Will Writing
Most of us know what a Will is for but don’t always appreciate why it’s so important to have the right Will to reflect your circumstances.
Even if you have made a Will, is it up to date? Does it represent your life as it is now? When did you last have a look at it?
Why should you have a will?
There are many advantages to having the right Will in place and no disadvantages.
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It allows you to control what happens to your assets after you pass away
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You can set out your funeral arrangements
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You can appoint guardians for any minor children and identify who should look after your assets for them. You can plan to save your estate money on taxes by making charitable donations and other ways
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You can ensure your share of your house will go to your children no matter what happens to your spouse, for example if they remarry or go into a care home
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You can set up a trust for any vulnerable family members to make sure they are financially safe without affecting any means tested benefits they may be reliant upon
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It ensures your assets go to the people YOU want them to go to, not estranged relatives
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You can say what will happen to your pets
We all have different lives and different requirements but want the same thing from a Will, to ensure those that we love and want to protect financially are provided for when we are no longer here.
what happens if i don't have a will?
If you die without a valid Will in place then your estate is divided up using laws that were made in 1925. Times have changed, many of us live in a way that couldn’t have been envisaged back then.
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Unmarried partners are not entitled to anything
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Married partners are only entitled to a fixed sum, the rest being shared out between your spouse and your children
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If you and your partner die in a common accident without surviving children, all your combined assets will be distributed to the family of the younger spouse
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Children from previous relationships may then miss out
This ‘one size fits all ‘set of rules will almost certainly cause heartache, anxiety and financial uncertainty for those that are left behind. Your home or other assets may have to be sold which can negatively affect your surviving spouse who may have counted on the bulk of your assets to maintain their standard of living.
Your estate could end up in the wrong hands completely to where you think it will go including family members you may have no connection with rather than your unmarried partner.
Your loved ones could end up having to look to the Courts to look at make financial provision for them out of your estate which is an expensive, anxious, time-consuming process.
Why leave it to chance?
