Do we really need a will?

GeenyWeeny

Hello! wasn't quite sure where to put this..

...my husband and I are recently married and have just had an offer accepted on a house.

We're now going through the whole mortgage process and the conveyancer is trying to flog us a will at £250.

Do we really need one? We have no kids, it would be a very simple 'if one of us dies the other gets everything'

We have life insurance, critical illness, term assurance and home and contents insurance.

Is there also need for a Will? Any thoughts would be helpful.

Thanks! x

kingstreet

Are you buying as joint tenants?

If you are, the property becomes owned by the survivor on death, so no will required for that.

If you buy as tenants in common, the share belonging to the deceased passes into the estate of the deceased and it distributed according to the intestacy rules if no will is left, or according to the will, if there is one.

If married, intestacy means it should pass to you eventually, but a will would help the process.

davilown

A Will will make life easier for you partner if you or they should die - however you can do it yourself for nothing or get a local solicitor to do it for cheaper than that

peanutbuttercups

Are either of you members of a trade union? If so they often have a will writing service. A friend tipped me off about it as she had just done hers with them so I had a free will drawn up last year through my union. .It was done by completing an online questionnaire where I had to fill in what properties i owned, what policies I had etc but i was really impressed with the service.

GeenyWeeny

thanks for the replies everyone!

Yes we're buying jointly, and yes my company does have a union, I'll enquire tomorrow, Thanks x

Kayalana99

kingstreet wrote: »

Are you buying as joint tenants?

If you are, the property becomes owned by the survivor on death, so no will required for that.

From what info you've given and Kingstreets reply I wouldn't let anyone talk you into a will.

magpiecottage

You need to be aware that with no will then there are strict rules that apply. A surviving spouse gets your chattels and the first £250,000. After that other relations get what is left.

I have heard of a case where a widow was forced to sell the matrimonial home to pay off a distant relation in Australia neither she nor her late husband had ever met.

SailorSam

It's ok saying if one of you die everything goes to the other but what if you both die at the same time, in a car crash for example. Who gets everything then.

Let_Us_See

Make a will it could prevent many future problems.

PS. No one has died sooner due to making a will.

ValHaller

magpiecottage wrote: »

You need to be aware that with no will then there are strict rules that apply. A surviving spouse gets your chattels and the first £250,000. After that other relations get what is left.

I have heard of a case where a widow was forced to sell the matrimonial home to pay off a distant relation in Australia neither she nor her late husband had ever met.

This should not apply if the property is held as joint tenants. In that case as already stated ownership passes to the survivor. In the case above, I can see that this might happen if they were tenants in common.

Having said that, a will is a good thing - but the £250 is probably better spent on joining a Trade Union and getting free will. We are happy with ours.

holly_hobby

Essentially yes, if the property is held as Joint Tenants, then the deceaseds legal and beneficial share is automatically transferred to the surviving owner(s) upon their death - so it is thereby effectively ringfenced from the divison of the remainder of the decds estate, via bequest or intestacy law.

Having said that, I would always recommend having a will - if nothing else it speeds up the probate process, at what will already be a very distressing time for all.

If you don't have a HNW estate or complicated family arrangements (ie - issue from prev relationship/s), then a standard DIY will would be sufficient and fairly inexpensive.

As suggested your Union or even Hse Insurance provider may offer a discounted will service, and you also have "Will Week", which is generally ran a couple of times a yr, with participating Solicitors around the UK, asking for a donation rather than their normal fee for writing a standard (single or mirror) will (NB - applies to standard format - complex or complicated will arrangements may be attract their normal fee).

Don't forget to review and update your will, as life trundles along and your family circs change.

Hope this helps ....

Holly x