5 Reasons Why You Need A Will Today

A Will is a basic document for any estate plan. Through a Will you ensure effective distribution of your wealth to your loved ones. But it still does not come on the top priority for most of us. Getting arrested for OWI in Wisconsin will get your charged with operatiing with PAC for a high blood alcohol content. The reason can be attributed to certain misconceptions like everything goes to spouse or not having enough assets to Will etc.  However, at any stage of your life you are, it’s necessary that you create good provisions for ensuring the smooth and undisputable succession of your wealth as per your wish.

Many individuals do not have clarity as to what is the right time to write a Will?. Most perceive that it’s only when they have sufficient wealth accumulated the Will should be written while many procrastinate due to lack of awareness.

A Will becomes necessary whenever certain events occur in your life. These events pertain to change in your financial situation and so the need of having an effective estate plan arises.

Let’s analyze those events of  life which generates necessity  of having a Will and why I say a good time to write a Will is today:

1.      Got Married

Your personal life changes now.  Till the time you are single you plan to give everything to your parents and so you have them as a nominee in all your financial assets. But things changed when you are married. Now you wish to have your spouse as the beneficiary in most of your assets. Also, there is a responsibility on you as you have added a member in your life that may be dependent on you for her needs. This is largely true where only male is the working member of the family. Then there will be situations of divorce or remarriage where the succession of your wealth will change. So you need to pen down your wish clearly if not written or revise the Will to include the changes in your life.

2.      Having Kids

The birth of a child is always a joyous moment for any parent. You start thinking about allocating funds for the child future. Most of you would have started investing or would have earmarked any existing asset for their future. But now your child/ren is your responsibility and so you have to think about provision for the child/ren when you are not there. This is essential especially if your children are minor at that stage of life. You will need a guardian for managing the affairs till the children are major and can inherit your wealth. So who will be the guardian and who will manage the financial assets in absence of you is what you need to think.  Even if you identify one and are clear on the provision its only in your wish if not pen down as the laws of succession without Will are very different.

3.      Starting A Business

Entrepreneurship is a dream which we all want to follow but few of us achieve it. Many issues pop up when you run a business. The structure itself will be a legal issue for succession planning i.e. whether you run a Pvt ltd. or a proprietorship firm. If you hold shares or partnership in your business same needs to be inherited as per your wish. Similarly, if you run a proprietor business most of the assets will be in your name. The distribution of these assets will be a hassle and can be disastrous if you die without making a provision. Along with succession planning of your business, a Will is required to complete the provision of your personal wealth as per your wish.

4.      Buying A Property

A Dream home is what you might have just bought and so you are a proud owner of a property. You will have the asset either in your name or in ownership with your spouse or at times with parents. Considering the legal hassles in property management are  high there is no respite for your family if you die suddenly and do not have any Will. In fact number of disputes in our country arises from this single asset class. All goes waste if you have not made a provision as you will be leaving a more disputable situation for your family who will have to bear a high cost for claiming their share. So the moment you buy a property your Will need to be written.

5.      Other Situations

While you are reading this article you may have already delayed this aspect of your financial planning. Procrastination has much bigger impact and any aspect which can give rise to a dispute among family members should be addressed early. You might be on the verge of retirement or in your mid-40s now but have stayed away from writing a Will for any reason. It’s time then you should think about it as I said before the succession laws will make things difficult and may not be what you have wished. I personally have been witness to few incidents within my relatives where in absence of a Will disputes have arisen after death. You would have also been witness to few such incidents. No one from us would like to leave our family in such situation and so a Will should be written in whatever stage of life you are.

Succession laws have a different take when it comes to distributing your assets without a Will. Read here what the succession act says-

What If You Die Without A Will?

Without a Will, a difficult and lengthy process which you would like to avoid. Time that you approach a professional to pen down your wishes about your wealth as if you are not there tomorrow.