It is an unfortunate statistic that only around 40% of UK adults have a will in place. However, there are two related misconceptions that heavily influence this statistic. 

There are many people, particularly young adults, who believe that they are too young and that they don’t have enough assets and wealth to consider making a will. In this blog, Dunham McCarthy illustrates that both age and the extent of your estate should not deter you from making a will and that by having a will in place, you are protecting your family from much additional stress – in the unfortunate event of your passing.   

There are Reasons, other than the

Value of One’s Asset’s, to Having a Will

Although you might not have significant assets, having a will is still beneficial in many ways:

• Besides any finances, it provides clarity on personal and legal matters.
• Prevents loved ones, like family, from being left with unnecessary complications after your passing as well as limiting the possibility of family conflict.
• Provides guidance in terms of whether you would like a funeral and how you would like your remains to be dealt with.
• Determines what happens to any belongings you might have, regardless of any value, as well as what happens to your digital presence, social accounts and documents.

And Once You Start Working,

the Need for a Will Quickly Mounts! 

Many harbour the naïve belief that you don’t really need to consider getting a will until you are at least middle aged. However, as we have already discussed, the need for a will has little to do with age or indeed the value of your assets.

The truth is that anything can happen to us; after all, none of us ‘plan’ to have an accident or get ill. Furthermore, it is surprising how quickly you begin to amass assets and wealth once you start working.

Getting a will is more about taking time out to think about how your family would cope with sorting things out and making arrangements – should you die. Whilst this might sound morbid, I’m sure you would like a choice in what happens to you and who gets what – upon your death?

If you have started working, you will probably have more assets than you think! For example, you might have savings and most likely, you will have a pension in place.

If you have bought your first home, however small and humble it might be, you will be quite surprised about how your wealth, in the form of property equity, can quickly accumulate! The starter home that you bought for £200,000 is typically increasing in value at around 3.7% a year. This means that after just two years, aside of your original deposit, you will have increased your equity by £15,000! Naturally, if you have owned your home for longer this equity begins to build into quite a sizable sum.

When taking out your mortgage, you will have been required to take out a life insurance. Upon your death, this policy should clear the mortgage balance – and quite often, provides an additional lump sum – to help with expenses and loved ones left behind.

So, if this is you, do you still think that you are not ready for a will?

The Cost of a Will is Relatively Low and the Process is Now Easier than Ever……so Get One in Place! 

Gone are the days where you need to instruct your local solicitor and have at least two lengthy meetings, at their offices, resulting in a long-time frame, much inconvenience and a huge bill at the end of the process.

At Dunham McCarthy we are both estate planners and will writing experts with our own  in-house legal team. This not only makes for a truly effective will where every single aspect is considered, but also, it serves to streamline and better expedite the whole will writing process.  At Dunham McCarthy we will help you to:

• Specify beneficiaries
• Name will executors
• Appoint guardians and trustees
• Add specific gifts such as payments to charities
• Record your funeral wishes

To put it into perspective, a will costs far less than £200; the equivalent of a third of the average family’s monthly food shopping budget! Given the cost of this one off – single outlay, why wouldn’t you put a will in place to provide your family with high levels of financial protection and complete peace of mind… not to mention limiting the potential for IHT on your estate!

The Benefits of Using Dunham McCarthy

Dunham McCarthy provides you with:

• Online video appointments at a time that’s convenient for you.
• Support from estate planning, will writing and legal professionals.
• Competitive pricing with a discount for mirror wills.

For further information: enquiries@dunham-mccarthy.co.uk