Vast majority of parents lack wills

According to a Parents magazine poll reported in Sharon Jayson, Out of the mouths of ... parents, USA Today, Nov. 7, 2007, at 12D:

Fewer than one-quarter of parents (23%) have a will. * * *

A finding that didn't surprise Los Angeles attorney Jon Gallo was the small percentage who have wills.

"Younger people usually don't think in terms of death or disability, which is the reason for having a will. Naming a guardian and providing for their children — they don't think in those terms," says Gallo, who specializes in estate planning.

The most basic will could cost $200 to $500, but he says most people don't want to face their own mortality or don't know whom to entrust with their children.