Here’s a very sobering fact – only 30% of Irish people have a will, according to a survey conducted by Amárach Research..
This is bad news. Not having a will puts your loved ones at risk and also leaves an awful mess for your family to clean up after your passing. It doesn’t do you any favours either as your wishes may not be considered if you die without a will.
We understand that people shy away from dealing with topics relating to death, but we consider a will to be a document for a living person and we encourage people to take the same approach.
The reasons are simple.
Creating a will allows you to:
Regardless of the size of your estate, creating a will can be a simple process when you work with a solicitor who specialises in wills, probates and estate planning.
In this post, we cover everything you need to know about making a will.
What is a will?
A will is a legal document that lets you express how you want your property, assets and keepsakes to be shared on your death. The person writing the will is called the “testator” or “testatrix”.
You can make as many wills as you like throughout your life but the only one that will be valid on your death will be the most recent one you made prior to your death. All wills you created before this once will not have any legal standing.
In Ireland, for a will to be valid, you must:
What should a will contain?
Although there isn’t one standard will template in Ireland, a last will and testament should contain these ten basic elements:
What is the difference between a legacy and a devise in a will?
Legal language in a will often speaks of a legacy or devise.
A legacy is a piece of personal property, like a piece of jewellery, which you want to leave to loved one. A devise is a real property that you want to leave to a loved one.
There are also different types of legacies:
Avoid these mistakes when making a will
Good ideas to include in your will
If there are young children named in your estate, it is advisable to:
What happens if one of your beneficiaries dies before you?
The need for solicitor to write your will with you becomes clear when you think of all the different scenarios that could arise. Professional advice pays great dividends in protecting your wishes no matter how circumstances might change from when you wrote your will to when your will comes into play.
Doctrine of lapse gives us a perfect example of this possibility. If one of your beneficiaries passes away before you do, the legacy you left to that person will be treated as though you died intestate (without a will) unless you have included a residuary clause in the will.
There are exceptions to this rule and they include the following:
Whether your estate is large or small, creating a will helps you plan what happens to your possessions and how your finances and property can take care of your family on your passing.
Where can you store your Will.
www.Legacy-Voice.com – Internationally based – Secure centralized place, where you can also record your Final wishes, you can Record it as a video or a voice recording, for one annual fee.