Having a will is important
Written by R. A. Stewart
Having a will is important. It will ensure that your estate is distributed according to your wishes. A will is considered to be one of the most important documents you can have in place. You can appoint some trusted person such as a spouse or other family member to carry out your wishes for you. You can outline your wishes in your will such as whether you want to be cremated or buried, and any other details you wish to add.
Your will allows you to make bequests which is the gifting of property and money to specified organisations or money. There are many forms of bequests, they can be split into three categories:
- Specific bequests-which is the gift of something distinguishable such as money, property, a vehicle, or stuff you own.
- Residuary bequest-a gift of whatever remains after previous gifts have been distributed.
- Whole estate-a gifting of your entire estate.
What are the consequences of not having a will?
One is that a lawyer will be appointed to handle your affairs which means that a chunk of your estate will be gone in lawyers fees.
The second and main thing to consider is that if you don’t have a will, your property, whether that is in the form of money, home, car, and whatever you own will be distributed in line with the Administration Act 1969 which outlines who is entitled to your estate based on their relationship to you. The order of priority is:
- Your spouse, civil union partner, or de facto partner are first in line, then
- Children (regardless of whether the parents of the children were married).
- Parents
- Siblings
- Grandparents
- Uncles and aunts
If none of these are applicable then the New Zealand government will receive everything from the estate.
In New Zealand, when someone has been living in a de facto relationship with someone for three years or more then both parties will receive an equal share of the assets if the relationship splits up. It is not known how this applies when deciding who gets what if one of them dies before the three years is up. Best to get advice on this.
As for your kiwisaver; that is part of your assets which will be distributed to your heirs.
There are many reasons why having a will is important and the main one is that the wrong people may receive some of your estate.
Would you like it if some ratbag who is a drug addict or alcoholic received your assets after you die? The question has to be asked, “What will such and such do with your assets after you have gone?”
You just have to open your eyes and see what they have done with previous windfalls to get your answer.
If you do not have a will then family members who don’t have anything to do with you could be entitled to a share of your estate.
Having a will is important to ensure that the right people get taken care of when it is your time to go.
About this article
You may use the contents of this article as content for your ebook or blog. The information is based on New Zealand law and may not be applicable to you if you are from a country outside of New Zealand, therefore, discretion is advised.
Read my other articles on www.robertastewart.com
