Estate Planning Checklist: 12 Things to Do Before You're Gone

Bottom line: A complete estate plan includes 12 essential components: a will, healthcare directives, power of attorney, beneficiary designations, guardian nominations, asset inventory, digital asset plan, funeral wishes, executor selection, trust consideration, tax planning, and regular reviews. Most people can complete the basics online in an afternoon for under $400.

Estate planning feels overwhelming—which is why 67% of Americans don't have even a basic will. But breaking it into concrete steps makes it manageable. This checklist covers everything you need to protect your family and assets.

The Complete Estate Planning Checklist

1. Create a Last Will and Testament

Your will is the foundation of your estate plan. It specifies:

• Who inherits your assets
• Who will serve as executor
• Who will be guardian of your minor children
• Any specific bequests (heirlooms, jewelry, etc.)

How to do it:

• Online: Services like Trust & Will ($159) guide you through questions and generate a state-compliant will. Read our complete guide.
• Attorney: $500-$2,000 for straightforward estates, more for complex situations

What to include:

• Declaration that this is your will and revokes all prior wills
• Executor appointment (and alternates)
• Beneficiary designations with percentages or specific amounts
• Residuary clause (what happens to everything not specifically mentioned)
• Guardian nomination for minor children
• Signature and witness requirements per your state

Common mistake: Creating a will but not signing it properly. Follow your state's witnessing requirements exactly or it's invalid. Learn more: What happens if you die without a will.

2. Consider a Revocable Living Trust

A living trust holds your assets during your lifetime and distributes them after death—without probate. You maintain full control as trustee while alive.

You likely need a trust if you:

• Own real estate in multiple states (avoids probate in each state)
• Have assets over $500,000
• Value privacy (trusts don't go through public probate)
• Have a blended family with complex distribution wishes
• Own a business that needs seamless transition
• Want incapacity planning (successor trustee takes over if you can't)

Costs:

• Online: $150-$400 through services like Trust & Will
• Attorney: $1,500-$3,000+

Critical step: You must "fund" the trust by transferring assets into it—changing deeds, retitling accounts, etc. An empty trust does nothing. Compare trusts vs wills in detail.

3. Healthcare Power of Attorney

This document designates someone to make medical decisions if you're incapacitated. Without it, family members may fight over your care, or courts may appoint a stranger.

Who to choose:

• Someone who knows your values and will follow your wishes
• Emotionally strong enough to make difficult decisions
• Available and local (they may need to be at the hospital)
• NOT someone who would be too emotional to act rationally

What they can decide:

• Medical treatments and procedures
• Choice of doctors and hospitals
• Long-term care decisions
• End-of-life care (in conjunction with your living will)

Most states require this to be a separate document from your living will, though some combine them.

4. Advance Directive / Living Will

A living will specifies your end-of-life medical preferences:

• Do you want life-sustaining treatment if terminally ill?
• CPR preferences
• Artificial nutrition and hydration
• Ventilator use
• Organ donation wishes

This document removes the burden from your family by clearly stating your wishes in advance.

Include specific scenarios:

• Terminal illness with no hope of recovery
• Permanent vegetative state
• Advanced dementia
• Other conditions where you'd want treatment withheld

Discuss your wishes with your healthcare power of attorney beforehand so they understand your values. Learn the difference between healthcare directives and living wills.

5. Durable Power of Attorney for Finances

This designates someone to manage your financial affairs if you're incapacitated—pay bills, file taxes, manage investments, sell property, etc.

Types:

• Immediate: Effective as soon as you sign (risky unless you completely trust the person)
• Springing: Only takes effect upon your incapacity (requires proof of incapacity, which can delay action)

Most estate planners recommend immediate powers with someone you trust completely, as "springing" powers can be difficult to activate when needed.

What they can do:

• Access bank accounts and pay your bills
• Manage investments
• File tax returns
• Sell property if necessary
• Apply for government benefits on your behalf

What they can't do:

• Make medical decisions (that's healthcare POA)
• Change your will
• Act after your death (executor takes over)

Choose someone financially responsible, organized, and trustworthy. This person will have significant power over your finances.

