Estate planning · 7 min read

The five documents every family needs before "someday."

By Eleanor Marlowe · Updated July 2026

Most families we meet have been meaning to do this for years. Not because it's expensive — a complete plan costs less than a family vacation — but because nobody wakes up eager to think about it. Here's the good news: it's five documents, one afternoon, and then it's done.

1 · The will

Your will names who receives what, and — if you have children — who raises them. Without one, your state's default formula decides both, and it has never met your family. A will is the floor, not the ceiling: everyone needs one, even renters with a checking account and a dog.

"The state has a plan for your family. You just haven't read it, and you probably wouldn't like it."

2 · Financial power of attorney

If you're in a hospital bed, someone still has to pay the mortgage. A durable financial power of attorney names the person who can act for you — without it, your spouse may need a court order to access accounts in your name alone.

3 · Healthcare directive

This pairs two things: a healthcare proxy (who speaks for you) and a living will (what you'd want). It's a gift to your family — the difference between "we know what she wanted" and a hallway argument no one recovers from.

4 · Beneficiary designations

Your 401(k) and life insurance ignore your will entirely — they go to whoever is named on the beneficiary form, even an ex-spouse from 2011. We audit these in every plan; roughly a third have a surprise on them.

5 · The living trust (for many, not all)

A revocable living trust keeps your home and accounts out of probate — a public, months-long court process. If you own a house in California, the math usually favors a trust decisively. If you don't, it may be optional. We'll tell you which camp you're in, plainly.