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More Americans are opting not to have kids, which is complicating traditional wealth and estate planning, experts said.

Approximately 15.2 million adults aged 55 and older, or about 16.5% of the population, were childless in 2018, a U.S. Census Bureau report released in 2021 said. Between 2018 and 2023, the share of adults under 50 years old who said they were unlikely to ever have kids also rose to 47% from 37%, a survey of more than 2,500 adults by the nonprofit Pew Research Center showed.

Without a next generation in line, who will take care of these childless Americans, ensure their dying wishes are fulfilled and oversee where their assets will go after death?

“This is one of biggest issues facing estate planning,” said Kelsey Simasko, an attorney at Simasko Law. “It’s truly the hardest thing to do and can stump us a lot of times.” Simasko says she’s among the millions who are childless.

Why is planning different?

Planning usually assumes Americans have a next of kin, said Jay Zigmont, chief executive of Childfree Trust, which offers financial and estate planning for people without children.

“People have wills because they have kids,” Zigmont said, but everyone really should have one.

Only 19.9% of childfree adults have a will, compared to 32% of the general population, a Childfree Trust survey of more than 600 adults showed. More than 70% of childfree adults report they haven’t completed any legal planning documents at all, including wills, trusts, or power of attorney (POA).

“The number one reason they don’t is they have no name to put down,” Zigmont said.

What’s at stake?

Without a medical and financial POA, the person’s wishes, should they become incapacitated, is unknown. Personal health and financial decisions may be left to a stranger or court that could end up doing something you wouldn’t have wanted or exposing you to abuse.

Estates without clear directives can be subject to lengthy and expensive probate court proceedings, which can consume up to 10% of an estate’s value and take months or even years to resolve, Childfree Trust said in its report. Federal Reserve 2022 data showed childfree couples are among the top wealth accumulators, with a median net worth of $398,960 and an average of $1,867,480.

And although childless Americans don’t have kids to worry about, many of them have pets that need care if something happens to them, experts said. Childfree Trust’s survey showed 76.9% of childless Americans own pets. That’s a larger share than the general population where roughly 71%, or 94 million families, own a pet, according to the 2024-2025 National Pet Owners Survey conducted by the American Pet Products Association.

Who should childless Americans call?

Childless Americans should try first to find trusted friends or relatives to serve as POA, executor and trustee, said Simasko.

“Take a step back, pretend something happened to both of you, who comes running?” she suggests people imagine. “If the answer is a sister, put her down first.”

Sometimes a sibling close in age can be difficult because you and the sibling may both need help at the same time, but that’s why people should “then think of who’s second? Third? Fourth?” Simasko said.

People can also call on a friend, but that could feel like a huge ask, especially as a medical POA, Simasko said. “The hardest decision to make is to pull life support,” she said.

What if you have no one for the job?

Being someone’s medical or financial POA, estate executor or trustee are big responsibilities that a friend or younger relative may not want to commit to. Or maybe you don’t have enough people in your life you trust.

Just as the number of childless Americans is on the rise, so is estrangement. A YouGov poll of nearly 4,400 adults last year showed 38% of American adults – comparable to the divorce rate for first-time marriages – were estranged from a family member. Of those, 24% were estranged from a sibling, 16% from a parent, 10% from a child, 9% from a grandparent and 6% from a grandchild.

In those cases, you may want to call in professionals such as attorneys, financial advisers or trust banks, experts said.

As part of a childless couple himself, Zigmont saw a gap that needed filling. Childfree Trust partners with a trust company to offer childless individuals and couples medical and financial power of attorney and the ability to act as executor and trustee of the estate.

“Essentially, we become their next of kin,” Zigmont said. Childfree Trust becomes the name their clients can write down to take care of their needs, he said.

Companies with trust practices, like Plante Moran or Northern Trust, can also help.

“You can name Plante Moran as trustees and executors,” said Dawn Jinsky at Plante Moran. The company will handle all the financial affairs according to directions in wills and trusts to ensure inheritances go where they’re supposed to and bills get paid, she said. Trust banks can also be listed as a financial POA, but often medical POAs are reserved for someone closer to the individual because of the personal nature of those decisions, she said.

How should childless Americans plan financially?

Like everyone, childless Americans should save enough for retirement and especially long-term care, experts said.

Since they don’t have to worry about leaving an inheritance or passing along generational wealth to children, they don’t need life insurance, Zigmont said. “But they need disability and long-term care insurance,” he said. Fewer than 13% of respondents in Childfree’s survey had long-term care insurance, despite being statistically more likely to require paid care later in life.

They also should get burial insurance for funeral expenses, he said.

Since so many have fur babies, don’t forget to name a guardian for your pet and leave money to pay for its care in your will or through a pet trust, experts said.

Zigmont said childless people can enjoy their money and spend down as much as they want since they may not have an heir.

But not all childless people are spenders. “Fundamental saving and spending habits can be ingrained,” Jinsky said. Many people tend to either leave their money to charities or to nieces, nephews and sometimes siblings, she said.

“Without direct descendants, the concept of legacy is reframed from one of familial succession to one of personal impact and philanthropic purpose,” Childfree Trust noted in its report.

Medora Lee is a money, markets and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday morning.