Best simplest WILL

getmore4less

sebastianj wrote: »

Can any one suggest the wording of a simplest Will.
Husband &wife with three grown up children, ' 600k assets.

Situation is that assets to transfers to surviving partner and then the children in a TAX efficient manner. Any suggestion?
sebastian

Do you want a simple will or one that achieves what you want.


You assets are in the IHT teratory where you need to start spending money or seek advise, it will not take much to be subject to IHT issues.

£600k now could become £700k quite quickly, any older relatives with assets, pension lump sums etc.

What do you want to happen if you all die together.

kids die first.

kids marry the spouse from hell

partner remarries after your death.


One thing you can't do with a simple will is say assets go to spouse then to kids.

CLAPTON

getmore4less wrote: »

What do you want to happen if you all die together.




One thing you can't do with a simple will is say assets go to spouse then to kids.

bizarre

as one thing you CAN say with a simple will is that property goes to spouse (unless dead ).

and many spouses are happy, in their turn, for their property to go to their (your) children

Mojisola

CLAPTON wrote: »

as one thing you CAN say with a simple will is that property goes to spouse (unless dead ).

and many spouses are happy, in their turn, for their property to go to their (your) children

Do you want to allow for the possibility that a surviving spouse remarries? Do you want to risk your money going to the new spouse and then to his/her relations rather than your children?

CLAPTON

Mojisola wrote: »

Do you want to allow for the possibility that a surviving spouse remarries? Do you want to risk your money going to the new spouse and then to his/her relations rather than your children?

Yes indeed (OUR money going to OUR children)

of course if my children weren't her children then that would be different

and of course, I'm not a control freak so if my spouse decided otherwise then so be it.

sebastianj

Thanks every one,
Not sure if it is TIC or joint ownership, will find out tomorrow. Yes we have joint accounts etc. I thought that in case of TIC health care cannot touch the property. It is all so confusing.

sebastian

John_Pierpoint

While you are at it have you considered Lasting Power of Attorney?

Being responsible for someone who is breathing but not "compos mentis" can be a lot harder. Your attorney/executor would be dealing with a fluid situation, after death they can take their time.

Not all solicitors are the same, I have had the responsibility of sorting out a partially intestate estate because the will was (incorrectly) drafted by a now retired solicitor. That is the worst of both worlds.

So it is well worth reading up on how wills should be written before you see the solicitor, then you can have a rational discussion for the money you are paying.

Once you have got your will, you need to understand all its implications and review it regularly as the law, the taxes, and your personal situation is continually changing,and the will can soon become inappropriate.

Here is an example of a situation that was standard legal advice, but a will/deed of Variation would not be written like that since autumn 2007. Such wills, stored awaiting the death, should have been reviewed and probably rewritten then.
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3805173

Don't forget that any or all the beneficiaries can get together and rewrite your will by means of a deed of variation. It is likely to cost them £500 - £1000 but it can be done - so that could be another source of conflict amongst your beneficiaries.

sebastianj

Thank you all, John-pierpoit it is an eye opener, personally if I was in a vegetated state' then could not be careless. Life to me is what you share with others and eventually these others need to decide what is in the best interest of their loved one's. Foul play and deception occurs in daily life and cannot be avoided.
Yes you are right, may be there should be a review clause in certain circumstances.

sad life,
seb

zzzLazyDaisy

Seb, with an estate that size, my advice would be to see a solicitor who specialises in wills. They will talk you through your options, discuss any concerns you may have, and go through any ramifications with you.

As someone else has said, at the moment you are not in IHT territory but you are close. Any bequest to a spouse is tax exempt anyway, but on the second death IHT would be payable if the value of the estate has increase (eg if one of you gets an inheritance, or property values start to rise, or you receive a lump sum for a pension or a large redundancy payment etc). Do not assume that the surviving spouse will make those arrangements after the first spouse's death as this isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you lose your spouse and (heaven forbid) it is quite possible that one spouse may follow the other fairly quickly.

One thing you should NOT do (if you wish to protect your spouse) is do nothing. Under the intestacy laws the spouse does not necessarily inherit everything, and whilst you would hope that the children would be reasonable, it is not unknown for the spouse to have to sell the family home in order for the children to get their inheritance under the intestacy.

My advice is don't leave anything to chance. Take advice. As a proportion of the value of the estate, a couple of hundred quid is a relatively small amount for peace of mind and protection of the surviving partner.

macman

£600K assets and you want to write your own will? Never has the phrase 'penny wise and pound foolish' seemed more appropriate.
The fact that you don't even know on what basis you jointly own the property indicates that trying to DIY would be a potential disaster.
Follow the very sound advice given by Daisy.