2025 Wills and Estate Planning Study

Used in 2 entries

For each citing entry, the verbatim excerpt and Likelier's calculation notes (how the source's number was converted to the lifetime-probability framing) are shown below. Click through to read the full claim ledger.

1. [1] Dying without heir Risk

   Statistic

   Only 24% of Americans have a will in 2025, down from 32% in 2024

   “"An estimated 76% of Americans die without a will. Only 24% of Americans have a will in 2025, down from 32% in 2024."”

   Calculation notes

   The 76% intestacy rate is frequently conflated with "dying without an heir," but these are fundamentally different conditions. Intestacy means the state assigns heirs according to a statutory hierarchy (spouse > children > parents > siblings > nieces/nephews > grandparents > aunts/uncles > cousins, etc.). In nearly all intestate cases, an heir exists somewhere in this chain. True escheatment -- where the state inherits because no heir can be found -- occurs only when the entire hierarchy is exhausted. States collectively hold ~$70 billion in unclaimed property, but most of this is dormant bank accounts and uncashed checks, not escheated estates. The Caring.com data is used here to establish the denominator of the problem: most Americans do not plan their estates, but most still have statutory heirs.
   

   Independence note: Caring.com conducts annual online surveys with Harris Poll methodology. Independent from academic longitudinal studies and Pew surveys.

   Source date: 2025-01-15 · Accessed: 2026-04-18

2. [2] Inheritance dispute Risk

   Statistic

   Only 24% of Americans had a will in 2025; an estimated 76% die without one

   “"In 2025, only 24% of wills survey respondents said they have a will, 13% reported a living trust, and 4% said they had other estate planning documents."”

   Calculation notes

   The Caring.com survey provides the foundational statistic: 76% of Americans die intestate. Intestate estates are governed by state succession laws that may not match the decedent's wishes, creating the conditions for family disputes. The 24% will-ownership rate is the lowest recorded in the survey's history, down from 33% in 2022. The survey is a nationally representative online poll of approximately 2,500 adults.
   

   Independence note: Caring.com's survey is an annual consumer survey conducted by an independent research panel, methodologically distinct from probate court administrative data and from estate planning industry statistics.

   Source date: 2025-01-15 · Accessed: 2026-04-24

Also cited in these entries

Other

Dying without heir

What are the odds of dying with no one to inherit your estate?

1 in 33 lifetime(3.0%)

OtherDirect

Inheritance dispute

What are the odds of losing part of an inheritance to family disputes or legal costs?

1 in 2.9 lifetime(35%)