Wanted - Free or cheap will

su1_2

I work in a small stationery shop and we sell them for £1.50, so small shops may be the best place to look.

bhughes_2

Thank you to everyone for your help & kind thoughts- i didnt expect such a response. Also an extra thank you for those who replied who have lost someone close and still been kind enough to advise.

We are both divorced and are starting again. We have 5 children between us. Due to the house move it is taking all of our current funds (why couldnt they have got rid of that stamp duty now!) so thought to have something in place even if written ourselves would be better than nothing ?

kim_ley

http://www.howtobooks.co.uk/family/wills/

info here use links on left hand side make sure you do them right or they wont be worth the paper they are written on!

nmckay15

Hiya, www.willaid.org.uk is the organiser of the time each November where Solicitors do free wills, as mentioned by redagila. They give you a list of a load of solicitors near you and you choose who you see. Everything is free, and then at the end they ask how much you would like to donate and who to, and handle everything for you. There is no pressure to give any amount, it is a personal decision. My husband and I did ours at a very good solicitors and gave £30 to a children's charity. Of course, this is giftaided too, so it works out well for a charity. This way you get a very professional will at a respectable solicitors, for as much as you're willing to donate. I highly recommend this!

judy2357

candyflossing wrote: »

This might sound like an odd question, but if I trusted my kids couldn't I transfer my property etc. over to them now? It would save a lot of hasssle and money in the long run ...

Sorry I dont know how old you are, or how old your kids are but I should be very wary of doing this without advice from a Solicitor first. If for instance, you put your house into the names of your children and one of your married children is divorced your house may then have to be sold and shared with the ex husband. I may be wrong about this but I should check first.

pookiewn

Hi,
There is body called the Will Writers Association (http://www.willwritersassociation.com/) that have all the accredited will writers. They are a lot cheaper as they come to your home instead of having an office. If you need a will for assests and power of attourney they are a good option. Not as cheap as the ones you can buy off the shelf, but a lot cheaper than a solicitor!

Hope this helps!

localhero

Or alternatively to find a willwriter in your area who has passed an entrance exam, must undertake continuing professional development each year, has professional indemnity insurance and operates to a code of conduct which has received stage1 Office of Fair Trading approval, visit www.ipw.org.uk

SwissToni_2

Beware of having banks as executors, they will ignore the deceased wishes to whatever personally suits them. We had this happen with a close family friend and as part beneficiaries we had to constantly remind and force them to comply with the exact terms of the will. If property is part of the estate, they will pick the estate agency that best suits their pockets not the estate's, they also pick which of the bids to accept and surprisingly not the highest, but based on what mortgages are taken through their bank. Again we had to remind them who they were working for. Likewise with funeral directors, our friend listed specific wishes of who and who not to use for her funeral, and how it was to be conducted, yet the bank chose whoever suited their pockets and dealings. Again we forced them to comply. The last thing you need to deal with when someone dies is heated arguments over the phone with an uncaring thieving bank and their cap in hand friends. What made things worse this was a will written through that bank.

Larumbelle

I would second being careful with getting the bank to do one and being executor. My grandfather passed away earlier this year and the bank was supposed to be executor - they were going to charge almost £20,000 to do it :eek: and all they had to do was transfer assets from my grandfather's name to my grandmother's, who has advanced dementia. So after a protracted battle my father (who is my grandmother's guardian) forced the bank (who I am very tempted to name but have been told not to) to agree that this was unacceptable. So they agreed not to execute it. But so far that's all they've agreed.
Seven months on, my grandfather's will is in no-mans land, it can't be executed, and therefore the assets are, of course, frozen. My father is paying through the nose to insure an empty house and pay someone to keep an eye on it, he has had to settle all of the outstanding bills himself, he has had to bear the cost of the funeral, he has had to keep my grandmother's care fees paid from his own pocket. He can thankfully just about afford to do it - at the moment. But what happens if this situation continues and he can't keep paying out? The bank has even got snotty about me having my grandfather's watch, even though my grandfather gave it to my father to pass on BEFORE he passed away. And as you can probably appreciate, this is the last thing any of us wanted to happen.

I really, really, would be careful. It sounds expensive, but a will really should be written properly, otherwise what is the point of having one? I would say use a solicitor, either wait until the free week or call a few and try to knock their prices down.

SwissToni_2

I'll name and shame them, Natwest.