In other words,\u00a0most Gen-Xers\u00a0haven\u2019t made a will, created a trust or signed forms that empower others to make financial, legal or medical decisions on their behalf.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Generation X is the \u201cleast protected\u201d cohort of Americans, Trust & Will found, based on surveys of 5,000 adults in January and February. Despite their advanced age, Gen-Xers are less likely than\u00a0either older or\u00a0younger generations to have\u00a0completed estate-plan documents.\u00a0<\/p>\n
USA TODAY Shopping: Shop sales in tech, home, fashion, beauty & more curated by our editors.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cGen X is very much on the fence,\u201d said\u00a0Cody Barbo<\/a>, CEO of Trust & Will. \u201cThey need education; they need awareness; they need an incentive.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Millions of Americans put off writing estate plans and procrastinate about\u00a0preparing\u00a0trusts and wills, legal documents that deal with distributing assets upon death. Estate planning documents can also help manage your affairs while you are alive.\u00a0<\/p>\n According to\u00a0Trust & Will\u2019s latest annual\u00a0Estate Planning Report, 56% of adults have no estate planning documents: No will, trust, medical or financial power of attorney, or Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) authorization form.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Here\u2019s the breakdown by generation:\u00a0<\/p>\n Boomers: 48% have no estate planning documents\u00a0Gen X: 62%\u00a0Millennials: 58%\u00a0Gen Z: 54%\u00a0<\/p>\n Only 26% of Americans have a will, the most common estate planning document, the report found. Only 14% have a trust.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In a will or trust, a person instructs how to distribute assets upon their death. When someone dies without a will, the local courts kick in.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n While a will instructs what happens after death, a trust can\u00a0also\u00a0manage\u00a0your assets\u00a0while you\u2019re alive. Assets placed in trusts generally pass to beneficiaries without going through probate court, potentially saving months of hassle.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Americans put off estate planning because it means contemplating death, which is an unpleasant task, researchers have found. It\u2019s also hard work.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The share of older Americans writing wills has been\u00a0trending downward for years<\/a>, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Researchers\u00a0saw a\u00a0spike in\u00a0estate planning<\/a>\u00a0at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the trend reversed when the pandemic passed.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n One reason for the decline in estate planning, Barbo said, is a\u00a0well-documented dearth<\/a>\u00a0of estate-planning attorneys. Not enough lawyers are entering the field at a time of surging demand for\u00a0their\u00a0services amid a historic\u00a0wealth transfer<\/a>\u00a0from older to younger generations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Generation Xers\u00a0\u201care old-school in some ways,\u201d Barbo said. \u201cThey still prefer to go the attorney route, which is not a bad thing. But there\u2019s a shortage of estate-planning attorneys.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Millennials and Gen-Zers, by contrast,\u00a0are \u201cdigital natives,\u201d Barbo said, more comfortable preparing estate plans through online services.\u00a0<\/p>\n Often, the death of a loved one triggers estate-planning conversations, Barbo said. Boomers are more likely to have trusts and wills not just because they are older, he said, but also because they have typically endured the death of\u00a0their\u00a0parents.\u00a0<\/p>\n For\u00a0many in\u00a0Gen X, by contrast, \u201cthe reality hasn\u2019t hit yet,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Everyone should have a will, experts say\u00a0<\/p>\n Financial advisers\u00a0commonly\u00a0recommend Americans have a will as part of a larger estate plan, which\u00a0dictates not just what happens to our assets after our death, but also who will manage our affairs in an emergency while we are alive, among other provisions.\u00a0<\/p>\n Someone who dies without a will might leave big questions unanswered: Who cares for a child? Who gets the family home? Some assets are tricky to divide among multiple heirs.\u00a0<\/p>\n But estate planning takes time, and it usually costs money.\u00a0It\u2019s complicated:\u00a0needlessly so, some experts say.\u00a0<\/p>\n Do I need an attorney to write a will?\u00a0<\/p>\n Estate-planning experts often recommend that a will be prepared by an attorney, someone trained to write a complex and potentially high-stakes legal document.<\/p>\n But it is possible to prepare a will without an attorney, potentially saving hundreds or thousands of dollars. \u00a0<\/p>\n An online estate planning service will generate a will for a\u00a0fee of $100 to $150, according to the National Council on Aging, a charity that advocates for older Americans. The nonprofit offers an\u202fonline estate-planning guide<\/a>\u00a0and a curated list of\u00a0Best Online Will Makers<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Most](\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/gcdn\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2026\/04\/16\/USAT\/89648523007-retirement-6.JPG?width=660&height=440&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")
![\"Fewer](\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/gcdn\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2026\/04\/16\/USAT\/89648570007-florida.JPG?width=660&height=440&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")