When it comes to making a will, many struggles to begin with this complicated and emotional process.
It’s not uncommon to hesitate when it comes to creating your will. The process may lead to some tough conversations with your loved ones. Or you may simply be uncertain about how to broach the topic.
However, a will remains an invaluable tool that can help ease the burden on your nearest and dearest during an already difficult time. Setting up a will can help you make important decisions when it comes to estate planning and provide you with peace of mind.
Moreover, the process of making a will is now much easier. With a little help from experts like Zenco, you can even create a will online from the comfort of your home.
In this article, we will share some essential tips you need to keep in mind when you create your will online.
Let’s begin!
Document Your Assets
The first step to navigating the delicate waters of making a will online is to list down all of your assets. From physical property like your home and vehicles to financial investments and family heirlooms, write all the assets that you want to pass on to your loved ones.
When listing a property, it’s important to stay specific. For example, instead of writing “My car goes to my son”, mention the make, model and colour of the vehicle alongside your son’s full legal name. This level of detail can help make sure your wishes are respected effectively.
This inventory of assets is especially useful if you want to gift or leave specific items to family and friends. By clearly documenting what you wish to happen before you create your will, you can smoothly transition your assets and provide peace of mind to your family.
Choose Who Will Get Each of Your Assets
When you create your will, it’s best to express your wishes clearly regarding who will inherit your belongings.
After you’ve documented all your assets, you need to choose the individuals or organisations you want to leave them to. These heirs are called beneficiaries. Once again, when you make your will, you will need to be specific and use the full legal name of each of your beneficiaries to prevent any confusion.
Additionally, it’s a good idea to mention secondary beneficiaries for all of your property as well, just in case your primary is unavailable.
By taking the time to clearly mention beneficiary names and meticulously outline their respective shares, you can minimise disagreements over your will. Furthermore, this also reduces the potential for any conflicts among your loved ones.
Think about Protecting Your Beneficiaries
When creating your will online, you may also want to establish some safeguards to protect loved ones who may be more vulnerable. For example, if you are leaving certain assets to a child or someone with mental health issues or disabilities.
In such circumstances, you could always set up a trust to provide additional protection for your beneficiaries. By setting up a trust, your assets can be managed by people you trust to act in the best interests of your near and dear ones.
Trusts are a compassionate way to protect the interests of your beneficiaries while making sure they receive your support and access to the resources they need until they can manage on their own. Moreover, it will also help you rest easy knowing your loved ones will always be supported.
Choose a Trusted Executor of Your Will
Your will executor is the person who will sort out your estate, read your online will and carry out your final wishes. They will be in charge of key tasks like handling the probate process, distributing your assets to your beneficiaries, and more.
While it may be difficult to choose a single person to carry out this heavy task, you need to carefully consider your options. It is a complicated job even if your property and instructions appear quite simple.
As such, your will executor needs to be someone you trust who is responsible and meticulous and will faithfully carry out your requests.
Keep Your Will Updated and Safe
Life is unpredictable and big changes can occur at any time. During these times, your will also needs to reflect those changes. A good practice is to consider updating your will after any major life events. For example, events like marriages, births, divorces, and other significant milestones.
Once you create your will online, and have it signed and witnessed, you need to store it in an easily accessible place. While you may need to broach the topic with sensitivity, you also need to tell those closest to you and your will executor where it is.
By approaching the process with care and consideration, you can easily create a will online wherein all your wishes are known and respected.
Conclusion
While the topic of creating a will may evoke different emotions from your loved ones, it is a meaningful and deeply personal step towards planning for the future.
That’s why you need to make your will keeping these 5 simple tips in mind and to ensure an airtight will for you and your loved ones!
