What is Chosen Family, And How Is It Changing Estate Planning?

For decades, estate planning has centered on traditional inheritance: name your spouse, your kids, maybe a sibling or parents, and pass everything down the family line. But Millennials and Gen Zers are embracing alternative narratives. According to Trust & Will’s 2025 Estate Planning Report, 1 in 4 young adults are naming their close friends as executors and guardians, over their blood relatives. 

Why Does Chosen Family Matter in Estate Planning?

Our best friends, lifelong roommates, mentors, and any other personal relationships foundational to our lives are often included in the greater umbrella term of chosen family. 

For many Millennials and Gen Z adults, these bonds can be even stronger than traditional family roles. They’re showing up in wills, guardianship appointments, and even healthcare directives. 

Estate planning once relied on the assumption of your next-of-kin handling everything. But presently, young adults are asking: What if I trust my best friend more than my brother? What if I want my roommate to raise my pet? What if I want to leave something meaningful to my community, beyond my immediate family?

How Chosen Family is Shaping Modern Estate Plans

Appointing Friends as Decision-Makers

It’s becoming increasingly common to choose close friends, partners, or roommates as executors, powers of attorney, and healthcare agents. These are the people who may know you best- and often can be more aligned with a person’s values than a distant cousin or an estranged parent. 

Planning for Pets Instead of Kids

Pets are seen as the primary dependents of many young adults. Pet Trusts and clauses for long term care are becoming standard practice- especially when a non blood relative will be taking over their care. 

Honoring Digital Footprints

It’s 2025- Estate Planning goes beyond bank accounts, real estate, and physical possessions. Many young people want to protect their digital footprint- from crypto wallets to personal websites to social media accounts. Sentimental and creative legacies can be preserved, kept private, or passed down to someone who values its meaning. 

Lasting Legacies for a Cause

More people are choosing to support nonprofits, mutual fund aids, or specific community members by passing down their assets and possessions. Whether it’s a scholarship fund or helping a friend’s small business, estate planning is evolving beyond the family to reflect the person’s identity and intentions. 

4 Steps to Building an Estate Plan for Chosen Family

1. Identify the people who know you best

These don’t have to be your legal or blood relatives. You can choose the people you want to care for your pets, inherit your possessions, and make and carry out decisions upon your behalf. 

2. Have clear, documented conversations

Even if you’re close, don’t assume your chosen family knows your wishes. Document what you want in an estate plan- and talk through that together.

3. Designate beneficiaries thoughtfully

Whether you are looking to pass down your digital content, financial assets, or your annual season football tickets, make sure your plan establishes where you want those things to go, and why. 

4. Name your backup plan

It’s a good idea to name alternates, just in case your first choice isn’t available. This helps ensure that your legacy is protected from being rerouted to default state laws or distant relatives. 

Make a Plan for Your Chosen Family Today

The growing popularity of chosen family is more than just a cultural shift, it signals a transformation of how we think about legacy, responsibility, and care. Young adults are proving that estate planning can be more than just tradition, it can be authentic and intentional. From planning for your partner to your pet, your estate plan should reflect who matters most. 

At Trust & Will, we keep things simple. You can create a fully customizable, state-specific estate plan from the comfort of your own home. Take our free quiz to see where you should get started, or compare our different estate planning and settlement  options today!

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