ChatterBank0 min ago
Making A Will
can anyone advise on the Do it yourself Wills. I know where i can buy them, WH Smiths, are there any other outlets you can get them from. Are there any specific drawbacks to DIY wills.
Answers
Best Answer
No best answer has yet been selected by emmie. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.
These forms, and most importantly the notes, vary a great deal in quality. Ask around the solicitors in your area, explain what is needed, and get a quote is my advice. Don't use a will-writing service. My late father used a bought form and the will was rejected for probate which caused a deal of trouble though we did manage to resolve the difficulty by finding a witness and having an affidavit sworn; in other circumstances the witnesses might not have been traceable.
What does the estate consist of? Are there any children,including adult ones? Do they have children? What happens if one child predeceases the testator? These, and many other questions, are what a solicitor will ask, all are important and not all will necessarily be covered by a will form and its notes. Considering what the solicitor will charge, against the value of even quite a small estate, the 'cheap way' may prove very expensive. And, above all, the solicitor is covered by insurance and by the professional governing body. You have nobody to complain about and get redress from if you do it yourself. No sensible lawyer writes his own will; there is a reason for that!
What does the estate consist of? Are there any children,including adult ones? Do they have children? What happens if one child predeceases the testator? These, and many other questions, are what a solicitor will ask, all are important and not all will necessarily be covered by a will form and its notes. Considering what the solicitor will charge, against the value of even quite a small estate, the 'cheap way' may prove very expensive. And, above all, the solicitor is covered by insurance and by the professional governing body. You have nobody to complain about and get redress from if you do it yourself. No sensible lawyer writes his own will; there is a reason for that!
if the person has less than say 5 grand, and no assets, no home ownership and very little by way of goods to dispense with, thought it best to go the easy route. If i told how you much someone i know spent on a solicitor it was like Jarndyce and Jarndyce, almost nothing left by the time the costs were taken
##i might have been dreaming but i'm positive i saw a DIYW kit in the post office the other day ##
It wouldn't have been the Post Office itself but some postmasters are known to sell them on the side - like they do other non-official items of stationery
Waterstones might be another place to try - can't recall if I've seen them there
It wouldn't have been the Post Office itself but some postmasters are known to sell them on the side - like they do other non-official items of stationery
Waterstones might be another place to try - can't recall if I've seen them there
what do you call prohibitive?
A good solicitor will find out what you want to happen to your estate and word the will accordingly rather than asking what you want put in the will, they can also supply safe storage for the original. The bloke who wrote ours was very helpful in talking about things we hadn't thought of.
A good solicitor will find out what you want to happen to your estate and word the will accordingly rather than asking what you want put in the will, they can also supply safe storage for the original. The bloke who wrote ours was very helpful in talking about things we hadn't thought of.
Wow, we got two wills (same disposition of estate) plus permanent safe storage and registration on the National Wills register for 250 quid. We had two meetings with the solicitor, and then when my DH passed and I went to collect the will, he spent time with me discussing what i should be doing and my options for assistance with it. In the end he did the stuff that would have been difficult for me on a fee per job basis, including some fairly complicated advice and actions involving foreign investments.
I thought, and still think, it was money well spent and made a difficult time much easier.
I thought, and still think, it was money well spent and made a difficult time much easier.
That's nonsense.You are never going to get a bill for thousands unless you employ the solicitor to be an executor or you employ one to carry out all the administration of the estate, when the solicitor will charge for the work and the time involved, as with hiring a solicitor in any work at the normal professional hourly rates. If he spends a lot of time sorting everything out, of course it may cost. You only want a will drafted.
Ask around. It should be no more than a matter of a few hundred at most. My own will, for an estate of some value and complexity, cost £300 a few years ago.
Ask around. It should be no more than a matter of a few hundred at most. My own will, for an estate of some value and complexity, cost £300 a few years ago.
Em10 are you perhaps getting mixed up with the solicitors fees to make the Will and the Fees to Execute the Will? A solicitor should be able to provide a simple Will for under £100. He is not obliged to Execute ( simply give people what they are due in the Will) . A relative or friend can be named Executor and fill in the Probate forms. Your Relative could write down who and what she wants giving and go to the Solicitor to have it put in legal terms. if she is incapacitated then often a solicitor will come to her but that would cost more.
