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According to a 2025 Pew Research Center study, about three in ten U.S. adults say they\u2019ve created a will.<\/p>\n
William Whitehurst\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Do you know who would inherit your property and care for your children if you died tomorrow?\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Many adults do not have a will. According to a 2025 Pew Research Center\u00a0study<\/a>, about three in ten U.S. adults say they\u2019ve created one.\u00a0<\/p>\n As people age, they tend to become more likely to make a will. However, waiting until retirement may not be the best approach for some people. Without a will, many post-death decisions could be left up to state law instead of your wishes.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Whether you think you don\u2019t have enough assets or if you aren\u2019t sure where to begin, here\u2019s what to know about the process of creating a will.\u00a0<\/p>\n \nWhat is a will?<\/strong>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n A will is a document outlining who inherits your property, will care for your minor children and manage your estate after death. Without a will, those decisions are largely determined by Texas law.\u00a0<\/p>\n Adults of any age may want to consider creating a will, said Michelle Alden, Dallas attorney and director of the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program<\/a>. The local nonprofit provides free civil legal services to eligible low-income Dallas County residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n In addition to creating a will, Alden said outlining an estate plan, which can include advanced medical directives and powers of attorney, is also recommended.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Medical directives outline your medical preferences for when you are unable to make decisions for yourself, such as during end-of-life care. You can name a medical power of attorney, who would make decisions for you, as well as a durable power of attorney<\/a> who can make general decisions if you become unable to do so.\u00a0<\/p>\n \nWhen should I consider creating a will?<\/strong>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n Alden said you may want to consider creating a will when you make major life changes, such as turning 18 years old, getting married, having children or acquiring new assets like a house.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will simplify things down the road for your heirs when they\u2019re already grieving and things are chaotic,\u201d Alden said. \u201cIf you don\u2019t have an estate plan in place, it could make things even more difficult for those who are left behind.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n People with higher incomes across all age groups are generally more likely to create a will, according to the Pew Research Center study. However, even if you are younger and do not have larger assets like a house,\u00a0Alden said having a will is the only way you\u2019ll legally ensure specific wishes you have for your estate are carried out.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cUnexpected things happen, and people pass away,\u201d Alden said. \u201cIf you have certain opinions and strong feelings about who should be the person to be the executor or you have a child you want to disinherit for some reason, all of these specifics will need to be spelled out in the will.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Alden recommended following the same advice for updating your will after any major life changes, such as a divorce.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cPresumably, you would not want to leave all your property to the person you just divorced,\u201d Alden said.\u00a0<\/p>\n What happens if I die without a will?<\/strong><\/p>\n If you die without a will, Texas law will determine what happens to your property. Your estate may go through probate<\/a>, a court process that recognizes a person\u2019s death and authorizes the distribution of their estate.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Under Texas law, the surviving spouse and children will usually inherit probate assets, but Alden said complex family situations or disagreements can complicate this process. For instance, if you want your property to pass onto your children, the state of Texas must also legally consider them your children.\u00a0<\/p>\n Some assets<\/a>, such as life insurance, may transfer at death without a will. Handling the distribution of other assets will vary based on the type of property and whether there is any joint ownership.\u00a0<\/p>\n Alden said probate complications can be lengthy and expensive due to filing and attorney fees, which are typically paid for out of your estate.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you don\u2019t have a will, then you don\u2019t get to have a say-so in how your estate is handled,\u201d Alden said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \nHow do I create a will in Texas?<\/strong>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n There are two ways to create a valid will in Texas, including a holographic will or an attested formal will<\/a>.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Holographic wills can be done yourself, but they must be physically handwritten and signed. While handwritten wills can be valid, Alden recommends working with an attorney because missing legal requirements could make a will difficult to enforce or leave it open to challenges.<\/p>\n An attested formal will require witnesses and may need to be notarized, Alden said. Creating a will also requires the individual to have a sound mind and mental capacity.\u00a0<\/p>\n Requirements can also vary by the type of will and by state, and more complex estates may require additional documents or planning. Creating a formal will could cost at least $1,000, Alden said, but this varies by attorney or legal practice.\u00a0<\/p>\n \nWhere can I get help creating a will?<\/strong>\u00a0\n<\/p>\n DVAP hosts free virtual legal clinics every Thursday alongside a variety of neighborhood legal clinics throughout Dallas. When attending any kind of legal clinic, Alden said to bring any paperwork relevant to your legal issue.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The nonprofit is a joint project of the Dallas Bar Association<\/a> and the Legal Aid of Northwest Texas<\/a>, an organization providing free civil legal services to low-income individuals in 114 counties across North and West Texas.\u00a0<\/p>\n More information about DVAP\u2019s legal clinics is available at dallasvolunteerattorneyprogram.org\/volunteer\/clinics<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Senior Source<\/a>, in partnership with DVAP, will host a wills and estate planning legal clinic<\/a> Aug. 12 from 8:30-11 a.m at 3910 Harry Hines Blvd. in Dallas. Eligible participants must have a limited income and be Dallas County residents, age 50 or older and a citizen or legal resident.\u00a0<\/p>\n Individuals who may not qualify for income-based legal aid can also find resources at texaslawhelp.org<\/a>, a nonprofit online resource managed by Texas Legal Services Center<\/a>. Additional online resources about creating a will can also be found on the Texas State Law Library\u2019s website<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"According to a 2025 Pew Research Center study, about three in ten U.S. adults say they\u2019ve created a…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":981592,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[15],"tags":[64,364061,3228,255,6228,352375,339147,364059,67,132,68],"class_list":["post-981591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-business-personal-finance","tag-law","tag-personal-finance","tag-service","tag-tp-finance","tag-tp-money","tag-tp-personal-finance","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-us"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117041090325262827","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=981591"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/981591\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/981592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=981591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=981591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=981591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}