Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Washington

Re: What legal documents do teens need

I'm not sure having 18 year olds think about this stuff is their best use of time but I guess thry have to learn about this at some age. One thing I quite often notice is that people are unsure about when they need a will. If you don't own real property and the rest of your stuff is worth less than $100K, you probably don't need a will in Washington. However, if you have minor children, own real property, or want your stuff to go to someone you are not married to, not your parents, or not your siblings, you probably need a will even at a relatively young age.

Power of attorney (for finances and health care), living will (health care directive) and perhaps an organ donor determination on their driver's license are things to consider. Living Trusts are oversold in whatever and typically are not needed. This differs from other states where they are a good deal (e.g., California).

Re: What legal documents do teens need

Probably the most important one is a Durable Power of Attorney. That's the one that allows another person to act as attorney in fact in the event the principal couldn't.

Wills deal with stuff. Most young people don't have that much stuff, but dealing with critical issues when nobody else is authorized to deal with health care providers - now, that's critical.

Hope this helps. Powell