What assets should you include in your will?

You’ll make several important decisions when writing your last will and testament, from nominating an executor who will manage your estate, to naming beneficiaries who will receive your assets. But these roles mean little without actual assets to manage or distribute after you’re gone.

By including a detailed list of your assets in your will, you can ensure your property is handled according to your wishes — and transferred to the people or organizations of your choosing. It can also help save your loved ones time and money by simplifying probate, which is the court-supervised process of distributing your assets after you die.

But what assets should (and shouldn’t) be included in your will?

Assets you should include in your will

1. Bank accounts

Any accounts you have at a bank or other financial institution should be listed in your will, including:

• Checking accounts
• Savings accounts
• Money market accounts
• Certificate of deposit accounts

There are certain exceptions to this: Bank accounts that you jointly own with someone else or that list a beneficiary can bypass probate, and don’t need to be included in your will.

When writing your will, consider providing a description of each account, so there’s no question about which accounts you’re referring to. And because account information can change over time, it’s important to review this information regularly to keep it up to date.

2. Real estate property

Any real estate property you own should be included in your will, such as:

• Your primary home
• Vacation homes
• Land
• Rental properties
• Commercial real estate

You should also add details on where the deeds or titles for each property is stored, as well as where to find other essential paperwork — like tenant information or when a property’s last inspection was.

3. Investment assets

Investment assets are assets that are bought and sold for the purpose of making a profit. They can include:

• Stocks
• Bonds
• Mutual funds
• Cryptocurrencies

In your will, you should list which institutions hold these assets, whether you’ve hired an investment advisor to manage your accounts, and password or account details. For example, if you own any crypto assets, you’ll want to list the address of the crypto wallet where they’re stored, and where to find the keys (or passwords) needed to access them.  

There is one type of investment asset that you shouldn’t include in your will: stocks or bonds that name a beneficiary. These assets can transfer directly to your listed beneficiary without going through probate, so you don’t need to include them in your will.  

4. Digital assets

We live in an increasingly digital world, so it’s no surprise that the average person has over 160 digital accounts, in addition to seemingly countless digital assets. These assets and accounts can include:

• Digital photos
• Music or movie files
• Digital documents (like Word, Excel, or PDF files)
• Email accounts
• Online storage accounts (like Dropbox or Google Drive)
• Social media accounts
• Blogs or websites
• Online banking or investment accounts

Your digital assets are just as important as your physical ones, and you can protect them by storing them in a digital vault and including them in your estate plan. You can even name a digital executor to manage them after you pass away.

Putting your digital assets in your estate plan makes it easier for your executor to find and access your accounts — and avoids potential delays when settling your estate.

5. Businesses

Owning a business takes considerable work, and you’ve likely put a lot of sweat equity into creating and managing your company. By including your business in your will, you’ll ensure your efforts continue after you pass away.

It’s important to list all essential information about your business in your estate plan, such as:

• Founding documents
• Financial information (like budgets and tax history)
• Insurance information
• Business bank or investment accounts

Depending on the type of business you own, you may also want to include other details. For example, if you own a shipping company, you might include deeds to any vehicles the company owns to transport goods. Or if you have staff or use professional services (like accountants, advisors, or legal support), you may include information on where to find employee records or contractor documents.

6. Pets

Most pet owners consider their furry or feathery friends to be members of the family. But in the eyes of the law, pets are considered property, so you should include them in your will.

Like you would for a minor child, you can name a guardian for your pet in your will. This person will take over caring for your pet if you were to pass away. You can also provide instructions for your pet’s care and allocate money to cover their expenses.

7. Personal items

Your will should list any personal possessions that you want passed along to certain people or organizations after you pass away. This can include:

• Family heirlooms
• Collectible items (like stamps or coins)
• Artwork
• Jewelry
• Antiques
• Vehicles (like cars, boats, or RVs)
• Furniture

You can also name beneficiaries for specific personal items. For example, you could gift a specific piece of jewelry to your daughter, or a collection of books to your friend. If you prefer to be more general, you could gift a beneficiary all of your belongings that are stored at a certain address, like your house or a storage unit.

Probate assets vs non-probate assets: What’s the difference?

Assets listed in your will must go through probate before they’re distributed to your beneficiaries. They’re known as probate assets. But certain assets are able to bypass the probate process. These are called non-probate assets.

Non-probate assets, like life insurance policies or retirement accounts, aren’t subject to probate because they already have named beneficiaries. This means these assets can transfer directly to these named people or organizations without court supervision.

Learn more about how to designate beneficiaries for your non-probate assets.

Assets you shouldn’t include in your will

There are certain assets you shouldn’t or can’t list in your will. Including these assets can cause confusion and delays.

Assets you shouldn’t put in your will include:

• Trust assets: Property in a trust isn't subject to probate. This includes property you could have put in your will if you hadn’t placed it in a trust. Instead, trust assets are transferred directly to your named beneficiaries based on the terms outlined in your trust documents.

• Insurance policies: Life insurance policies require you to name a beneficiary. When you pass away, your beneficiary will receive the payout from your policy, no probate needed.

• Retirement accounts: Just like a life insurance policy, you can name a beneficiary for your retirement or 401(k) account so it doesn’t need to go through probate.

• POD and TOD accounts: “Payable on death” (POD) and “transfer on death” (TOD) accounts are bank accounts in which you list someone to receive the contents of the account when you die. They’re designed to automatically transfer to the person you name — no probate necessary.

• Stocks or bonds with a beneficiary: While some investment assets should be listed in your will, others should not. Any stock or bond investments that you can name a beneficiary for should not be included in your will.

• Property that’s jointly owned: Owning your home with another person, like a partner or spouse, is known as joint ownership. When one of you passes away, the other person automatically becomes the property’s sole owner. This is only possible if both of your names are listed on the property deed or title.

Make your wishes known with a will

Your last will and testament contains a lot of important information — including what assets you own and who should receive them. By listing your assets in your will, you can ensure they’re distributed according to your wishes after you pass away.

If you already have a will, it’s important to update it every three to five years to include any new assets you’ve acquired or remove anything you no longer own.

Don’t have a will yet? FreeWill can help. With our free will-making tool, you can create a will in as little as 20 minutes — simply fill out the guided questionnaire, print your forms, and execute them according to the instructions we include with your documents.