Once you have invested your money, financial planning is not necessarily over. This also extends to securing assets for your family. Succession planning by making a will is very important: it allows you to make provisions for matters involving the future security of your loved ones. A will usually helps you decide who should have access to your inheritance and in what manner, etc. It also reduces the chances of any future disputes between the family members.
Hence, proper succession planning by making a will can help you to distribute your wealth equally among the family members as per your wish.
Sripriya NS, Director and COO, Entrust Family Office said,A Wish Considered one of the most sought-after legal documents for succession and estate planning. A will is a legally binding document that specifies the wishes and intentions of a person with respect to the distribution of his property and assets after his death. A carefully prepared will can help in transferring the property and assets of a person to the intended heirs easily.”
Why make a will: None of us want to think about our own mortality, but as Benjamin Franklin said, “Nothing is certain except death and taxes. Therefore, it must be part of our resolutions now that the pandemic has left us.” Deeply exposed to uncertainty. About life?
Will, as the word suggests, simply means my wishes which must be fulfilled upon my death. Although it primarily deals with the transfer of financial assets, a will can include funeral wishes, gratitude to friends/family, and reflections on your life. There are many reasons to make a will.
Adil Shetty, CEO, BankBazaar.com said, “Succession planning should be a continuous process and not a panic exercise over sudden developments like the outbreak of COVID-19. For example, you may want to start a trust for your children. You may wish to donate a portion of your assets to charity. You may wish to donate your body to the medical college. These require careful planning and legal action. Therefore making a will should not be left till the last moment.
Typically, making a will helps avoid court involvement in deciding on permissible succession and asset transfer upon your death, along with other delays, issues, and costs involved in the process. Also, non-residents who have property in India should definitely plan a will for their Indian property to save inheritance tax in their country of residence.
Anup Bansal, chief investment officer at Scripbox, said that if someone dies without leaving a will, it could mean that they did not prioritize this financial activity or did not really see how to dispose of assets in the event of their death. should be transferred. The technical term for this is called a dead will, and you give the law control over how to divide your assets. In this situation, succession acts (according to your religion) apply, and there is a possibility of a legal dispute if the heirs do not agree. “I don’t think any of us would want to leave a legacy where our descendants have been fighting painstakingly for something we’ve built during the course of our lives. Plus, we’ll let someone else control our desires, and the end result Something could happen that we never wanted,” Bansal said.
How to prepare a Will: A will can be as detailed as you like it. There are online templates available for making a will. You can use a suitable template to document your will, have an executor, get a will signed by two witnesses and have one sign all the pages on the said date. Thus, a simple announcement on paper naming his successor, as the two men observed, may suffice. On the other hand, you can include in your will all the details of your holdings and their distribution. Both are equally valid. However, a detailed will will ideally list all your assets including movable and immovable properties, investments, cash and other assets and details of how they are to be passed on. Making a will can also help protect your family from losing real property after your death.
Bansal added, “While making a will to avoid any competition, it is important to attach a doctor’s certificate stating that you are of sound mind. The will is not required to be registered, but can add additional security. It ensures authenticity. and reduce the chances of tampering and theft. So, make a will as part of your financial resolve and leave a legacy that you and the people you leave behind will always cherish.”
In addition, you should know how many times you can make a will. But for property transfer the latest signed and witness are considered, and all the previously prepared wills stand annulled in the eyes of law. Shetty said, “If you have inherited property or a complicated line of inheritance, you can seek legal help to clarify what you can and cannot include in your will to reduce the chances of a legal dispute. However, remember that modifying a Registered Will is cumbersome, and it is advisable to write a Will once you are sure that you will not change it in future.”