“Estate planning is an important and everlasting gift you can give to your family”- Suze Orman
Financial planning, in one’s life, doesn’t end with retirement planning. There is still one last stage of financial planning left to achieve, which is creating a WILL. After you, you would want someone to secure your assets. Thus, succession planning in the form of creating a will plays an important role. In other words, a will is nothing but a way to leave instructions to your family members about issues close to your heart that need to be managed after you!
Having a will helps you decide who should gain access to your inheritance and how much. This is a crucial step to reduce the chances of any disputes among family members after you!
Well, in this blog we’ll be discussing the following questions:
What is a will & how does it work?
A will is nothing but a legal document that entails the wishes of the person writing about his/her desire to distribute the assets among their heirs. It is a crucial component of financial advice as it plays a key role in assessing the succession and estate planning of an individual for their family members.
A will by an individual can be made many times, but the valid one would be the latest & signed by the witnesses. Thus, this will be regarded as the final Will for all asset transfers, therefore all the previous will be regarded as null and void in the eyes of the law. When creating a will all by yourself make sure to get it signed by two witnesses. Also, the testator or the person writing will become valid after the death only. Not only this, will help in many scenarios.
For instance, if you ever wished to donate some funds towards charity & it is mentioned in your will, then your family would have an idea about this. Otherwise, your family may have no idea about this & might end up distributing the money among themselves.
Why creating a will important?
“Nothing is certain except death and taxes”- Benjamin Franklin
The COVID pandemic was an uncertain event in life, no one thought that it would have such drastic consequences. No one knows what life holds for us in the future, thus, learning from the COVID pandemic, preparation is what we can do!
Having a will simply means your wishes are being carried upon your death. Will doesn’t only mean a transfer of your financial assets as through will you can provide your last rite wishes, gratitude to your family or friends, etc. You may record anything in your will for instance if you wish to donate assets to a charity or you wish to open a trust in the name of your children.
Additionally, if someone dies without leaving a will, this would mean that did not feel the need to prioritize this financial activity. This is known as dying intestate, under this situation you will end up giving the control to the law for the division of your assets. Not only this, this situation might even hamper your family environment as disputes might happen. Therefore, you would not want your assets to get into the wrong hands.
How to prepare a will?
There is no limit on how many pages a will can be, you can write as detailed as you wish too. Both handwritten and typed wills are acceptable unless they are signed by 2 witnesses on all pages by mentioning the specific date. You can also find online templates for creating a will.
The document must contain the following:
- Full information on the spouse, self, children, and living parents
- Legal declarations about mental fitness and the effective date of the Will
- Details on all jointly held/ single properties
- Names of the two witnesses
- Wishes in terms of wealth distribution
Also Read: How To Plan Your Finances In New Year 2024?