6. Update All Beneficiary Designations

Assets with beneficiary designations bypass your will entirely and go directly to the named person. These include:

• Life insurance policies
• Retirement accounts (401(k), IRA, 403(b), pension)
• Payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts
• Transfer-on-death (TOD) investment accounts
• Some states allow TOD deeds for real estate

Critical tasks:

• Review every beneficiary designation—many people forget to update after divorce or death of a beneficiary
• Always name contingent beneficiaries in case primary beneficiaries predecease you
• Never name your estate as beneficiary (forces these assets through probate)
• Never name a minor as direct beneficiary (courts will require a guardianship)
• Coordinate beneficiary designations with your overall estate plan

Common mistake: Your ex-spouse is still listed as beneficiary on your 401(k) from 15 years ago. In most states, they'll inherit that account regardless of what your will says.

7. Name Guardians for Minor Children

If you have children under 18, your will MUST name a guardian. Without this, a court decides who raises your kids—and it may not be who you'd choose.

Choosing a guardian:

• Share your values and parenting philosophy
• Financially stable (or will you leave funds to support the children?)
• Age-appropriate (not elderly parents who may not be able to keep up with young kids)
• Willing to serve (discuss with them first!)
• Ideally local to minimize disruption to children's lives

Name alternates: What if your first choice can't serve? Always designate 2-3 backup guardians.

Separate financial guardian: You can name one person to raise your children and another to manage their inheritance. This works if the best caregiver isn't financially sophisticated.

Read more about choosing the right people for these roles.

8. Choose Your Executor

Your executor (called "personal representative" in some states) handles your estate after you die:

• Files your will with probate court
• Notifies beneficiaries and creditors
• Pays debts and taxes from estate assets
• Distributes remaining assets per your will
• Files final tax returns

Choose someone who is:

• Organized and detail-oriented
• Financially responsible
• Able to handle family conflict (inheritance disputes are common)
• Willing to serve (ask them first)
• Located in your state or able to travel (some states require executors to be residents)

Avoid:

• Co-executors (they must agree on every decision—creates delays and conflicts)
• Anyone with financial problems or who might be tempted to misuse estate funds
• Someone too elderly or in poor health

Always name 2-3 alternates in case your first choice can't serve.

9. Create a Digital Asset Inventory

Modern estates include significant digital assets that executors need to access:

• Financial accounts: Online banking, PayPal, Venmo, investment platforms
• Cryptocurrency: Wallets, exchange accounts, private keys
• Email accounts: Gmail, Outlook, etc. (may contain account recovery info for other services)
• Social media: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter/X
• Cloud storage: Google Drive, Dropbox, iCloud
• Business accounts: Domain registrations, hosting, SaaS subscriptions
• Digital media: Photos, music libraries, eBooks, purchased movies
• Subscriptions: Netflix, Spotify, etc. (need to be canceled)

How to document:

• Create a password-protected spreadsheet or document listing all accounts, usernames, and passwords
• Use a password manager (LastPass, 1Password, Bitwarden) and give your executor the master password
• Store it securely—this document has everything needed to access your entire digital life
• Include instructions for what should happen to each account (delete, memorialize, transfer)

Legal considerations: Federal law restricts access to deceased people's online accounts. Some states have adopted the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), which gives executors more access. Check your state's law.

Complete guide to digital assets in your estate plan.

10. Document Funeral and Burial Wishes

While you can include funeral wishes in your will, it's often read after the funeral. Better to create a separate document with:

• Burial or cremation preference
• Cemetery plot (if you've purchased one)
• Type of service (religious, secular, celebration of life)
• Organ donation (also register with your state's donor registry)
• Specific requests (music, readings, who should speak)
• Budget (funerals can cost $7,000-$15,000—do you want your estate to pay for lavish or simple?)

Give copies to your executor, family members, and whoever you expect to handle arrangements.

