Writing a simple will

Pignut

Howdy,

I would be greatful for some advice on drawing up a simple will please.

I'm single, mid-30's, no kids, have a small(ish) mortgage, a couple of savings accounts, and just want to leave everything to my brother. I've got mad skills on MS Word, so I really just need some help on what to include - is there anything specific that needs to be included (sections, references to law, etc) or worded very specifically - barring the two witnesses bit? Any links to resources (templates, etc) would be most welcome too.

Many thanks,

Pignut

Keep_pedalling

Google will find you some free templates, but the advice from the majority on this board is to get a professionally drawn up will. Yes you have a simple estate, but you need a bit more thought to this. What happens to your estate if your bother dies before you?

kuratowski

Yes, it's worth paying a fee to ensure there are no mistakes, if you make a mistake in a self-written will it could create unnecessary difficulties for your family.  Go and get it done professionally by a solicitor.

An incidental benefit of getting your will written by a solicitor is that they will help with getting it correctly witnessed and with storage.

xylophone

See a solicitor - you could ring round your local firms to get a quote for a simple will with one beneficiary.

Have you taken out an insurance policy to cover the repayment of the mortgage in the event of your demise before it is paid off?

Pignut

Hi there,

Keep_pedalling: I had drawn up a simple will prior to posting, specifying that my brother will receive 100% of my estate, but if he is deceased my mother and father will receive 50% each. I want to give it all to my brother with the understanding that he uses the money to Look after my mum and dad in their old age, because if I leave it to my mum and dad the money will probably push their estate over the inheritance tax threshold. Does that make sense? 

Kurstowski: Sound advice.

Xylophone: Yes my life insurance is a decreasing term one that covers the mortgage. Hopefully I’ll pay it off before I pop me’ clogs, but you never know! 

Thanks for the advice everyone, I guess it’s probably best to make some calls to local solicitors tomorrow 👍 

Have a great day everyone,
Pignut

Marcon

Pignut said:

Hi there,

Keep_pedalling: I had drawn up a simple will prior to posting, specifying that my brother will receive 100% of my estate, but if he is deceased my mother and father will receive 50% each. I want to give it all to my brother with the understanding that he uses the money to Look after my mum and dad in their old age, because if I leave it to my mum and dad the money will probably push their estate over the inheritance tax threshold. Does that make sense? 

If your mum and dad have a property, don't forget that if it is left to their direct heirs (children/grandchildren) the nil rate bands add up to about a million, so possibly not a problem under current legislation.

BooJewels

I'd reiterate what others have said - doing it yourself could create a difficult situation in the future and be a false economy.  If you do have savings, spend some of it getting this right - a bad will is worse than none.

A tip I would add though - if you have got 'mad skills in MS Word' - type up all the relevant information correctly and well laid out to give to your solicitor before they start - having names in full (will need middle names etc) and correct address details will save them time asking you for stuff and prevent potential spelling or other errors that need to be corrected in the document.

When I did mine I also typed up a side letter with incidental gifts to friends beyond the remit of the will and that gets filed with the original at the Solicitors - so if that's relevant, you can save their bill by doing that yourself.

Another benefit - as others have touched on - is that the solicitor stores your original will and provides you with a copy - so you don't need to risk the original being lost or damaged before it's needed.  My husband passed away recently and two pension companies both needed to see the Will - and were prepared to accept certified copies.  I just dropped my solicitor an email and she hand delivered 2 copies to me a few days later - at no additional cost, even though I told her to include her bill.

If you give your brother a copy of the will, with the solicitors card attached (as I have done with my son, my executor), it will make life much easier for them, at modest additional expense to you now.

RAS

BooJewels said:

Another benefit - as others have touched on - is that the solicitor stores your original will and provides you with a copy - so you don't need to risk the original being lost or damaged before it's needed.  My husband passed away recently and two pension companies both needed to see the Will - and were prepared to accept certified copies.  I just dropped my solicitor an email and she hand delivered 2 copies to me a few days later - at no additional cost, even though I told her to include her bill.

If you give your brother a copy of the will, with the solicitors card attached (as I have done with my son, my executor), it will make life much easier for them, at modest additional expense to you now.

Not necessarily a benefit.

We knew that the will was stored with the solicitors where it was made, although the partners had changed.

We ended up requiring the services of another solicitor to extract the original from them even though they weren't executors. Cost 6 months aggravation and a lot of money, but less than letting them execute it.

How to store a will with HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Mojisola

Pignut said:

I had drawn up a simple will prior to posting, specifying that my brother will receive 100% of my estate, but if he is deceased my mother and father will receive 50% each.

I want to give it all to my brother with the understanding that he uses the money to Look after my mum and dad in their old age, because if I leave it to my mum and dad the money will probably push their estate over the inheritance tax threshold.

If your parents' estates are large enough to pay inheritance tax, won't they have more than enough to fund their own needs?

Keep_pedalling

Pignut said:

Hi there,

Keep_pedalling: I had drawn up a simple will prior to posting, specifying that my brother will receive 100% of my estate, but if he is deceased my mother and father will receive 50% each. I want to give it all to my brother with the understanding that he uses the money to Look after my mum and dad in their old age, because if I leave it to my mum and dad the money will probably push their estate over the inheritance tax threshold. Does that make sense?

Not really, if your parents estates would be pushed into IHT territory it sounds like they already have sufficient assets to look after themselves, and anyway you can’t enforce such conditions beyond the grave.

You are also making your back up beneficiaries a preceding generation, so there is a strong possibility you could outlive all three. Is your brother also childless? 

74jax

What is your brothers circumstances change and he requires benefits?

What if he falls out with your parents?

What if he marries and doesn't make a will and dies? Or divorces?