Wills

Wills

Introduction

Do people exactly know what a will is? A simple definition is that a will is a written document that dictates how you want your property to be distributed at the time of your death. Does everybody need a will? Even though wills are simple to do, about half of all Americans died without one. You don’t need to be rich in order to make a will and the amount of properties you have is irrelevant. However, with a will you assure that all of your assets will be distributed evenly to your family or any other beneficiary predefined; otherwise, the court will decide for you.

Overview

Wills are the most common way for people to estate their preferences about how their assets should be handled after their death. In addition, many people use wills to express their deepest emotions about their loved ones. One of the major advantages of a will is that will accelerate the transfer of properties avoiding many tax burdens. Regardless of the advantages, at least a seventy percent of U.S. Americans do not have wills.

Wills vary from a single one page to a complete volume of pages, depending on the estates size or the preferences of the person making the will (the “testator”). Wills have the description of the estate and the people who will receive the property (the “devisees”). In addition, it contains the information about the guardian and if there is any gifts to charity. However, the testator has to follow certain legal rules in order to make the document effective.

The requirements for wills vary from state to state. But the seven essentials that make a will valid are:

• You must be of legal age to make a will, in some states 18 years old is enough.

• You must be of sound mind meaning that you should know that you are preparing a will, know the general nature and size of your assets, and specially recognize who will be the devisees that would be expected to share in your estates.

• The will must indicate your intent to make the document your final word on what happens to your property.

• The will has to be voluntary signed by the testator; unless illness, an accident or illiteracy prevents it. In this case a lawyer or one of the witnesses can sign for you.

• Oral wills are permitted in limited circumstances in some states, but wills usually has to be written and witnessed.

• Writing a formal will and following these standards will assure you that your instructions will be strictly followed after your death. Two witnesses (three in some states) must be present when you sign the will.

• A legal will must be properly executed, which means that it contains a statement at the end attesting that is your will, the date and place of signing, and the fact that you signed before witnesses, who will sign it too in your presence. (http://public.findlaw.com/)

However, some legal restrictions prevent a testator of giving full effect to his or her wishes. Some laws prohibit the disinheritance of spouses or dependant children. A married person cannot disinherit a spouse without the spouse’s consent; usually done in a prenuptial agreement. Non-dependant children may be disinherited unless you mention the opposite in your will. In addition, some properties may not descend by will; especially property owned in joint tenancy may only go to the surviving joint tenancy. Any pension, bank accounts, or any similar contract that name a beneficiary might go to the named party.

You have to be sure about who is going to be your representative and it is better if you choose someone you trust; not necessarily a family member because some states doesn’t allow it. Your representative is called “the executor”. The executor must be informed of the duties he or she has to comply before the testator’s death in order to ensure that he or she agrees with it. The executor will consolidate and manage the testator’s assets, collect any debts owed to the testator at death, sell property in order to pay estate taxes, and any other pending task left by the testator before his or her death.

Testators who have children who are minors should name a guardian for them if there is not surviving parent to do so. If a will does not name a guardian, a court will choose someone who may not be necessarily the person that the testator would have chosen. Also, the testator may want to provide financial support for the guardian while he or she takes care of the minor children.

Once the proper arrangements are made, the will should be stored in a safe place that is accessible for the executor after your death. If you had an attorney prepared your will, have him keep a copy with a note of where the original can be found. You need to make sure that at least one of your closest friends or a family member knows where the original is; because you don’t want that your wishes don’t become true when the time comes.

Here is some information that you should not forget when you prepare your will. If you comply in having all the information mentioned below in your will, there is not court that can say that this will is not a legal document; unless the court proofs some other things in order to make it not valid. The basic elements of a will are:

• Your name and place of residency.

• A concise description of your assets.

• Name of spouses, children, and any other beneficiaries, like charity or friends.

• Alternate beneficiaries, in case any of them dies before you.

• Specific gifts, such as a residence or car.

• Establishment of trusts, if desired.

• Cancellation of debts owed to you, if desired.

• Name of an executor to manage the estate.

• Name