Pre-planning option: You can pre-pay for funeral arrangements to lock in today's prices and remove the burden from family. Be cautious about transferability if you move.

11. Review Tax Implications

Estate taxes only affect the very wealthy, but you should understand the rules:

Federal Estate Tax (2026)

• Exemption: $13.61 million per person (indexed for inflation)
• Tax rate: 40% on amounts above the exemption
• Portability: Married couples can combine exemptions for $27.22 million
• Sunset provision: Without Congressional action, the exemption drops to ~$7 million in 2026

If your estate is under $13.61 million (or $27.22 million for married couples), you owe no federal estate tax.

State Estate Taxes

12 states and DC impose their own estate taxes, often with lower exemptions:

• Oregon: $1 million exemption
• Massachusetts: $2 million exemption
• New York: $6.94 million exemption (2026)
• Illinois, Maryland, Hawaii, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Washington, Minnesota, Maine, DC: Varying exemptions

If you live in one of these states and your estate exceeds the exemption, consult an estate planning attorney about tax minimization strategies.

Income Tax on Inherited Assets

Beneficiaries don't pay income tax on most inherited assets, but there are exceptions:

• Retirement accounts (IRAs, 401(k)s): Beneficiaries pay income tax as they withdraw funds
• Step-up in basis: Inherited assets get a "step-up" to their value on the date of death, eliminating capital gains tax on appreciation during your lifetime

Full breakdown of estate planning costs and tax implications.

12. Store Documents Securely and Tell Key People Where They Are

Even the best estate plan is useless if nobody can find it.

Storage options:

• Fireproof home safe: Accessible but protected
• Bank safe deposit box: Very secure, but access may be restricted after death in some states
• With your attorney: If you used one
• Online vault: Many estate planning services offer secure cloud storage

Who needs to know where documents are:

• Your executor
• Your healthcare power of attorney
• Your attorney (if you used one)
• Your spouse or closest family member

What to tell them:

• Physical location of original documents
• Safe combination or key location
• Passwords for digital storage
• Name and contact info of your attorney (if applicable)

Consider giving copies (not originals) to your executor and key family members. Only the original will is legally binding, so keep it secure.

When to Update Your Estate Plan

Estate planning isn't one-and-done. Review and update your plan:

• Every 3-5 years as a general rule
• After marriage or divorce
• Birth or adoption of children
• Death of a beneficiary, executor, or guardian
• Significant asset changes (inheritance, home purchase, business sale)
• Moving to a new state (laws vary significantly)
• Changes in tax law
• Changes in relationships (estrangement, divorce of a beneficiary)

Complete guide to updating your estate plan.

Estate Planning by Life Stage

Young Adults (18-35)

Priority documents:

• Healthcare power of attorney and living will (so parents or partners can make medical decisions)
• Basic will (even if you don't have many assets, you want to control who inherits)
• Beneficiary designations on any retirement accounts or life insurance

Young Families (25-45 with kids)

Priority documents:

• Comprehensive will with guardian nominations
• Life insurance with proper beneficiary designations
• Consider a trust if estate exceeds $500k or you want to control when children inherit
• All healthcare directives and powers of attorney

Mid-Career (45-65)

Priority documents:

• Review and update existing estate plan
• Consider trust for probate avoidance and incapacity planning
• Tax planning if estate exceeds state exemptions
• Review beneficiary designations on growing retirement accounts
• Digital asset planning

Retirees (65+)

Priority documents:

• Ensure all documents are current and accessible
• Long-term care planning (Medicaid eligibility strategies)
• Update beneficiaries after death of spouse or peers
• Consider gifting strategies to reduce taxable estate
• Review healthcare directives to ensure they reflect current wishes

Related Articles

• How to Create a Will Online
• Living Trust vs Will: Which Do You Need?
• How to Choose an Executor
• Estate Planning Cost Breakdown 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

About the Author: Patricia Larson, J.D., is an estate planning attorney with 20 years of experience in elder law and trust administration. She has created comprehensive estate plans for hundreds of families at all life stages and wealth levels.