To some people, the word "estate" feels wealthy.

You may think of a person's estate as including a huge home on acres of land with a pool and guest house, in addition to vacation homes, luxury cars, private jets and millions in cash socked away in off-shore accounts.

Regardless of those images, "estate planning" is something that everyone should do — even if you're mostly living paycheck-to-paycheck these days.

Why? Because if you own anything at all, technically you have an estate. An estate includes all the money and property a person possesses.

So what's estate planning?

Estate planning is something everyone should do before they pass away. And since no one knows when their time will come — estate planning is something you should probably do now.

Estate planning is the process of establishing plans for your possessions, property and money in case the worst occurs. This includes distributing your assets — your car, home and everything in it, including your prized possessions.

The people you leave behind when you pass away have a lot of work to do on top of grieving. Having plans for your estate can make it much easier on them when they go to pay off your car loan, sell your home or close your bank accounts. Plus, having an estate plan in place, including your will and medical directives, can prevent any of your family members from going to court to fight over property or money.

An estate plan can also secure your legacy. Your personal plan can stipulate what you want done with any money left over after your debts are paid. You can include information about giving money to certain family members under certain conditions, or give your money to a favorite charity or organization. You could even fund a new project, a scholarship for worthy students or establish a charitable foundation.

How to Start Estate Planning

Estate planning can be an emotional and complicated process, so it's best not to go it alone. You may want to enlist the help of a financial advisor and a lawyer. But that doesn't mean estate planning has to be expensive!

Here are a few steps you can take yourself to get started at no cost:

Inventory your assets. From your big-ticket items to meaningful jewelry, art or books, make sure you have a list of things you would definitely want to be given to specific people in your life.

Assemble a financial list. You should have a list of all of your credit cards, retirement accounts, bank accounts and anywhere else you may have money — yes, even the cash under your mattress.

Choose an estate administrator. Decide who you trust the most to be "in charge" and follow your wishes if you die or are incapacitated. You'll want to think of two or three people who may take on this role, in case your first choice declines the position. Make sure this person or people know how to access all of your information. (There are online systems, like LastPass, where you can store this information and have it only given to trusted people after you pass away.)

Talk to a financial advisor and an estate planning professional! Do you want some of your estate to go to a good cause? Or do you want to give money to a young relative but ensure that they use it for their education? There are specific ways to set this up in your will and other estate planning documents, but you'll want a professional to review it.

Not sure where to start with those kind of decisions? That's where we come in!

CommonWealth One has a network of financial professionals that can help with investments, planning and more. Stop by a branch or call us to set up an appointment with Tim States, our CommonWealth One Financial Network Advisor today to talk about your estate, no matter how big or small it may be!