Your estate planning questionnaire asks about your family, your current plan, your wishes and your finances. Having a few things at hand before you start makes it quicker and helps your answers be accurate. Your attorney may want to review some of these documents as well.
The questionnaire takes about 30 to 60 minutes, and you can save your progress and return later. Estimates are fine wherever you are unsure. Your attorney chooses which pages your questionnaire includes, so use only the parts of this list that match yours.
People
These pages ask about you and the people in your life. Have at hand:
- Full legal names and dates of birth for you and your spouse or partner
- For each child: full name, date of birth, the city and state where they live, and their spouse’s name if they are married
- The names and ages of any grandchildren
- Basic details about your parents and siblings
- The full names of friends, and the legal names of any charities, you may want to include in your plan
- The names and contact details of your advisors, such as an accountant, financial planner or insurance agent
For help with these pages, see the questionnaire help for Personal Information, Family Information, Additional People & Entities and Advisors and Referral Source.
Your current plan and the people you will name
These pages ask about documents you already have and who you want to name in your new plan. Have at hand:
- Your current Will, Revocable Trust and Financial Power of Attorney, if you have them
- Your current health care documents, such as a Health Care Power of Attorney, Health Care Directive or Advance Directive
- Any prenuptial, postnuptial or community property agreement
- Any divorce decree or order to pay support to a former spouse or partner
- Details of any trust that someone else created for your benefit
- The names of the people you are considering for each role in your plan, and at least one backup for each
If you have filed gift tax returns, have those at hand too. Your attorney may want to review them.
For help with these pages, see the questionnaire help for Current Estate Plan for Washington or for Oregon, and for Fiduciary Choices.
Health care and final wishes
These pages ask about your medical wishes and your final arrangements. It helps to have:
- Any prepaid funeral, burial or cremation paperwork
- Details of a cemetery plot or niche you already own
- Your military service details, if you may want a veterans’ burial
For help with these pages, see the questionnaire help for Health Care Planning in Washington or Health Care Preferences in Oregon, and for Final Arrangements.
Finances
These pages ask what you own and owe, with an estimated value for each. Have at hand:
- Recent statements for your bank, investment and retirement accounts
- An estimated value for each property you own, such as a property tax assessment or an online estimate
- For property you own with someone else, such as a sibling: who the co-owner is, your share, and how it is titled
- For each life insurance policy: who owns it, whose life it insures, the type of policy and the death benefit
- The current beneficiary designation for each retirement account and life insurance policy
- For a business you own: its agreements, such as an operating or shareholder agreement, and any recent valuation
- Summaries of any stock options or other equity compensation
- Recent statements for your mortgage and any other large debts
The deed or account paperwork shows how a co-owned asset is titled. That can decide who receives your share at your death. For more on that, and on beneficiary forms, see this article.
For help with these pages, see the questionnaire help for Asset Details for Washington or for Oregon, and for Business Interests and Liabilities.
Want to read more?
These articles are optional.
- Getting started: What estate planning is and where to begin. See this article.
- Glossary: Common estate planning terms. See this article.