Planning Will when without children

[AcceptingTherapy]

DH and I are child free by choice and are finally getting round to writing a will. We both still have our parents and have very close families, siblings and nephews. We will leave everything to each other if we were to go separately. If we were to go together, would the norm be to leave to parents, then if they aren’t around siblings, then if they aren’t around nephews? I feel like it’s harder to think about a will when you don’t have children!

Leave it to whom ever you wish! Leave it to family members or friends or charity etc.
If you are leaving it to an individual - then it is is a good idea to think about how it’s going to be left eg a lump sum immediately, or maybe a trust accessible on a certain birthday. It is also a good idea to think of what might happen to that money is they die before inheritance eg you may want a friend to inherit but not to their surviving husband (if they have any) and prefer it to go to a charity.

I think it something that needs both thought and then discussing with a solicitor rather than diying it, to ensure it gets the best chance of going where you want. But a simple “I leave it all to Whilma my niece” type will can be done yourself.

Personally ours will be left to the cinnamon trust.

It’s such a hard thing to think about. Ideally I’d like DH to be looked after if I were to go first but at some stage I’d like my siblings and nephews to benefit. I guess I can only guarantee that if I leave them something in my will. If I went tomorrow, DH could live another 50 years by which time it’s unlikely my siblings would get anything.

I have chosen to leave to my siblings and their children. One of my pensions has my mum as beneficiary, so she would get that. I would keep it as simple as possible. Expression of Wishes for pensions can be easily changed and are not part of your Estate, so work outside of the Will.

I'm single but haven't left my Mum or brother anything. My Mum is very financially secure & my brother has a good income. I've left everything, including my death in service, payment to my 2 nieces.

Hopefully by the time they get it they'll be settled down with their own homes & good incomes but if I was hit by a bus tomorrow the money would be lifechanging for them

We don't have any young close family to leave anything to - DH an only child and my sister childfree not by choice so no nieces/nephews, and not in touch with more distant family. I'm not wealthy but am splitting my assets between DH and my sister if I predecease them both, otherwise to one or the other, and if I am last one standing, it's going to charity. My parents have dementia so little point leaving anything to them now.

Mine skips my dad and sister and gives anything that does isn't go to my OH straight to my nephews. I can't remember the exact percentages but OH gets the house and maybe 50% of the money, the nephews get the rest (or all of it if OH dies first). My sister and I inherited from my grandfather (mum's side) so she doesn't really need anything and I kind of feel that the money should go to his descendants rather than looping back to my dad.

A few points that may be helpful.

If your DPs are financially comfortable, or terminally ill, or in a good council funded nursing home, and especially if your estate is likely to pay inheritance tax, then it's more usual to leave your inheritance to your siblings, or niblings.

If your DPs are financially struggling however, and have many years of life expectancy then you'd probably want to leave everything to them for now, and revisit your will at five year intervals or if things change.

If there's a significant amount at stake, and each of you have relatives who you'd like to provide for, might it be better for you to make mirror wills saying "everything to my spouse, but if they predecease me then everything in equal shares to my brother and my late spouse's sister". That's perhaps fairer in the event that you die together (or more or less together).

Of course if the survivor remarries/ re-partners then they'd presumably change their will but that's just the way the cookie crumbles.

We are 60 and neither can envisage being in another relationship in future so on that basis in our wills it's everything to each other and then on second death, divided up between "niblings".

My parents are long gone and DH's surviving parent is very comfortable.

We are both the youngest in our families so we've by-passed our siblings on the basis that we'll all go in "chronological" order (I appreciate this may well not happen).

If I am the last to go my niece will get everything. That's if there is anything left after care costs etc..

I've left everything to my mother and then my sister, and after them (or if they predecease me, which is likely) the RSPCA (the Australian one). Might update it to a local animal charity eventually.

I intend to spend as much of it as I can before I go, assuming I live to a decent age.
I have family I'm very fond if, but they won't need my money. I'll probably get round to putting something in a will at some point and though.

As a solicitor (but not in wills) it is actually a conversation best had with a solicitor. Then they can provide your options as you talk about what you value.

For example you may wish to provide some funds to your siblings and some to their kids via a trust, so it's only accessible at a later stage. You and your partner may wish to give each other a life interest in your home, and bequeathing the remainder elsewhere, such as a valued charity, after their death.

There are a surprising amount of options and ways to structure it to achieve what you want!