Colorado Estate Planning Basics: Documents Every Adult Should Have

Estate planning in Colorado comes down to three documents most adults should have: a last will, a durable financial power of attorney, and a health care directive. Together they decide who inherits your property, who manages your money if you cannot, and who makes your medical choices when you cannot speak for yourself. The rules sit in the Colorado Probate Code, Title 15 of the Colorado Revised Statutes.

This guide is the overview. It explains what each document does, how Colorado probate works, the small estate threshold, the state's tax picture, and what happens if you die without a will. Each section links to a deeper Colorado guide when you want the full detail.

Why a Plan Matters in Colorado

Without a Plan

If you die without these documents in Colorado:

• Colorado intestate succession decides who inherits your probate property, not you
• Your family may have to open a case in Colorado probate court
• A judge picks who raises your minor children
• No one has clear authority over your finances if you lose capacity, so your family may have to ask a court for a conservatorship
• Your medical wishes may be unknown when a decision has to be made fast

With a Plan

A complete Colorado plan lets you:

• Name exactly who inherits your property
• Name a personal representative to settle your estate
• Name guardians for your minor children
• Give a trusted person authority over your money during incapacity
• Put your medical wishes in writing so your family does not have to guess

The Three Core Documents

1. Last Will and Testament

A will is the foundation of most Colorado plans.

What It Does:

• Names who receives your probate property
• Names a personal representative (Colorado's term for an executor) to settle your estate
• Names guardians for minor children
• Can create trusts for beneficiaries inside the will

Colorado Will Requirements:

Colorado states the signing rules in a short stretch of the Probate Code. The maker, called the testator, must be at least 18 and of sound mind. From there, Colorado gives you a choice most states do not.

Colorado also recognizes a handwritten, or holographic, will without witnesses if the signature and the material portions are in the testator's own hand. The full rules, including holographic and electronic wills, sit in the Colorado will requirements guide.

Limitations to Know:

• A will still goes through probate to take effect
• It becomes part of the court record once lodged
• A will does nothing during your lifetime if you lose capacity

2. Durable Financial Power of Attorney

This document lets you name an agent to handle your money and property if you cannot act yourself.

What It Does:

• Names an agent to act on your behalf
• Covers banking, investments, real estate, bills, and business matters
• Can take effect immediately or only after you lose capacity (a springing power)
• Ends automatically at your death, when your will takes over

Colorado-Specific Rules:

Colorado follows the Colorado Uniform Power of Attorney Act, C.R.S. 15-14-701 and the sections that follow. Two points matter most:

• A Colorado power of attorney is durable by default. It stays valid even after you lose capacity, unless the document says otherwise.
• You sign it and have it notarized so banks and title companies will accept it.

Why You Need It:

Without a durable power of attorney, no one automatically has authority over your finances if you become incapacitated. Your family may have to ask a Colorado court to appoint a conservator, which means hearings, legal fees, and ongoing court supervision. The full signing rules, the statutory form, and the "hot powers" an agent needs spelled out are in the Colorado power of attorney guide.

3. Health Care Directives

Colorado does not use one combined advance directive. State law spreads health care planning across separate instruments, and most people want two of them.

Medical Durable Power of Attorney:

• Names an agent to make medical decisions when you cannot
• Authorized under the Colorado Patient Autonomy Act, C.R.S. 15-14-503 to 15-14-509
• Takes effect only when you lack capacity to decide for yourself

Living Will (Declaration as to Medical Treatment):

• States your wishes about life-sustaining care and artificial nutrition if you have a terminal condition or are in a persistent vegetative state
• Authorized under the Colorado Medical Treatment Decision Act, C.R.S. 15-18-101 and the sections that follow

If you have neither document and lose capacity, Colorado's proxy decision-maker statute lets your family and doctors select a proxy to decide for you. Naming your own agent in advance avoids that. The CPR directive, the MOST form, and how the proxy rule works are covered in the Colorado health care directive guide.

A Trust Is Optional, Not Required

Many Colorado adults are fully covered by the three core documents. A Colorado revocable living trust is an add-on that some people choose to skip probate and plan for incapacity.

A trust can help if you:

• Own real estate you want to pass without probate
• Want privacy, since a trust stays out of the public court record
• Want a successor trustee ready to manage assets if you lose capacity

A trust does not replace a will. Even with a trust, you still need a pour-over will to catch anything you forgot to move into the trust and to name guardians for minor children. To decide which fits your situation, read will vs trust.

A trust only avoids probate for the assets you actually retitle into it. An unfunded trust does nothing.

How Probate Works in Colorado

Probate is the court process that settles an estate. Here is the short version.

Which court: Probate is filed in the District Court of the county where the person lived at death. The City and County of Denver is the one exception, with a standalone Denver Probate Court.

Informal vs formal: Colorado adopted the Uniform Probate Code, so most estates open informally. A court officer called the registrar reviews the paperwork without a hearing and issues letters to the personal representative. Formal probate, with a judge and a hearing, is for contested wills, unclear heirs, or estates that need binding court orders.

How long: A routine informal estate usually stays open at least 6 months, because the creditor claim period has to run before the estate can close. The Colorado probate guide walks through each step, the deadlines, and the forms.

