WILLS - WHEN TO WRITE ONE - WHEN TO CHANGE
SHOULD YOU HAVE A WILL WRITTEN UP? SHORT ANSWER IS YES, IF YOU HAVE ASSETS.
There are other reasons to have a will set up as well; it helps your loved ones in the unfortunate event that you pass on, it also helps making sure that your wishes are respected when you can no longer express them yourself. In the event that you are no longer here, your will is the last piece giving you the opportunity to have your say about what happens to your assets, valuables and/or with your remains, as well as appointing legal guardians for minors and nomination for who is to administer the estate. It makes it easier on the people you leave behind and can help avoid your family members arguing about things after you pass on or even to avoid legal claims. Your loved ones do not have to wonder and try to figure out what you would have wanted them to do with your assets or for your last good byes, because you are able to tell them with your will, and give them clarity on how you would like it dealt with and what to do.
Do not worry, you do not need to have all the answers, or know all the parts possible to put in a will. It is our job to help you with that to make sure you get all the important things in there and that the will reflects your wishes.
Once you have a will you also need to keep it up-to-date in case circumstances change, here are some things to think about for when to update it:
If your relationship status changes; if you get married, enter a civil partnership or enter a de facto relationship this can affect the other person’s legal rights to your assets in the event of your death in a way you might not wish them to. This means that even if you have a will, your new circumstances supersede the existing will until it is updated and validated again. Especially if there are children from either person from previous relationships it is important to think about changing the will to make sure your estate is divided how you wish.
If there are dramatic changes made to your estate you might want to make sure to include new assets in the will. Also, if you have acquired new possessions that have not been accounted for in the previous version of the will, you should look in to making alterations.
If you get divorced, separated or end a de facto or civil partnership, your will might no longer reflect your wishes and alterations should be made accordingly.
You have new children or grandchildren that you would like to include somehow in the will, this is reason to revise and update in line with new family situations.
In case your beneficiaries or executor die, you need to update the will. This because they can no longer be able to benefit from or execute the will.
The will needs to be dated and signed at the bottom by the testator (you), and two witnesses who are both present at the time of signing the will. If the will is longer than one page, all three must also sign or initial all other pages. The will should be kept in a safe place, and a close friend or the executor should know the whereabouts of the ill so that it can be easily located at the event of your death.
If you need to write up a new will, or revise and update a pre-existing one, we can help you get everything in order and make sure your will reflects your wishes upon the unfortunate event of your death.
