What Not to Include When Making a Will
Having a will is arguably one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your family. Not only can a will legally protect your spouse, children, and assets, it can also spell out exactly how you would like things handled after you have passed on.
However, when making a will, there are a few minor things that may make it more complicated when passing on gifts to your loved ones. With that in mind, here are a few things NOT to include when making a will.
Avoid Leaving Funeral Instructions When Making a Will
Usually, the settling of the estate and the probate proceedings do not happen until after the funeral. The funeral arrangements are among the first matters of business after someone dies.Therefore, family members may not even notice your funeral wishes stated in your will until after the funeral. Instead of leaving your funeral wishes in your will, talk with your loved ones about what you want. You can even make a separate document that spells out your wishes for the funeral andgive this document to the executor or executrix of your estate.
Avoid Using a Will to Escape Estate Taxes
A will is still subject to estate taxes. Instead of trying to use a will to avoid the often-heavy estate taxes, explore different types of trusts that may work for your situation. Trusts escape a lot of tax subjection, because the property is not passing directly to the beneficiary, rather to the trust account,over which the beneficiary does not have complete control.
Wills Do Not Escape Probate
A common misconception is that wills do not have to go through probate proceedings. This is not true. Wills are still subject to probate proceedings. Probate proceedings can take months. However, having a will does help to speed up the probate process, because your loved ones, lawyers, and the probate court are not left having to divide all of your property for you. You have already explained how it should be divided, and the court will follow your wishes. There are other ways you can avoid probate. One common way is leaving the property to a trust fund, with the desired recipient a beneficiary, instead of granting the property directly to that person.
Be Careful With What Conditions You Put on Gifts
Not all of those conditions are legal. Conditions that include marriage, divorce, or the change of the recipient's religion cannot be provisions in a legal will. Therefore, a court will not enforce them. You can put certain other types of conditions on gifts. Usually, these types of conditions are to encourage someone to do or not do something. For example, when making a will, you could say, "to Allison, if and when she graduates from college." You could also say something like, "to Paul, so long as he uses the property as an art studio." Just keep in mind that putting conditions on gifts can complicate things. Think about who will actually enforce these conditions, for how long, and does the enforcer get anything like an executor's fee?
Avoid Leaving Gifts or Money for Illegal Purposes
Although this is uncommon, some people will try and sneak in some sort of illegal condition or purpose for the gift. This would not make your will a legal will. For example, you wouldn't be able to include, "to Mary, so long as she uses the property to grow marijuana," or "To Jane, so long as she has her first beer before she is 21 years old."
Do Not Arrange Care for a Special Needs Person When Making a Will
Although it is very possible to arrange such special needs for a disabled person, a will is not the place in which to do it. There are certain types of trusts, such as a special needs trust, that specifically address the management of the specific special needs of a disabled person.
Avoid Leaving Gifts to Pets in a Will
Animals do not have the legal capacity to own property. What many people do instead is they leave the pet with someone who they know will provide it with good care. You can also leave that person any property or money to help out with the care of the pet. Certain states do allow for trusts with an animal as the beneficiary. If this makes you more comfortable, check to see what your state's laws are. However, as long as you believe in the person you are leaving your pet with you probably do not need a pet trust fund.
Get Legal Help with Making Your Will
Figuring out just the right amount of information to put into a will can be confusing. You'll want to do it correctly the first time and with the least amount of hassle. The best way to ensure that you'reputting the right information in your will is to contact a localestate planning attorney who will know estate planning laws and can give you advice on what to include in your will based on your specific situation.
