Estate Planning in New York for Single Professionals and Unmarried Partners

If you are single, building a career in New York, or sharing your life with a partner you have not married, the default rules of New York law were not written with you in mind. New York’s intestacy statute hands your property to relatives by blood and marriage. It does not recognize an unmarried partner, a chosen sibling, a close friend, or a goddaughter, no matter how many years you have shared a Brooklyn walk-up or a Hudson Valley weekend house. Estate planning is how you replace those defaults with your own decisions.

Why the Stakes Are Higher When You Are Not Married

Married New Yorkers inherit from each other automatically and can speak for each other in a hospital. Single people and unmarried partners enjoy none of that. Under EPTL Article 4, if you die without a will your estate passes to parents, siblings, nieces and nephews, or more distant kin, and your partner receives nothing. Without the right documents, your partner may also be shut out of medical decisions and locked out of your finances during an emergency. Planning closes those gaps deliberately.

The Documents That Do the Work

A well-built plan in New York usually combines several instruments. A will directs who inherits and names the people you trust. A revocable living trust can keep your estate out of Surrogate’s Court. A durable power of attorney lets a chosen agent handle your money if you cannot. A health care proxy and living will let your partner or friend speak for you medically. Together they make sure the people who actually matter to you are the ones in charge.

What We Cover on This Site

Explore plain-English guides to wills, revocable living trusts, probate and how to avoid it, and powers of attorney and advance directives, all framed for people whose families do not look like the statute’s assumptions. A dedicated page addresses the questions unmarried partners ask most: leaving a home to a partner, beneficiary designations, and avoiding fights with relatives.

New York Specifics to Keep in Mind

New York imposes its own estate tax. In 2026 the basic exclusion amount is $7,350,000, and a steep “cliff” applies: an estate exceeding 105% of that figure (about $7,717,500) loses the exclusion entirely and is taxed on the whole estate. Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance pass outside your will, so they deserve as much attention as the will itself, especially when an ex or a parent is still listed.

Talk to a New York Attorney

This site is general information about New York law, not legal advice for your situation. Estate planning turns on the details of your assets, relationships, and goals. Before you sign anything, consult a licensed New York estate planning attorney who can tailor a plan that protects the people you choose.