Should I get a will or am I better without?

Mishomeister

I have recently purchased a house in my sole name. I am married and have a small kid. Both my wife and chils live with me in our family home.

Now, although it would normally be recommended for a person in my circumstances to have a will. I am not so sure if it would not be better to die intestate.

The reason for this is that having a will requiers executors whixch is where my concerns start.

Professional executors such as solicitors would charge a lot of money and I would rather leave this money to my family if I was to die.

It does not seems that appointing a non professional executor is an option to me as I am foreign and unfortunately all the people I know here either are not good English speakers meaning I would doubt their capability to handle such an important matter or the ones who speak good English are not close enough so I could trust them this matter.

Am I better to go without a will at all?

Mojisola

Mishomeister wrote: »

I am not so sure if it would not be better to die intestate.

The reason for this is that having a will requiers executors whixch is where my concerns start.

Professional executors such as solicitors would charge a lot of money and I would rather leave this money to my family if I was to die.

If you die intestate someone has to apply for Letters of Administration in order to handle your estate.

This is the same as having executors.

Someone has to get legal permission and do the work whether you die with a will (and get to name the people who do the work) or intestate (where it is laid down by law who can do it).

Mishomeister

Mojisola wrote: »

If you die intestate someone has to apply for Letters of Administration in order to handle your estate.

This is the same as having executors.

Someone has to get legal permission and do the work whether you die with a will (and get to name the people who do the work) or intestate (where it is laid down by law who can do it).

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

However if I was to die without a will she could then get that permission to deal with this?

cte1111

Mishomeister wrote: »

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

However if I was to die without a will she could then get that permission to deal with this?

I do not think that this is correct. Executors can all be beneficiaries, so you could just have your wife as a single executor.

Keep_pedalling

Mishomeister wrote: »

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

However if I was to die without a will she could then get that permission to deal with this?

No that is totally wrong. I have 3 executors, my wife and my 2 children and they are all beneficiaries.

Dying intestate just make things more difficult for those left behind. There is nothing stopping an executor hiring, at the expense of the estate, professional help if they need it.

Yorkshireman99

Mishomeister wrote: »

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

However if I was to die without a will she could then get that permission to deal with this?

Completely wrong. Beneficiaries are commonly executor's as well. What beneficiaries cannot do is witness a will.

nom_de_plume

Assuming the equity in your estate (what your house is worth after deducting any mortgage balance and any other sole assets) is worth less than £250,000 you are reasonably safe without a will although there is the issue of the remote possibility that you and your wife die together and who you would want to take care of your child. This assumes you want your wife to inherit everything.

Where it becomes more of an issue is when your estate is worth more than £250,000 and particularly when it's above £325,000 when inheritance tax becomes an issue. Currently there is no tax to pay on the first death when everything is left to the spouse however in the case of intestacy, inheritance tax can become due on any portion that goes to your child through the rules of intestacy.

On the matter of executor, I suggest you name your wife. If she struggled dealing with any aspects she could employ a professional as necessary and would have a vested interest in keeping their costs to a minimum.

On the other hand, lets hope you, as Spock would say, live long and prosper and this is all hypothetical.

pollypenny

Both you and your wife need wills. Think about who would look after your child if the worst happened.

A simple will won't cost much.

Mojisola

Mishomeister wrote: »

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

It's because of myths like this that it's best if people pay a solicitor to get a will written instead of doing a DIY one.

If you go to a good solicitor he/she will discuss lots of options and 'what ifs' with you so that you can decide what to include in your and your wife's wills.

If your wife was your only executor (and you were hers), what would happen if you both died in a car accident?

TBagpuss

See a solicitor and make a will.
If you die ntestate then someone (probably your wife) would need to take out letters of administration.
Depending on the value of your hosue when you die she could find herself in a psoiton where she is not entitled to the whole of the vlaue of the house, and has to sell it in order to invest some of the money for your child, becuase she has no discretion about how to manage the money due to your child.

If you make a will, you can chose to leave eveythingto your wife (who can also be your excecutor) or you canchose to leave part of your estate to the child but ensure that your wife gets the house, or that she is able to stay there, for example.

If you name your wife as executor then she can use a solicitor if she needs to.

Professional executors are not always massively expensive - it depends who you chose.

Your wife should also make a will.

SevenOfNine

Mishomeister wrote: »

The rule for executors is that at least one of the executors can not be a beneficiary of the will eg. I could not appoint my wife as a sole executor if she is a beneficiary as well.

However if I was to die without a will she could then get that permission to deal with this?

An excellent demonstration on why one should not rely wholly on a forum for advice & information! Thankfully several others have quickly corrected this inaccurate statement.