Estate Planning for Young Professionals: Why Waiting Is the Most Expensive Mistake

The Default Plan You Did Not Choose

Here is what happens if you are a 28-year-old professional living in New York with a brokerage account, a 401(k), a side business, and a partner you are not married to, and you get hit by a car tomorrow.

Your parents make your medical decisions, not your partner. Your partner has no legal authority to visit you in the ICU, access your accounts, or make choices about your care. Your brokerage account and 401(k) pass to your parents under New York intestacy law. Your side business sits frozen because no one has legal authority to operate it, access the bank account, or sign contracts. Your digital assets, including crypto wallets, domain names, and social media accounts with monetization, are inaccessible because no one has your passwords or legal authority to access them.

This is not a worst-case hypothetical. This is the default outcome in every state when someone dies or becomes incapacitated without an estate plan. The state has already written a plan for you. It is just not a plan you would have chosen.

What "Estate Planning" Actually Means at 25-35

Forget the image of a wealthy retiree dividing a mansion among heirs. For young professionals, estate planning is about three things: control, protection, and efficiency.

Control means you choose who makes decisions on your behalf. Not a court. Not a parent who does not understand your financial situation. Not a hospital administrator following default protocols.

Protection means your assets, business interests, and digital property are handled by someone you trust, with instructions you wrote, in a timeframe that does not destroy value.

Efficiency means your family does not spend $15,000 and 18 months in probate court to access a $200,000 estate that could have transferred in weeks with proper planning.

The Five Documents Every Young Professional Needs

1. Last Will and Testament

Your will names who receives your assets, who manages the process (your executor), and in some cases, who takes care of minor children or pets. Without a will, your state's intestacy statute makes those decisions for you.

Key considerations for young professionals:

- If you are unmarried but in a committed relationship, your partner inherits nothing under intestacy in most states. A will fixes this. - If you own a business or hold equity in a startup, your will should address how those interests transfer. Equity with vesting schedules, SAFE notes, and LLC membership interests all require specific language. - If you have a side business, name someone who can wind it down or continue operations temporarily.

2. Revocable Living Trust

A trust lets your assets transfer outside of probate, which is faster, private, and typically cheaper. You create the trust, transfer assets into it during your lifetime, and name a successor trustee who takes over if you die or become incapacitated.

For young professionals, a trust is especially valuable if you hold:

- Investment accounts or brokerage portfolios - Real estate, even a condo - Business interests or startup equity - Any asset you want to keep out of public probate records

A common misconception is that trusts are only for wealthy families. A revocable living trust costs marginally more than a will alone and saves significantly more in probate avoidance for estates of any size.

3. Financial Power of Attorney

This document names someone who can manage your finances if you cannot. Pay your rent, access your bank accounts, manage your investments, file your taxes, and handle your business obligations.

Without a financial power of attorney, your family must petition a court for conservatorship to access your accounts. That process takes months, costs thousands, and happens in public.

Young professionals with multiple income streams, equity compensation, or business interests should pay special attention to the scope of this document. A generic financial power of attorney may not cover LLC management authority, crypto wallet access, or stock option exercise decisions.

4. Healthcare Power of Attorney

This names the person who makes medical decisions for you if you cannot communicate them yourself. This is separate from the financial power of attorney and covers different authority.

If you are unmarried, this is non-negotiable. Without it, your next-of-kin under state law makes your medical decisions. In most states, that means your parents, even if you have not spoken to them in years and even if your partner of eight years is standing right there.

5. HIPAA Authorization

A HIPAA authorization allows your designated people to access your medical records and speak with your healthcare providers. Without it, privacy regulations prevent your family from getting information about your condition.

This is a simple form but a critical one. It should be signed alongside your healthcare power of attorney.

What Young Professionals Get Wrong

The Digital Asset Problem

Young professionals typically hold more digital assets than they realize:

- Cryptocurrency and DeFi positions stored in wallets inaccessible without private keys - Domain names that may have significant resale value or be critical to a business - Social media accounts with monetization (YouTube, TikTok, Instagram) generating ongoing revenue - SaaS subscriptions and cloud storage containing business-critical data - Online banking and investment platforms requiring two-factor authentication

None of these transfer smoothly under intestacy. Your executor needs both legal authority and practical access — passwords, recovery phrases, 2FA backup codes, and knowledge of which platforms you use.

A digital asset inventory, stored securely and referenced in your estate plan, is not optional for anyone under 40. It is as important as listing your bank accounts.

What It Costs

All plans are fixed-fee with no hourly billing.

How Jacobs Counsel Handles Estate Planning

Drew Jacobs holds a J.D. with a focus in Tax and Estate Planning from Seton Hall Law School and was named a 2026 Super Lawyers Rising Star in Entertainment & Sports Law. The firm works with young professionals, athletes, content creators, and startup founders who are building wealth early and need a plan that grows with them.

Every engagement starts with a comprehensive intake that maps your full asset picture, including digital assets, equity compensation, business interests, and family dynamics. The plan is built around your specific situation, not a template.

Your Move

If you earn income, hold assets in more than one account, or have anyone in your life who depends on you or whom you want to protect, the time to plan is now. Not after the wedding. Not after the first kid. Not after you "have enough."

BOOK ESTATE PLANNING CALL →

Keep Learning

- Digital Assets in Estate Planning - Estate & Wealth Protection for Professionals