How do I best prepare for serving as a POA for my parents? I don''t have alot of money for legal fees, and they don''t have their wills +POA docs yet.

I think your friends are right, but it is your parents who should consult with an attorney.  These documents are generally not very expensive to have prepared and your parents would be the ones taking care of the costs.  It is their decision as to who to appoint to handle their affairs.  The documents themselves, will tell you what you can and can not do, should they choose to appoint you, but a good power of attorney will basically allow you to act as if you are your parent(s).  As for health care decisions, a living will and/or health care Power of Attorney will also spell out their wishes, and hopefully, they have conveyed those to you, so that you would be able to act in their stead if they can not.  An attorney can guide you through all of this and it would be money well spent.

Dear Anonymous, We Estate Planning Attorneys earn our bread and butter by preparing these type of documents, so I'll probably be crucified for telling you that you can competently prepare the docs on your own with the right preparation.  I won't tell you all the secrets but I will point you in the right direction.....if you have a law library near where you live or work, pay them a visit and ask to see (not sure if they'll let you check it out) the most recent edition of West's Pennsylvania (or whatever state your parents live in) Probate Statute.  If you know how to use an index as well as follow directions, you'll have what you need at your fingertips to successfully prepare the documents you need....you'll  still need to round up some witnesses and a notary to make everything legal.  Even with that all said, I'd still recommend you have a estate planning attorney look over your finished product. You might find one kind enough to do so for the price of a consultation.  Legal writing can sometimes be difficult to understand.....and if you don't understand what you are reading in the statute book, having the information at your fingertips does you absolutely no good. One more thing, the very best thing you can do to prepare for serving as your parents POA is to commit to being unconditionally kind, patient and honest [with their resources].  It will be difficult for them to lose their independence and their pride and or possibly illness may make them not so nice at times so resolve to always treat them with dignity and respect....and remember that once they cared for you when you were helpless and hopefully were very patient with you as you grew.....hopefully through their caring and loving example, they have already equipped you for this very important role. Best wishes to you and I hope the above helps.