Who are you leaving your money to when you die if you don't have kids?

[IRememberXanadu]

I don't have children, I'm divorced and in a new relationship. I have one brother but am not close to him. I need to redo my will but I have no idea who to leave my estate to. Charity? Who are other people in my situation leaving their estate to?

What money

No nieces, nephews, second cousins or god children. So charity for sure! Specifically animal rescue (dogs, farm animals, wildlife) and conservation charities.

All to charity as no family, friends all fairly well off, but would leave them a token amount. Im currently sorting this out as I have a terminal diagnosis, but what concerns me is that there is no one to execute the will so solicitors will have to do everything including funeral. That is going to make a big dent in the bequest

I think I may go down the charity route too. My friends are similar ages to me or older so it may not work to leave anything to them.

Anything I have will go to my two nephews, although it bugs me that because of the annoying Irish inheritance tax rules they will pay a fair whack of tax on it just because I have chosen not to have children.
Would love to be able to nominate them to benefit from the category A tax threshold but it's not allowed.

My uncle who never married or had children has told us before that me and my siblings are the main beneficiaries of his will, although it's mainly a house that my grandparents already owned outright that he and my father inherited when my granny died, which my dad then signed over ownership to him.
Although he told us that years ago, and may have changed his mind and decided to leave it all to charity or something. I'm not that fussed, and I don't relish having to clear out the house 😟he's a complete hoarder so it's going to be a nightmare!

I'm sorry about your illness. Can you possibly ask a trusted friend to do it instead? Solicitors are known for charging ridiculous amounts to do what is essentially just finicky admin.

To my 3 siblings and if they predecease me then it goes to their kids ie my nieces and nephews. There is also some left to a charity that I used to do voluntary work for.

A relative of my grandmothers left her flat to a charity.

40% to each of my stepchildren, 10% to my niece, 10% to charity.

If we didn’t have kids we’d be spending like there was no tomorrow so there’d be nothing to leave.

I'm happy for my husband or my sister to inherit if I predecease them. If I am last one standing I will do my utmost to spend everything; however I will nominate an animal welfare charity for anything left over. The way things are going I highly doubt I will have anything much to leave.

My sister says she is leaving it to me and I have to divvy it out to our other siblings.