Many people avoid estate planning because there is little fun doing it. However, if you have assets you want to leave to your spouse, children, or other relatives, the absence of a valid will can complicate things. Thankfully, you can create a will without meeting an attorney if your financials are straightforward.
You see, you can simply use create my will online or a template to draft a legitimate will. A valid will needs to be clear, signed at least by two witnesses, and dated by you. This page discusses some key steps on how to create my will online.
Find an online service or template
Many places recognize holographic or handwritten wills as valid, but it’s a good idea to type out a formal will on your computer. The good news is that you can find several online will-writing services or online templates that you can choose from. These can guide you in writing the best will possible.
Remember that the will online service is there to walk you through the process. Besides, if you and your spouse decide to have almost identical wills, you should consider having separate documents.
That said, make sure that you make a list of all assets. This will ensure that you know the property that needs to go to your heirs. The assets include jewelry, real estate, bank accounts, cars, artwork, and many others.
But if you own real estate with someone, then you don’t need to name a beneficiary because your share of the assets automatically goes to your spouse or joint owner when you pass away.
Above all, you don’t need to state who is going to get retirement accounts and life insurance proceeds in your will because these need beneficiaries to be named within the account. Likewise, if you have an investment or bank account that has a transfer-on-death, you can name the beneficiaries in those accounts.
Know what to write in a will
It’s important to be clear about who should receive your assets and be specific when it comes to describing the assets. In other words, you must use full names and consider including a secondary beneficiary in case you outlive the first one. For instance, rather than writing my car goes to my child, you should write down the full legal names of the child and their full address.
If you have minor kids, make sure to list out their full legal names and birthdates. Then you can name the person who will take legal responsibility for each child in case of you and your spouse’s death. Also, it’s a good idea to have a secondary guardian if you outlive the first choice and didn’t have time to update the will.
It’s also important to choose an executor for your will. This is an individual responsible for distributing the assets, handling probate, paying remaining debts and bills. You can decide to name more than one individual as an executor.
