Although there are numerous reasons to make a will, here are 5 big reasons making a will can benefit you and your loved ones:
1. Creating a will allows you to dispose of your property and assets according to your wishes
Perhaps the best reason to make a will is to exercise control over how your property and assets will be distributed. A will expresses your intentions and allows you to provide for whomever you wish in any manner you choose.
If you don’t create a will, the laws of Texas will determine how your property will be distributed.
2. Creating a will saves your family unnecessary delay and costs associated with intestacy
Having a will allows estate administration to proceed quickly and efficiently. When a person dies without a will, the court needs to appoint a representative and approve certain sales regarding real property which can take time.
3. Creating a will allows you to provide for your spouse or partner
Upon death, a living spouse does not automatically inherit all of the deceased spouse’s assets and therefore, in order to ensure your spouse is taken care of, it is wise to create a will devising specific property to him or her.
Unmarried partners should especially create a will to ensure that the other partner is accounted for upon one partner’s passing. Partners do not have a legal claim of entitlement upon the other partner’s death and will not inherit automatically, which is why it is imperative to create a will.
4. Creating a will can help protect your children’s interests
If you have minor children, you can specify certain funds or proceeds from certain sales that should be put into a trust for the benefit of the children.
Moreover, you can appoint a guardian for minor children – someone you can trust to look out for the child’s best interest when you no longer can.
5. Creating a will allows you to appoint an executor
If you don’t appoint, the court will appoint one for you and this can turn into a lengthy and expensive process. Appointing someone you trust to be your executor allows you to ensure that the intentions expressed in your will be effectively carried out.
