When you hear the words estate planning, what comes to mind?
Maybe you picture someone preparing for retirement, deciding how to leave their assets to their children, or making arrangements for the end of their life.
But there's a common misconception worth clearing up:
Estate planning isn't just for older adults, retirees, or people with significant wealth.
Estate planning can be important from the moment you become a legal adult, and your needs will likely change throughout your lifetime.
In recognition of National Estate Planning Awareness Week, the team at Harris-Pero Law Firm is looking at how estate planning evolves through different stages of life—and why it's never too early to start thinking about it.
Young Adulthood: You're 18. Now What?
Turning 18 is an exciting milestone. Whether you're heading off to college, starting a career, joining the military, or moving into your first apartment, you're officially an adult.
But becoming an adult also comes with a legal change that many families don't realize.
Once you turn 18, your parents generally no longer have the automatic legal authority to make financial or medical decisions on your behalf.
Suppose a 20-year-old college student is seriously injured and temporarily unable to make decisions. Their parents may want to speak with doctors, manage bills, or address financial matters. Without appropriate legal documents, doing so may be more complicated than they expect.
That's why even young adults with few assets should consider having certain documents in place:
Power of Attorney: Allows you to appoint someone you trust to handle financial and legal matters on your behalf.
Health Care Proxy: Allows you to appoint someone to make medical decisions if you're unable to make them yourself.
Living Will: Provides guidance about your wishes concerning certain medical treatments and end-of-life care.
These documents aren't just for people who are older or dealing with health issues. They're about making sure someone you trust can help if the unexpected happens.
Our Graduate Preparedness Package
At Harris-Pero Law Firm, we offer a Graduate Preparedness Package designed to help young adults take this important step toward independence.
The package includes a Power of Attorney, Health Care Proxy, and Living Will—all prepared through one convenient consultation, with same-day signing whenever possible.
While a young adult may not need a complicated estate plan, having these basic documents can be an important first step.
Building a Life: Marriage, Relationships, and Homeownership
As you move through adulthood, your financial and personal responsibilities often grow.
Maybe you're getting married, buying your first home, combining finances with a partner, or building savings.
These milestones can raise new estate planning questions.
What happens to your home if you pass away? Would your spouse or partner automatically inherit everything? Who would handle your affairs if you became incapacitated?
The answers aren't always as straightforward as people assume.
New York law provides certain inheritance rights to surviving spouses, but that doesn't necessarily mean a spouse will inherit every asset automatically. Unmarried partners generally don't have the same automatic inheritance rights under New York's intestacy laws.
How property is titled can also affect what happens to it after death.
This is also a good time to reconsider the people you've named to make decisions on your behalf.
Perhaps you prepared a Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy when you were younger and named your parents as your Agents. At the time, that may have made perfect sense.
But now you're married or in a long-term relationship. Would you rather have your spouse or partner making those decisions?
Your parents may still be the best people for the job! But it's worth considering whether the people you originally named are still the people you'd choose today.
At this stage, estate planning may involve:
Preparing a Will or considering whether a Trust is appropriate;
Reviewing how assets are titled;
Updating beneficiary designations;
Reconsidering who you've named under your Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy; and
Planning for a spouse, partner, or other loved ones.
The important thing is not to assume that the law—or documents you signed years ago—will automatically produce the result you want.
Growing Families: Planning for Children and Dependents
Having children often changes the way people think about the future.
Suddenly, estate planning isn't just about what happens to your property. It's also about who would care for your children and how their financial needs would be met if something happened to you.
One important consideration for parents of minor children is naming a guardian in their Will.
While the Court ultimately determines the appointment, identifying who you would want to care for your children if you passed away is an important part of planning.
But What If Something Happens to You While You're Still Alive?
Here's something parents may not have considered: What happens if you're seriously injured, become incapacitated, or are otherwise unable to care for your children temporarily?
A Will doesn't solve that problem because it only takes effect after death.
That's where another important estate planning document may come into play: a Designation of Standby Guardian for Minor Children.
In New York, this document allows a parent to designate a trusted person who can step in to care for their minor children under certain circumstances, such as:
A parent becomes mentally incapacitated and is unable to care for their children;
A parent becomes physically unable to care for their children due to an illness or injury; or
A parent is detained or otherwise separated from their children due to immigration enforcement.
Depending on the circumstances, certain medical documentation or written consent may be required before the standby guardian's authority takes effect.
For example, imagine a single parent is hospitalized and becomes incapacitated. They've named their sister as guardian in their Will, but that Will doesn't give the sister authority simply because the parent is temporarily unable to care for the children.
A properly prepared Designation of Standby Guardian may help address that immediate need, provided the legal requirements are met.
Naming a guardian in your Will and designating a standby guardian serve different purposes, and both may be important parts of planning for minor children.
