RAY WITHNALL, owner of Diggle-based company Hay Tarn Wills, looks at the best time to make your will
TRADITIONALLY JANUARY is the time to make a new start. It is a good opportunity to think about preparing a will, especially if your family circumstances are not straightforward.
Even if you already have a will, you can seek professional advice about updating it or ask about improvements to benefit your family.
If you don’t have a will, check the laws of intestacy because, more often than not, the outcome will not be what you expect and invariably leads to disappointment and dispute. A will drafted by a qualified professional willwriter can help avoid these issues.
Miss A and Mr Z, both in their mid-forties are buying a house together. They own it as tenants in common, which means they own half each.
Miss A has neither married before nor had children, but Mr Z is divorced with two teenage children from his marriage. Mr Z’s children and Miss A despise one another.
If Mr Z dies before Miss A, without a suitably drafted will, Mr Z’s children would inherit half of the house he is buying and living in with Miss A. This could end in a dispute, with Miss A having to find alternative accommodation.
However, Mr Z sought professional advice and now has a will, which states if he were to die before Miss A, his half of the house goes into trust for his children but allows Miss A to continue to live in it. Mr Z’s children will inherit their rightful share after Miss A dies and the house is sold.
Miss A’s will has a similar trust, which allows Mr Z to live in the house if she dies first and distributes her share to her beneficiaries when he dies.
For further information about how Hay Tarn Willwriting Services can help you with your will, visit their website or phone them on: 01457 820725.
