5 Reasons You Should Have A Will
Believe it or not, regardless of your age, having a will is one of the most important things that you can do for your family's safety. A will helps protect your children and assets, and spell out exactly what you hoped to be done with your belongings in the event that something should happen to you.
Without a will, your belongings remain up in the air. It's important to protect your spouse and children by ensuring that there is a will set in place. You will find that inheritance rules vary greatly within different states’ jurisdictions - so if, for example, you live in Colorado, seek advice from an estate planning attorney in Castle Rock. Here are a few reasons that you should make sure that you have created a will.
Your Estate
If you want to ensure that your children inherit your home to sell it rather than it going to someone else, then a will would ensure that that happens. A will that you create is a legally binding document and will be respected if you clearly lay out your wishes for what you expect to be done with your home.
If something were to happen to you, and there was no will said in place, your family may fight about your estate and where it should go.
Your Children
Writing out a will means that you get to dictate who should take care of your kids if you should pass away. If you don't have a legally binding will, you can rest assured that the court will decide who should take your children amongst your family members.
If there is someone in particular to whom you would like to ensure that your children go in your absence, then a will is essential for ensuring your wishes are respected.
Estate Taxes
Another incredibly important reason that you should have a will is because it allows you to minimize the estate taxes. Whatever the value is of what you wish to be inherited by your family will reduce when it is time to pay taxes on the estate.
Executor
Your will allows you to decide who will take care of the handling of your estate. Deciding an executor will ensure that you have the person of your choice paying off any bills you owe—from taking care of your unpaid credit card debt to notifying all appropriate establishments of your death.
It's important that you choose an executor who you can fully trust to ensure that they will do a thorough job.
Excluded Inheritors
If there are certain people that you absolutely do not want to end up with any of your belongings, then a will allows you to disinherit anyone from your estate under relevant Probate law.
By carefully outlining in your will to whom you wish your things should go, you can avoid people inheriting your things who you would prefer not to. For example, you probably don't want an ex-spouse taking your belongings if you can help it.
Tips When Creating Your Last Will
It may seem complicated, but creating your last will and testament is easier than expected. Check the following tips on how to create a valid will:
1. Make sure to create your last will as early as possible. Anybody can create a will as long as the person reaches the legal age, or at least 18 years old. Writing a will early will ensure that all your final wishes will be respected and followed by the trustee and your beneficiaries, as well as the court.
2. As soon as you’ve signed your will, have it validated right away. You can hire an estate planning attorney to ensure that all your documents are valid, most especially your last will. All copies must be certified by the state notary public attorney to ascertain its legality.
3. Think about the best executor for your will. You can assign a loved one or a lawyer or accountant, someone to whom you can reliably entrust your assets to ensure they will be properly distributed. Also, make sure to list all your beneficiaries. You may include your spouse, children, and charitable institutions to which you want to donate a part of your assets.
4. When creating your will, you can make a draft first and think about the details several times before signing it and submitting it to your lawyer. Take time off from your business or work so you have a fresh and clear mind. You want to ensure that all details are correct and you’re not missing anything or anyone behind.
5. Update your last will if you made recent changes. Do it as soon as you can to avoid future problems with your last will when it comes to legality. Make sure to inform your estate planning lawyer accordingly about the necessary changes. Every updated will must be notarized to ensure accuracy.