Planning for Your Children's Financial Future
But choosing who would care for your children is only part of the picture.
What would happen to the assets you leave them?
Minor children generally cannot independently manage significant inherited property, which can create complications and potentially require court involvement.
For that reason, some parents consider using a Trust to manage an inheritance for their children.
A Trust can provide instructions about how assets should be managed and when distributions should be made. For example, parents may want funds available for education, health care, and other needs without requiring that the entire inheritance be distributed as soon as a child reaches adulthood.
Families with a child or dependent with special needs may also have additional planning considerations, particularly when certain public benefits are involved.
Estate planning for parents is about more than naming beneficiaries. It's about making sure someone can care for your children if you can't—and planning for their financial future.
Midlife: More Assets, More Responsibilities, More to Consider
By the time people reach their 40s, 50s, or beyond, their lives may look very different from when they first started planning.
Perhaps you've purchased additional property, started a business, received an inheritance, or accumulated retirement savings.
Your family circumstances may have changed, too. You might be remarried, have children from a previous relationship, or be helping aging parents.
These developments can introduce new estate planning considerations.
For example, business owners may need to plan for what happens to their business if they pass away or become unable to manage it. Someone in a blended family may want to provide for their current spouse while preserving an inheritance for children from a prior relationship.
This is also a time when an estate plan created years ago may no longer reflect your circumstances.
The person you named as Executor 15 years ago may no longer be the best choice. Your finances may have changed, or your wishes for distributing your assets may be different.
That doesn't necessarily mean you need an entirely new estate plan. But reviewing what you already have can help you determine whether changes are appropriate.
Approaching Retirement: Thinking About the Years Ahead
As retirement approaches, estate planning often begins to involve a different set of priorities.
You may be thinking about managing your savings, downsizing your home, or passing assets to your children or grandchildren.
You may also be considering something that can have a significant financial impact later in life: long-term care.
Long-term care can include assistance at home, assisted living, or nursing home care. Depending on your circumstances, you may want to explore how future care needs could affect your finances.
For some individuals, that conversation may include Medicaid planning, Trust planning, or other strategies to address potential long-term care costs.
These strategies involve specific rules and timing considerations, however, and aren't necessarily appropriate for everyone. Planning in advance can provide more options than waiting until care is immediately needed.
Retirement planning may also be a good time to review:
Whether your existing Will or Trust still reflects your wishes;
How retirement accounts and other assets will pass to beneficiaries;
Whether your Power of Attorney provides appropriate authority for future financial matters; and
Who would make medical decisions if you became unable to do so.
Estate planning at this stage isn't just about what happens after you're gone. It's also about preparing for the possibility that you may need assistance during your lifetime.
Later Life: Making Things Easier for the People You Love
As people grow older, estate planning often shifts toward making sure their wishes are clear and their loved ones have the information and authority they may need.
Perhaps your children are now adults, you have grandchildren, or you've experienced the loss of a spouse or another loved one.
It's especially important to consider whether the people you've named in your estate planning documents are still appropriate.
Someone who was a good choice to serve as Executor or Agent under your Power of Attorney years ago may now have health issues of their own, live far away, or no longer be willing to serve.
It's also worth considering whether your loved ones know where your important documents are stored.
You may want to make sure the appropriate people know:
Where your original estate planning documents are kept;
Who your estate planning attorney is;
Where to find important financial and property records; and
Who should be contacted if you become incapacitated or pass away.
You don't necessarily need to share every financial detail. But giving your loved ones a clear starting point can make an already difficult situation easier to navigate.
Life Doesn't Always Follow a Timeline
Of course, not everyone's life follows the same path.
Some people get married in their 20s, others in their 60s—or never marry at all. You might purchase your first home at 25 or 65, become a parent later in life, or start a business after retirement.
And unexpected changes, such as divorce, disability, an inheritance, or the loss of a loved one, can create new estate planning considerations at any age.
That's why estate planning shouldn't be based on age alone.
Your plan should reflect your circumstances, the people who matter to you, and what you want to accomplish.
So, When Is the Right Time to Start Estate Planning?
There's no magic age when estate planning suddenly becomes necessary.
You don't need to be retired, own a home, or have significant wealth.
For someone just starting out, planning may mean preparing a Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy. For new parents, it may mean creating a Will and planning for their children's future. For someone approaching retirement, it may involve reviewing existing documents and considering long-term care planning.
Estate planning isn't a one-time event reserved for a particular stage of life. It's an ongoing process that can grow and change with you.
National Estate Planning Awareness Week is a great reminder to think about where you are in life today—and whether your estate plan reflects it.
At Harris-Pero Law Firm, PLLC, we help individuals and families throughout New York State create and update estate plans that reflect their goals, circumstances, and the people they care about.
Contact our office to schedule an estate planning consultation or discuss reviewing your existing plan.