I really am going to update my will soon.

I know I keep on talking about it but I will really update my will soon. Popping off intestate just leaves a lot of problems for your heirs. In the United Kingdom there are quite a few willwriters to help. For instance, in Derby and the surrounding county Derbyshire you can look at the url http://www.searchwill.co.uk/WillWriters/WillWriters-In-Derby.html
I have only been to Derby once but the local people were very friendly. They have also great supporters of their local football team Derby County.

Sorry for the hiatus in blogs since September!!

I am very sorry for the break in blogs since September!! I will continue my exhortations for everybody to get a will so as to avoid dying intestate. Unfortunately, I have to admit that although needing to update my will, I have'nt done so. I will get down to it soon.
If you pop off intestate, your assets are distributed in a pre-set formula and you might leave out looking after your loved ones.
An up-to-date will is a necessity.

I really need to set up a new will.

In England and Wales, there are real problems if one dies intestate, that is without a will. I need to update my will due to a change in circumstances. I could look at willwriters offered by www.searchwill.co.uk by post code.

I have got to update my will soon!!

I have the problem of updating my will due to a change of circumstances. The "lump" is reaching his 18th birthday soon. Living in England, we have got to take into account that issues in this area are pretty complicated. What we don't want is to make the process more complicated.
www.searchwill.co.uk
I hope to spend around £100 for the will. I am going to make a few gifts to various charities perhaps to Roman Catholic ones such as missionaries in Africa, where they have a pretty tough time of it. For instance, they work against the modern-day consensus over AIDs and birth control.

Everyone should get a will to prepare for the future.

In the UK every adult should get a will to prepare for the future. It would not do to pop off early. However, I do see clearly the problems of inertia. For instance, the will is going to cost money and do I need to get the issue resolved right now. Looking back on my original will, it was quite expensive and prices have fallen in absolute terms.
However, dying intestate with a large estate just leads to a few problems for your heirs. www.searchwill.co.uk

Don't hesitate, get a will soon!!

I was watching early morning television or was it day-time TV and it was showing the activities of companies researching the genealogical backgrounds of people, who died intestate. This was the aim of investigating company. If they could match the money with a possible distant relative and take a cut. After starting the investigation, the main danger then was the emergence of a will.
Why do relatives get distant? My Dad has never talked about his Uncle Chris (?) and he has cousins on the south coast but I don't think my Dad has ever seen them and is not interested in changing this state of affairs.
This is sad but the main objective should be to get a will drawn up and bring certainty to affairs.
www.searchwill.co.uk

Make it your top priority, make a will!!

I often exhort my readers to make it a top priority to set up a will. The complications of dying intestate in England and Wales are not worth thinking about. Married couples with children might think
they are in the clear but you get cases of widows having to sue their children for their inheritances. For instance, if you live in the Cambridge area then you can get
into touch with Trust Inheritance.

Further to my last post about getting a new will.

Our family circumstances will be changing soon when my son reaches 18. It makes sense
to get a new will drawn up. Then, I can add a couple of small bequests. There is that great bit in Matthew's
Gospel that the left hand should not know what the right hand is doing in terms of charitable giving.
I obviously won't be setting up a massive non-for-profit or charitable institution like the Kennedys in the United States with Special Olympics or like the Wellcome group. However, I would not mind giving something towards an educational charity. I have always been impressed by Dame Alice Owen, whose name lives through the ages due to the school she helped set up first in Islington and then in Potters Bar. Famous alumni include members of Spandau Ballet. I think some of their songs are great but I think I am too old for the comeback concert.

I think I might update my will!!

I think I might update my will. I have said in the past that my will is of the bog-standard variety. You can choose a local will writer. For instance, in the Saint Albans (AL postcode) area there is Trust Inheritance, which can offer a home visit. The firm also can provide personal estate planning and advice on long-term care.
I read in the newspapers that the population of St Albans is one of the most heavily
taxed in the United Kingdom in terms of actual tax take. It is a shame that the lovely cathedral town is having to pay for the antics of Scottish Premier Gordon Brown. Sorry, he is British Prime Minister but I am getting fed up with the financing arrangements for the home countries. I love Scotland, I am one of the few southerners who have been there, but I think the public expenditure per person should be roughly equal throughout the UK. Then, this would mean St Albans not getting clobbered in tax terms.
www.searchwill.co.uk

Do you experience signs of mortality?

