Flowchart Will

Malthusian

Yorkshireman99 wrote: »

Making a charity executor is bad news. They will almost certainly delegate it to a solicitor with the attendant costs.

And it's the main scenario where I can realistically see the fears of Silvertabby and Mojisola's solicitors coming to pass. If they are executor then they can refuse to authorise the sale of a property in the hope that a better offer comes along - leaving the other beneficiaries waiting for their inheritance.

no1catman wrote:

Regarding Post 10 - I wouldn't make it conditional on 'Aunt Ethel's death', but on the size of the estate - which could be dramatically different after the 'inheritance.

So you'd be doing the same as leaving your inheritance in %s, except that certain beneficiaries' shares suddenly leap at a given threshold instead of increasing smoothly in line with the size of the estate. Since we both like diagrams, imagine a graph where you plot the beneficiary's share (in £) on the X axis and your estate size on the Y axis. With %s, the line is a smooth upward-sloping line. With your proposed Will where the fixed amount increases to a different fixed amount if the size of the estate is above a given threshold, there is a flat line which suddenly leaps upwards and then continues in a flat line.

While it's not ambiguous, it does have the potential to annoy the beneficiaries a little if they find that if your estate had been worth £100 more their Inheritance would have gone up by £10,000.

Would it be legal, I wonder, for the beneficiary to offer to pay £100 into the estate's bank account, or pay off its credit card balance, so that the value of the estate rises above the threshold specified in the Will and they get the larger sum of money? Can the executor refuse? It is in the beneficiary's interests to accept the payment but obviously not that of whoever is entitled to the residue.

no1catman wrote:

Interesting about the possible problems with % with for example charities, and such problems could happen with others too. But if you only stipulate £s there may be an amount left over!

Which is why you say "£X to Beneficiary 1 and £Y to Beneficiary 2, and the residue to Beneficiary 3".

no1catman

Malthusian:

No danger of the Estate being £100 out, the difference could be between 100k & 150k!

Charities are only referred to when, there's no partner left. Though, rather than fight over the value of a house sale, there are just as likely to be urging sell, sell, sell - to get whatever money quicker.

My late Father's will was a DIY one, with some 2.5% & 5%s, with the balance divided between three. Simple enough.

Linton

One problem with fixed amounts to charities is the reduced inheritance tax if you bequeath 10% of the estate to charity. It would be a pity if your fixed amounts were a touch too small.

Malthusian

no1catman wrote: »

No danger of the Estate being £100 out, the difference could be between 100k & 150k!

I don't follow. Presumably you are giving a threshold for the estate value above which beneficiary A gets £X, and below which they get £Y. Even if Aunt Ethel's inheritance takes you £150,000 over that threshold, there's no guarantee you won't have spent £150,000 by the time you die on fast cars or care costs. No matter where you set the threshold, there is a possibility - and it may seem a remote one, but all potential issues with Wills seem remote until they happen - that your estate when valued is within a few hundred or thousand pounds of that threshold, in which case it gets very complicated.

Linton wrote:

One problem with fixed amounts to charities is the reduced inheritance tax if you bequeath 10% of the estate to charity. It would be a pity if your fixed amounts were a touch too small.

Bear in mind your beneficiaries could always DOV it if a tenner extra to charity results in a much larger Inheritance Tax saving. But yes, this is something to bear in mind before you leave exactly 10% of your estate to charity in £ - you will almost immediately lose the Inheritance Tax saving because inflation will increase the size of the estate.

Mojisola

Someone else has since suggested that a percentage is left to charities without the charities being named in the will.

A letter left with the will would direct the executors how to divide up the charity pot.

If a charity is named in the will, they contact the executor. I don't know if the 'charity pot' would mean the executor being deluged by letters from charities asking if they are on the list.

Savvy_Sue

Yorkshireman99 wrote: »

Making a charity executor is bad news. They will almost certainly delegate it to a solicitor with the attendant costs.

My guess is that if the charity is 3rd executor, that means there are very few other beneficiaries left!

Spendless

My grandmother's will was made with various scenarios in place. 50% to go to my Mum and 25% each to me and my sister. If Mum died before Nan, then divided 50/50 between myself and sis. If me or sis were to die before Nan or Mum, then our share was to be divided between our children (2 each). No charities were mentioned, so nothing I can tell you there.

Primrose

We have to update our wills which haven,t been done for a number of years, during which time ai have read of some pretty shocking cases of charities bullying executors regarding donations left to charities so this is a matter aid wish to review. I think maybe a letter of wishes might be a better way of handling things.
Last time Inuodated my will I wrote very simple but detailed instructions on what I wanted to happen. By the time the solicitor has drafted it my wishes seemed almost unintelligible!

nom_de_plume

When solicitors do flow charts.....

[FONT=&quot]3. SUBJECT[/FONT][FONT=&quot] to the payment of my funeral and testamentary expenses and debts I GIVE all my real and personal estate whatsoever and wheresoever situate not otherwise specifically disposed of by any Codicil hereto to my said wife ************ absolutely[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]4. IF[/FONT][FONT=&quot] my said wife ********** shall not survive me then the dispositions contained in the following clauses of this my Will shall have effect in substitution for clause 3 hereof[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]5. I GIVE[/FONT][FONT=&quot] all my real and personal estate whatsoever and wheresoever situate not otherwise specifically disposed of by any codicil hereto to my Trustees UPON TRUST to sell call in and convert the same into money with power in their absolute discretion to postpone such sale calling in and conversion to retain the same in its existing form of investment without being liable for any loss occasioned thereby and after payment thereout of my funeral and testamentary expenses and debts to invest the net proceeds of such sale calling in and conversion in any of the investments hereinafter authorised and to stand possessed of such investments and of all parts of my estate for the time being unsold and my ready monies (“my Residuary Estate”) UPON TRUST for such of my said daughter ******* and my said daughter ******* and if more than one in equal shares absolutely PROVIDED ALWAYS that either of my said daughters shall predecease me leaving a child or children who shall attain the age of 21 years such child or children shall take and if more than one in equal shares absolutely the share of my Residuary Estate which his her or their mother would otherwise have taken[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]6. IN[/FONT][FONT=&quot] the event that all the trusts hereinbefore declared of and concerning my Residuary Estate shall wholly fail then the dispositions contained in the following clauses of this my Will shall have effect in substitution for clauses 3 4 and 5 hereof[/FONT]

Yorkshireman99

Primrose wrote: »

We have to update our wills which haven,t been done for a number of years, during which time ai have read of some pretty shocking cases of charities bullying executors regarding donations left to charities so this is a matter aid wish to review. I think maybe a letter of wishes might be a better way of handling things.
Last time Inuodated my will I wrote very simple but detailed instructions on what I wanted to happen. By the time the solicitor has drafted it my wishes seemed almost unintelligible!

Letters of wishes just confuse things. Try and make it as simple as possible. Make any bequests clear and do not overcomplicate things. If need be add a letter explaining why the bequests have been made, Your solicitor works for YOU and should explain everything to your satisfaction.