How much for a will


If you have substantial wealth and your spouse remarries after your death then the new spouse would be sole beneficiary of her estate even if you have kids.

If the kids are also hers then they would inherit half of everything above ÂŁ270k, unless she had a will leaving everything to her new spouse.

It's especially important with blended families to have a will.
 
I would have thought that a husband and wife would have joint tenancy as a default and it would not be necessary to make a will as all assets would transfer to the surviving spouse?

I'm not certain though.

If you mean for a house they both own. If it's owned as joint tenants then it'll pass to the other joint tenant outside of the will under the doctorine of survivorship.
You 100% need a will.
This, otherwise you'll end up giving everything you own to any surviving parents, siblings etc etc.
 
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If the kids are also hers then they would inherit half of everything above ÂŁ270k, unless she had a will leaving everything to her new spouse.

It's especially important with blended families to have a will.
Learnt something. It must be an absolute financial minefield. Nothing causes as much grief as inheritance when it goes wrong. People become very self centred when there is a few hundred grand on the line.
 
Any will thread reminds me of somebody on here asking how long it takes to get the money from one.

They had got inheritance off an auntie they didn’t even know existed, then said they’d much rather she was still with them when questioned on their lack of sympathy they were showing towards her. :lol:

Money, money, money!
 
If you mean for a house they both own. If it's owned as joint tenants then it'll pass to the other joint tenant outside of the will under the doctorine of survivorship.


I thought when buying a house both unmarried and married couples have a choice as to whether to register the title as joint tenants or tenants in common. Under a joint tenancy the couple jointly own the property whilst under a tenancy in common each own a specified share. If a married couple owned a house under joint tenancy then ownership would be transferred to the surviving spouse. I thought that under right of survivorship, joint tenancy supersedes the terms of your spouse's will?

I admit though, this is not my forte.
 
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Learnt something. It must be an absolute financial minefield. Nothing causes as much grief as inheritance when it goes wrong. People become very self centred when there is a few hundred grand on the line.
Yep, it's amazing how disgustingly people can act when there's a bit money on the line.
I thought when buying a house both unmarried and married couples have a choice as to whether to register the title as joint tenants or tenants in common. Under a joint tenancy the couple jointly own the property whilst under a tenancy in common each own a specified share. If a married couple owned a house under joint tenancy then ownership would be transferred to the surviving spouse. I thought that under right of survivorship, joint tenancy supersedes the terms of your spouse's will?

I admin though, this is not my forte.

They do have a choice, that's right.

If a couple, married or not, own a house as beneficial joint tenants, upon death of one of the joint tenants, the house would pass (outside of the will) to the surviving tenant under survivorship.

The house will never be part of the will in such circumstances.
 
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Yep, it's amazing how disgustingly people can act when there's a bit money on the line.

My boss just done her STEP qualification, phone never stops ringing she could easily set up her own company off the back of it, It is mainly solicitors coming to her as well.
 
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In my experience it's free or cheap if you want a "simple" will as you suggest but then they explain other options that make sense that cost more.

For example, 2 partners with children. 1 partner dies and the other remarries, you'll probably want to protect the dead persons assets to give them to the children and not the new partner, this costs more.

Cost about ÂŁ250 for our joint will that was meant to be simple and ÂŁ15, but it included the protections I've tried to describe.

Didn't pay for the power of attorney crap as you can do it yourself if you know how to use a pen to fill in a form.
 
You would hope so but reading up on it doesn't look clear cut.
Rightly or wrongly I reckon if they stopped you paying for care fees everyone would have one and if they did stop you paying care fees the govt would sharp stop them
If you don't have a beneficial interest in something, you can't realistically sell it to pay for care.
 
You would hope so but reading up on it doesn't look clear cut.
Rightly or wrongly I reckon if they stopped you paying for care fees everyone would have one and if they did stop you paying care fees the govt would sharp stop them
It varies from person to person, which is why you should probably get a professional if you're doing a will that involves setting up trusts.
 
So far as I''m aware, if you are married everything automatically transfers to the surviving partner, my Sister married before she & her partner died, it's only if you want anything in the Estate bequeathed to others that you need to have a will. a few services draw up a free will if you leave something to a charity. As T S Garp posts above google "free will" and you will see a list of free solicitors that are part of it during the free will month. You can also buy a blank "Last Will & Testament" paper to fill out yourself but I think when completed as it has to signed/witnessed by a relevant professional (like a vicar or solicitor) but you'll probably have to pay or donate for that bit. If there is no Will it has to go to Probate (for which a solicitor has to be paid to carry it out). It largely depends on what the estate is worth. Last time I was involved in anyhting like that for family was about 8 yrs ago so some of my info may not stil be correct
 
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No, but putting it into a trust does....
Is the correct answer.
A good trust will allow the wealth accumulated to be accessed by future generations of JJH's.
The thing you have to be careful of is that you need the services of an accountant, financial advisor and a solicitor . Most will tell you they can do trust /estate planning but you need to find a company that specializes in all 3 areas.

I'm still to do mine but have someone in mind.
 

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