The Small Estate Threshold

Not every estate needs probate. If the estate holds no real estate and the personal property is worth $88,000 or less for a 2026 death, successors can collect assets with a small estate affidavit (Form JDF 999) instead of opening a case. At least 10 days must have passed since the death, and no probate can be pending.

That limit is tied to the year of death and rises with inflation each year, so confirm the figure for the correct year. The Colorado small estate affidavit guide covers the test in full.

Skipping Probate by Design

Probate only reaches assets that have no other way to pass. You can plan around it. Accounts and policies with a named beneficiary, joint tenancy property with right of survivorship, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, and real estate with a recorded beneficiary deed all pass outside probate. The how to avoid probate in Colorado guide lists each tool.

Colorado Estate and Inheritance Tax

Good news for planning. Colorado has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax.

Colorado replaced its inheritance tax with an estate tax in 1980, but federal changes between 2002 and 2004 eliminated the credit the Colorado tax depended on. Under current law, no Colorado estate tax filing is required for estates of people who die after December 31, 2004. The Colorado Department of Revenue confirms the state has not collected estate tax since then.

The federal estate tax still applies, but only to very large estates above the federal exemption. Most families never reach it. A final income tax return for the person and the estate can still be due.

What Happens If You Die Without a Will

When a Colorado resident dies without a valid will, the state's intestacy rules in C.R.S. 15-11-102 decide who inherits the probate estate. Here is the gist for the most common families:

• If all of your children are also your spouse's, and your spouse has no other children, your surviving spouse takes everything.
• If you have no descendants and no surviving parent, your spouse takes everything.
• In blended families, the spouse takes a set dollar amount plus a share of the balance, and the rest goes to your descendants. For 2026 deaths these tiers run as high as $442,000 off the top before the split.
• With no spouse, the estate passes down the family tree: children first, then parents, then siblings, and outward.

Two rules shape the math. An heir must outlive you by 120 hours to inherit, and descendants take per capita at each generation, which equalizes shares within each generation. The dollar tiers also adjust for inflation every year, so the figures change. The Colorado intestate succession guide has the current tiers and worked examples.

The simplest way to avoid all of these defaults is to sign a will that says what you actually want.

Planning for Minor Children

If you have children under 18, a will is the only place you can name the guardian who would raise them if both parents die. Without that, a Colorado court decides. You can also name a separate person or a trust to manage money you leave them until they are old enough. Pre-need guardian and conservator designations are covered in the Colorado guardianship planning guide.

How This Fits Into Your Estate Plan

Think of these documents as a set, not a single form.

• Your will controls what happens to your property after death and names guardians for your children.
• Your durable power of attorney covers your finances while you are alive but unable to act.
• Your health care directives cover your medical decisions while you are alive but unable to decide.
• A trust, if you choose one, sits on top to skip probate and add privacy.

Most adults start with the first three and add a trust only if their situation calls for it. For the national picture of how these pieces work together, see the estate planning overview and the power of attorney basics.

Getting Started

1. Inventory what you own. List real estate, accounts, retirement plans, life insurance, vehicles, and anything of value.
2. Decide who. Who inherits, who raises your children, who handles your money, and who makes your medical calls.
3. Check your beneficiary designations. Retirement accounts and life insurance pass by beneficiary form, not by your will. Keep them current.
4. Sign the core documents. A will, a durable power of attorney, and health care directives, each meeting Colorado's signing rules.
5. Store them safely and tell your people. Keep originals secure but findable, and tell your personal representative and agents where they are.
6. Review every few years. Update after marriage, divorce, a birth, a death, a move to or from Colorado, or a major change in assets.

When to Hire a Colorado Attorney

You can handle a basic plan on your own, but consider professional help if you have:

• A blended family or children from more than one relationship
• A taxable estate near the federal exemption
• Real estate in more than one state
• A business or professional practice
• A family member with special needs
• Any worry that someone may contest your plan

A licensed Colorado attorney makes sure your documents meet state requirements and addresses the wrinkles a form cannot.

The Bottom Line

Estate planning in Colorado is more approachable than it sounds. Three documents, a will, a durable power of attorney, and health care directives, cover most adults. Colorado charges no state estate or inheritance tax, and many estates settle through informal probate or skip probate entirely under the $88,000 small estate path. Without a plan, Colorado's intestacy rules and a judge decide for you. With one, you decide for yourself.

Related Colorado Guides

• Colorado Will Requirements
• Colorado Power of Attorney
• Colorado Health Care Directive
• Colorado Revocable Living Trust
• Colorado Guardianship Planning
• Colorado Probate Guide
• Colorado Intestate Succession
• Colorado Small Estate Affidavit

Official Sources

• Title: Colorado Revised Statutes (official access page), Title 15, Probate, Trusts, and Fiduciaries. Publisher: Colorado General Assembly. Publication Date: Current official code, accessed 2026-06-19. URL: https://leg.colorado.gov/colorado-revised-statutes
• Title: Open an Estate (informal and formal probate, small estate affidavit JDF 999). Publisher: Colorado Judicial Branch. Publication Date: Current, accessed 2026-06-19. URL: https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/self-help/open-estate
• Title: Estates and Trusts (Colorado estate tax filing requirement and history). Publisher: Colorado Department of Revenue, Taxation Division. Publication Date: Current, accessed 2026-06-19. URL: https://tax.colorado.gov/estates-trusts

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Consult a qualified attorney about your situation. It is not legal advice.