To think making a Will is pointless if yoyu have no assets?

[FunPartyIdeas]

Just that really. My husband and I have literally nothing so nothing to give away!!

If you have children it is worth it to document who should have care of them otherwise the stat will decide

It is worth it. Plenty of people think they have nothing but you will have something. And having a Will also sets out who should deal with your estate. So who should be contacting all of your companies to tell them that you’ve died. All of this sort of thing can be really really stressful for people when they’re grieving. It’s so much easier just to make a cheap Will. You can do it yourself online or with a pack from WH Smiths.

It's not just a matter of leaving money to people! Do you have children who will need a guardian in the event of your deaths? Pets who will need to be looked after? Any belongings like cars, jewellery, sentimental items?

What about personal belongings, eg wedding rings, photos ?
You might be surprised what people find to squabble about.
My nan died in a nursing home, she had lived all her life in rented houses. She had nothing My mum and her younger brother were left to clear out clothes, notify pension etc. My older uncle took umbrage about her wedding rings and the few pounds left in her purse.

Exactly the above. My dad died in debt with no will and it was super hard to close certain accounts/deal with continuing bills like council tax without documentation that I had inherited the estate. Just made the endless admin harder than it needed to be.

Children/house/pension

@Edgelands Adult children, a car worth not very much at all, no jewellery of any value.

@Octavia64 Private rental.

Burial, cremation? Who will deal with the estate - even if you don't have a house or anything that you want to give to any particular person or charity. Thinking of future situation.

You need to appoint an executor ideally to close your bank accounts and utilities and such.

But you have clothes, books etc...people can be bloody ridiculous when it comes to inheritance. Just stay on here for a fortnight

Plus a simple will makes probate (and trust me on this). So much easier for those left behind... everyone even if they have nothing at all has to go through probate.

@Quine0nline Definitely cremation as cheapest - my kids know about that and are both wealthy in their own right. We don't have an estate of any description.

My dad didn't have a will and it was fine, he lived in rented accommodation and just had some savings which were divided between me and my brother. One of your adult children will be the administrator like I was.

Presumably you will have bank accounts that need closed, someone will need to cancel your tenancy, gas/electric, netflix, return you car, etc.

It's much easier to have a named Executor otherwise the people sorting out your stuff will find it much more difficult.

If you have kids and or grandkids, they'll have to squabble over who gets your wedding rings etc, much kinder to split things fairly in your will.

Just do a free template from the internet. Mirror will between you and your husband and then to children

It makes the admin side of death so much easier so see it as an act of love towards your family that you are making it as easy as possible for them.
They'll need to close bank accounts, clear your rental, inform pensions etc. it is much much easier if they have a will as they can show they have the right to do so.

So why not? You can do it for free and it makes their lives easier.

@Any1ForTennis My daughter would have our wedding rings and my sons are more than happy with that (my husband is their stepdad). They are worth nothing money-wise.
I am sure my eldest would be happy to sort the practicalities as he has that sort of calm and level head.

Even if you don't have any jewellery of any value, your children may later decide they would like a keepsake. Say now how you want bits and pieces divided. Even if it is as simple as "I'd like you to choose a jumper/book/wooden spoon each and give the rest away as you see fit". It really helps when the time comes to know that that was actually what you wanted.

My dad died without a will and it was fine. And he did have a house. I just followed the intestacy rules on the government website.

As for funerals, you don't need a will to leave your written or verbal opinion on that if you wish. Sometimes the will isn't even read until after the funeral.

My mum and father in law don’t have wills. They have a house and some savings but well under iht threshold and husband and I are both only children and their spouses are dead. So that’s a very simple estate so doesn’t seem worthwhile to me to have one, or at least not an issue to not have one.

But every single belonging, whether it's a car, ring, or the trophy you won for crazy gold aged eight, still needs to go somewhere when you die, whether that's to one of your children or a charity shop or whatever! Someone needs to close your bank accounts etc.

Why would you want to make the process longer by making your son apply for Letters of Administration to gain the right to deal with your accounts when your will can do that for him in advance?

@OnlyUsername Is it free to do so?

@Edgelands My eldest would happily do that.

I don't want a funeral - too expensive!

If they had wills, these would at the very least identify who should be the Executor of their estate - it is not automatic and takes far more hassle to organise than writing a simple will takes.

Without a will being in place you would need to apply for a Grant of Letters of Administration in order to wrap up the deceased's affairs and distribute the estate according to the rules of intestacy - which you would be doing while at the same time presumably grieving over their death. A will also makes it easier to administer the estate, particularly as an Administrator (rather than an Executor who follows the instruction in the will) needs to be 100% certain that there are no beneficiaries such as children from previous relationships that the Administrator might not be aware of. A will that is explicit about who should inherit avoids this.

For the cost of getting a will written by a solicitor (£250 or so) why would you not encourage your respective parents to do so.