On a good day I wonder about experiencing signs of mortality. I hope when the time comes I would be brave and not be too tearful. Occasionally, I muse what would be the date. I should spend more time on looking up my old will and perhaps consider getting a new one written up. Hopefully, when the time comes it won't be as sudden as those two poor soldiers in Antrim.

Seven out of ten British adults have not made a will.

Parents with children should make a will in order to appoint a guardian for their charges. In addition, inlaws could receive a portion of your estate. I think legally there is no such thing as a common law spouse. The amount going to a legal spouse without a will has been increased from £125,000 to £250,000. The remaining assets would be distributed to the childen according to Moira O'Neill writing in a recent Investors Chronicle.
Where there are no children involved then the statuory legacy can reach £450,000 compared with the previous level of £200,000. The remainder would go to the (dreaded?) inlaws.
www.searchwill.co.uk

Positive planning is key - Will Services Scotland.

The firm Will Services (Uddingston) Scotland offers will writing services in the Glasgow area. It says positive planning is key. The firm says that seven out of ten people do not have a will. It also emphasises the necessity to protect your home from long-term care costs. Will Services also offers services such as living wills and document storage.
Unfortunately, I have never been to Glasgow. I have visited Scotland about four times and took in Edinburgh three times. The castle there is aamazing! I love the wild spaces of Glencoe and the Cairngorms are fantastic. We did not spend long on the Isle of Skye because of the midges, which together with the weather, can hit holidays in Scotland. Glasgow also houses Rangers and Celtic and maybe one day they will play in the Premier League.
If I ever get to Glasgow, I will make sure that I will see the great Dali painting of Christ of St. John of the Cross. I will also try and see the Burrell collection. Other mainstream cities I have never visited include Belfast, Bristol and Hull.

Make a will now to protect your dependants!!

So you can protect your dependants, make a will now. This would prevent dying intestate. For instance, there is the firm Welcare Guardian, which offers free home visits. All wills are solicitor-provided.
Those already with a will can see a change of circumstances and need one updating. My own will is pretty sparse and there is no list of special bequests. In the past the newspapers would publish the partial details of large estates. Now that would not happen to me!! I think my estate would be very modest. I can't see my favourite charity receiving a lot. Which is my favourite charity? I have a soft spot for some missionaries, who work hard in Africa.
I think people should make a will to minimise the taxes grabed by UK premier Gordon Brown. Some of us think we are not going to pop off but we should plan for the fateful day. It would also help our grieving family (let's hope they appreciate it!!).
On the Search Will site you can arrange to see a will writer from your area.

One in five single people do not have a will.

This fact has come from an excellent article by Moira O'Neill, personal finance editor of the Investors Chronicle. She also notes that two out of every five people have strong ideas about the type of funeral they want want but only one in every five have recorded their wishes. A "common law" spouse will receive nothing unless you have a will.
www.searchwill.co.uk
One minute we might feel indestructible but then we feel signs of our mortality. There is a great poem by the Russian genius Pushkin, which describes life as going on a carriage. When you start the carriage goes boringly slow. By the end the carriage is going so fast but you can't make it stop.
www.searchwill.co.uk

Do you really want the HMRC trampling round?

I saw some advertising bumf in the local advertiser. A firm was extolling the merits
of a will in terms of avoiding the close attentions of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at a time of distress for the family. This will be especially so with the economic downturn, which has damaged the British government's coffers. The Revenue will be working hard to offset the collapse in tax revenues.
www.searchwill.co.uk
For instance, there is Pro-Legal Services Group. The firm can provide advice on pre-paid funeral plans and also protective property trusts, which prevent councils from taking a deceased half-share in the property, if the surviving partner goes into care.
Prolegal Services Group notes that 70 per cent of the UK population does not have a last will and testament. This contrasts with the the government's target that everyone should have one.
The recent changes in the amount of tax free money people can benefit from for UK inheritance purposes does not undermine the attractions of making a will. This allows people to leave money to who they want rather than with a pre-determined formula.
www.searchwill.co.uk

More people in the United Kingdom need to sign up to a will.

With the blog's first post for the New Year, there should be a reiteration of the fact that most people in the United Kingdom need to sign up to a will. Dying intestate lengthens the time to sort out the estate and also misses an opportunity to distribute asssets as you wish.
www.searchwill.co.uk
For instance, in the Milton Keynes area there is Colin Bradley, who operates from Bletchley. The website www.legalse.co.uk outlines the services available such as inheritance planning.