I don’t need a will…do I?

Last week I was sitting in a doctor’s office waiting patiently for my name to be called. Typical of most doctor’s waiting rooms it was crowded and there was one pair of people who were talking so loud everyone could hear their entire conversation. I’m trying hard to concentrate on my kindle book while they are gabbing away about stuff that was personal to them and distracting to me. Just as I’m about to let out a big huff to show my disapproval of their loud exchange I hear one of the women say, “I mean, I don’t need a will, I don’t have kids and all I have is my house.” My ears perked up and my eyes got big. I took that opportunity to interject myself into their conversation. “Actually, you do need a will,” I told the woman,

“especially if you have a home and no children.” Whereas it is important for parents to have wills to secure their property in the appropriate ways for their children, homeowners without children could experience issues if they were to pass away without a will. In the state of Alabama if a married person passes away without a will, the surviving spouse could have to split the estate with the deceased spouse’s living parents (depending on the size of the estate, etc.). Also, if the home or any asset is only in one spouse’s name, an estate will have to be opened and with no will a bond must be posted. This can be a costly endeavor if a bond can even be procured at all. Bonds are based on credit and if for some reason the surviving spouse has poor credit, they may not be allowed to administer their spouse’s estate. Wills are increasingly important with the addition of children who cannot legally inherit the title to anything until they are 19 in Alabama. This makes the use of a testamentary trust (a trust in your will) a must. This trust holds your assets until a time after your child is 19. With out it, a conservatorship (which I like to call expensive court babysitting) must be established until the child turns 19. This is expensive as every time the child wants to use the money, the court must be petitioned and lawyers must be paid, etc. Bottom line, if you think, “I don’t need a will; all I have is my ______,” chances are you do.