10/22/2026
Trust & Will's 2026 Estate Planning Report found that 56 percent of adults don't have core documents in place, including:
📝 A will: who gets what, and who is in charge of making it happen
🏥 A healthcare directive (or living will): what you want if you cannot speak for yourself
✍️ Two powers of attorney, one for medical decisions and one for financial decisions, each naming a specific person
📄 A letter of instruction: the practical map to where accounts live, who your professionals are, and what your kids or pets need
The friction is that estate work forces a family to sit with mortality, name specific people for specific roles, and make decisions that feel too permanent to rush.
Without something in writing, though, families are left improvising during one of the most difficult moments of their lives.
Most say they fully intend to get to it, but too many put it off until it's too late.
Don't put it off. Talk to a financial professional who can help.
