people, a will plus current beneficiary designations is enough. A living trust mainly helps you avoid probate, manage property in more than one state, or provide for a beneficiary over time (a minor, or a loved one who needs help managing money). It's worth asking an attorney whether one fits your situation — just don't assume it's mandatory, or that buying one online is the same as a plan.
Beyond the documents: what your family will actually need
The documents decide who's in charge and who inherits. But the people stepping in also have to find everything — and that's where most families get stuck. A drawer full of unlabeled papers and a phone full of logins nobody can open turns a hard week into a months-long scavenger hunt. Our bestselling End of Life Planner book gives them that map — where every document, account, and wish is recorded.
- Every account and where it lives — banks, retirement, investments, pensions.
- Insurance policies — life, health, long-term care, home, auto.
- The estate documents themselves, and your attorney's contact information.
- Logins and passwords — or at least how to get into your phone and email, which get you into the rest.
- Recurring bills, subscriptions, and automatic payments to stop or continue.
- Key contacts — financial advisor, accountant, doctors, and the people to notify.
How often should I update my estate plan?
Review your plan every three to five years, and any time your life changes in a big way. Documents that were perfect a decade ago can become wrong. Update after:
- A marriage, divorce, or remarriage — including your own and your beneficiaries'.
- A birth or death in the family.
- A move to another state, since estate laws differ from state to state.
- A significant change in your assets — selling a home, an inheritance, retiring.
- A change of heart about the people you named as executor, agent, or proxy.
Where should I keep my estate planning documents?
- Somewhere your family can actually reach. Be careful with bank safe-deposit boxes — in some states they can be sealed at death, locking your will inside just when it's needed.
- Tell a trusted person where it is. You don't have to share the contents — just make sure someone knows where to look.
- Give your executor and agents copies, or tell them how to get access, so they can act without delay.
- Keep originals safe but findable — a fireproof box or home safe is ideal, as long as the right people can open it.
If you're doing this for a parent rather than yourself, our guide on helping aging parents get their affairs in order walks through the conversation and the papers to gather, gently.
Build your will or trust online with Trust & Will
Most people working through this list need a will, not a trust; the ones who need a trust usually own a house. Trust & Will asks what you own before recommending one. The Will Plan ($199, 2026) covers four items above; the Trust Plan ($499) keeps the house out of probate. Documents are state-specific. Code EXCLUSIVE10 takes 10% off.We may earn a commission if you buy through this link — at no extra cost to you. We only point to tools we'd use ourselves.
Compare will vs. trust →The documents above are the legal half. For the household half — accounts, passwords, funeral wishes, where the paperwork actually lives — we compared the end-of-life planners against each other and against the digital vaults.
You may be interested in…
Once the documents exist
A signed will nobody can find is a will nobody follows
This checklist gets the documents made. The End of Life Planner records where they ended up, who your executor is, and what that person is supposed to do first — Part Two is a 20-page walkthrough of the first 30 days, then 90 days out to a year.
See the End of Life Planner →Good to know
Common questions
What documents do I need for estate planning?
Most adults need five core documents: a will (naming who inherits and who's in charge), a durable power of attorney for finances (so someone can manage money if you can't), a health care power of attorney (naming who makes medical decisions for you), an advance directive or living will (your wishes for life-sustaining care), and up-to-date beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance. Those beneficiary forms pass outside your will, so keeping them current is essential.
Do I need a lawyer to make an estate plan?
Not always. For a straightforward situation, reputable state-specific forms can cover the basic documents. But it's worth hiring an attorney if you have a blended family, significant or complex assets, a business, property in more than one state, or a dependent with special needs — the cost of getting it wrong is far higher than the fee.
What's the difference between a will and a living trust?
A will takes effect after you die and generally goes through probate, the court process for settling an estate. A living trust holds your assets while you're alive and passes them to your beneficiaries without probate, which can be faster and more private. Many people are well served by a will alone; a trust makes the most sense if you want to avoid probate, own property in multiple states, or provide for a beneficiary over time.
How often should I update my estate plan?
Review it every three to five years, and always after a major life change — a marriage, divorce, birth, or death; a move to a new state; a big change in your assets; or a change of heart about the people you've named. Outdated documents, especially old beneficiary designations, are one of the most common and costly estate-planning mistakes.
What happens if I die without a will?
Your state's intestate succession law decides who inherits — not you — and it rarely matches what people assume. A spouse doesn't automatically get everything if there are children from a prior relationship; unmarried partners typically get nothing; and if you have minor children, a probate court — not a document you wrote — decides who raises them if the other parent is gone too. The exact split varies by state, but the pattern is the same everywhere: no will means a judge follows a formula, not your wishes.
Can my kids fight over this after I'm gone?
Yes — and the paperwork you skip is exactly what starts it. Estates without a clear will, current beneficiary forms, or a stated executor are the ones families contest, because there's no clear answer and old resentments fill the gap. The single biggest flashpoint is a beneficiary form that contradicts the will — the form wins regardless of what the will says — so mismatched paperwork can hand an inheritance to the wrong sibling even when everyone agrees what you wanted.
Start getting retirement in order — one simple checklist at a time
Free quick-start checklists to help you organize the practical parts of retirement: what to gather, what to decide, and what to write down first.
- What to gather
- What to update
- What to share with family
Almost there — check your inbox.
We just sent a confirmation email. Click the link inside and your free download lands right after. (If you don't see it, check spam or promotions.)