Estate Planning Checklist to Help Clients Get Their Estate Plans Done (2025)

Estate planning is more straightforward than you think it is! Your clients only need to answer five things to have a complete estate plan:

1. Who gets your assets when you pass away? (Who are your beneficiaries?)
2. How will your beneficiaries get your assets? (Method of distribution)
3. Who will make financial decisions for you when you're not able to? (Successor Trustee/Executor/Financial Power of Attorney)
4. Who will make health care decisions for you when you're not able to? (Health Care Agent/Power of Attorney)
5. Who will have legal custody of your minor children should you pass away? (Guardian(s))

This checklist lists expands those five decisions in depth so that financial advisors and planners can review them with clients to help them complete their estate plans. Pull these five questions up as a talk track when you're introducing estate planning to your clients.

#1: Who gets your assets when you pass away? (Who are your beneficiaries?)

If you have children, your advisor and or estate planning attorney will see to it that things go to your children in equal shares. But, there are also opportunities to leave things to charity (via a specific dollar amount after a death), or to other loved ones – just let your 

#2: How will your beneficiaries get your assets? (Method of distribution)

Depending on the age and financial capabilities of your beneficiaries, you might wish to delay distributions to a beneficiary. For example, for young beneficiaries, clients typically give distributions in stages at specific ages (e.g., 1/3 at 25, 1/3 at 30, and 1/3 at 35).

Guardians caring for young beneficiaries will have immediate access to funds for health care, education, and support. If you have a beneficiary with special health needs, you can leave assets for them through a special needs trust (SNT).

Your advisor, partnering with EncorEstate Plans, can facilitate for you to leave a beneficiary's share in an SNT that gets formed upon their death. Note: this does NOT cover a situation where a person would benefit from a SNT today (they are receiving money today that needs to be held in trust).

#3: Who will make financial decisions for you when you're not able to? (Trustee, Executor, and Financial Power of Attorney)

A trustee is an individual, bank, or trust company designated to hold and administer trust property (also generally referred to as a “fiduciary”). The term usually includes original (initial), additional, and successor trustees.

A trustee has the duty to act in the best interests of the trust and its beneficiaries, and in accordance with the terms of the trust. A trustee must act personally (unless delegation is expressly permitted in the trust instrument), with the exception of certain administrative functions.

Before you decide, you have to ask yourself, "Do I trust my trustee(s)?" The type of person who makes a good trustee is someone who:

• Is financially responsible.
• Handles finances similar to you.
• Is generally a good decision maker.

If you don’t have a family member or friend who fits the bill, you can consider a professional trustee. Professional trustees should also be considered when a client only has one person that fits this entire bill in their life, and they need a contingent trustee. Or, if they have a very complex situation, and they don't want to burden a family member or friend.

If your client moves forward with a professional trustee, they'll still need to name an individual for the financial power of attorney and potentially as the executor of the will (a person named in a will and appointed by the court to carry out the terms of the will and administer your estate when you're dead). Why? Professional/corporate trustees do not generally serve in this role.

Note: there are 2 to 3 successors named (in order of preference).

#4: Who will make health care decisions for you when you're not able to? (Health Care Agent/Power of Attorney)

The type of person you name here would need to be able to make decisions during a difficult and emotional time. You will have the ability to state your end of life and organ donation wishes in Advance Health Care Directive / Power of Attorney for Health Care as well. Generally, there are 2-3 successors named (in order of preference).

#5: Who will have legal custody of your minor children should you pass away? (Guardians)

Guardians are legally responsible for minor children and their care. The guardian will work with the trustee to access funds for any minor children.

Similar to the question, "Do you trust your trustees?", you have to ask yourself if you trust the guardian(s) you picked. Parents, siblings, or dear friends are often named as guardians. Adult children (those over the age of 18) can also be named as guardians.

The Bottom Line

Your clients' estate planning journeys will be halfway done when they have their answers to those five questions. And with your help facilitating those estate documents, your clients will have high quality estate documents in no time (don't forget notarization and estate plan funding, too).

Looking for the Best Estate Planning Software for Advisors?

Get started with EncorEstate Plans today. If your clients need property deeds re-titled to their trusts, just reach out and we will file it for them (our white glove deed filing service is in-house).