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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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 Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 12:35 am Post subject: I hereby bequeath... |
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Have any of you made a will?
I wouldn't exactly say The Grim Reaper is stalking me... but the fact that he has hit on me twice in the past month has given me pause for thought. 
So just in case he's the type of guy that doesn't take 'no' for an answer I'm considering making my will. I don't want them writing "He died Intestate" as my epitaph, it sounds a little bit well..... lax!
I've never done this before so what I want to know is:
Is this easy/hard, expensive/inexpensive (from the point of legal fees) to do?
Can you just write it yourself without a lawyer and get two people to sign as witnesses (I read this in a book but since the book was fiction this might not be true!)? |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 12:48 am Post subject: |
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You can write your own will, have (I think) two witnesses sign it. Then you post yourself a copy but don't open it when you receive it. Mark on it clearly that it is your last will and testament...
That's it. You don't really need a lawyer... but it is advisable to have one in case of dispute.. but unless you are Anna Nicole Smith, or her ex-late-husband... you don't need to draft it up by a lawyer.
The reason why people use a lawyer is that they have a large estate and lost of businesses to deal with... and lawyers know better about loopholes and stuff... |
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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 2:09 am Post subject: |
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| tzechuk wrote: |
You can write your own will, have (I think) two witnesses sign it. Then you post yourself a copy but don't open it when you receive it. Mark on it clearly that it is your last will and testament...
That's it. You don't really need a lawyer... but it is advisable to have one in case of dispute.. but unless you are Anna Nicole Smith, or her ex-late-husband... you don't need to draft it up by a lawyer.
The reason why people use a lawyer is that they have a large estate and lost of businesses to deal with... and lawyers know better about loopholes and stuff... |
In that case that will probably suffice. Somehow I can't see my heirs battling through successive law courts in order to get their hands on my modest (or completely self-effacing) property.
Up until recently, superstition and an unshakeable belief in my own immortality have dissuaded me from making one, but I have an idea that if I die without a will in place, whatever I have will be eaten up in death duties. |
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gang ah jee
Joined: 14 Jan 2003
Location: city of paper
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 2:46 am Post subject: |
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| I hereby bequeath my avatar to eamo. |
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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 2:58 am Post subject: |
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| gang ah jee wrote: |
| I hereby bequeath my avatar to eamo. |
Not valid!
You posted it but you forgot to get it signed by two witnesses.  |
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eamo
Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 3:37 am Post subject: |
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| gang ah jee wrote: |
| I hereby bequeath my avatar to eamo. |
Wow!! I'm now officially looking forward to your demise!! Fancy a cigarette? Take two.... |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 3:52 am Post subject: |
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BTW, if you are from the USA, you need to legalise your will... then you need an attorney.. you can still write your will yourself to save a bit of money, though.
What I have said is what can work in the UK - but I just read that it won't work in the USA.
http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Your-Own-Last-Will-&-Testament |
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gang ah jee
Joined: 14 Jan 2003
Location: city of paper
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 4:43 am Post subject: |
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| eamo wrote: |
| gang ah jee wrote: |
| I hereby bequeath my avatar to eamo. |
Wow!! I'm now officially looking forward to your demise!! Fancy a cigarette? Take two.... |
You'll be shocked, but I quit smoking 13 months ago! |
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eamo
Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:00 am Post subject: |
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| gang ah jee wrote: |
| eamo wrote: |
| gang ah jee wrote: |
| I hereby bequeath my avatar to eamo. |
Wow!! I'm now officially looking forward to your demise!! Fancy a cigarette? Take two.... |
You'll be shocked, but I quit smoking 13 months ago! |
Holy moly! I am shocked! You were one of the best smokers I ever knew. |
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ajuma
Joined: 18 Feb 2003
Location: Anywere but Seoul!!
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:05 am Post subject: |
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Ah! But what about in Korea? I'd like to know that my pension will go to who I want it to go to, not just who the government THINKS it should go to! Has anyone made a will in Korea?
BTW, this might be a good place to remind people to let SOMEONE (preferably at your school) know your next of kin. If you die or are unconscious in the hospital, you'll need someone who knows what you want done. Also, if you have allergies to antibiotics or are a diabetic or something that would affect your care, you should let someone close to you (someone that your school knows about!!) know the details!! |
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Grimalkin
Joined: 22 May 2005
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 12:19 pm Post subject: |
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| tzechuk wrote: |
BTW, if you are from the USA, you need to legalise your will... then you need an attorney.. you can still write your will yourself to save a bit of money, though.
What I have said is what can work in the UK - but I just read that it won't work in the USA.
http://www.wikihow.com/Write-Your-Own-Last-Will-&-Testament |
UK.
I'd spell 'legalise' the same way you do! |
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ajgeddes
Joined: 28 Apr 2004
Location: Yongsan
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:02 pm Post subject: |
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| This might be a silly question, but I just really don't know. I am not married, 25 years old and have no will. If I die today, what happens with all the money in my accounts? Does it just go to my parents? |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:48 pm Post subject: |
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| ajgeddes wrote: |
| This might be a silly question, but I just really don't know. I am not married, 25 years old and have no will. If I die today, what happens with all the money in my accounts? Does it just go to my parents? |
Do you have any debt? It'll probably go to your debtor first, then topay for your funeral and other stuff, then ... I don't know....
Heh.. |
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Boodleheimer
Joined: 10 Mar 2006
Location: working undercover for the Man
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 5:51 pm Post subject: |
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| morbid thread. i like it. |
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Woland
Joined: 10 May 2006
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sun Mar 11, 2007 6:05 pm Post subject: |
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| ajgeddes wrote: |
| This might be a silly question, but I just really don't know. I am not married, 25 years old and have no will. If I die today, what happens with all the money in my accounts? Does it just go to my parents? |
Unless you've designated a beneficiary, it will go to your parents, if they are alive. If not, it will go to siblings. No siblings, it goes to the next closest relative, though I don't know how this is determined.
Many banks and other financial institutions now ask people to designate a beneficiary when opening an account. It's a nice thing to do, effectively creating a mini-will regarding that account. Even if there is no other will, the beneficiary will be the legal recipient of the contents of the account. It also excludes the amount from estate taxes.
If you have even the slightest amount of money saved up and want it to go to particular people, make a will. You don't want to die intestate, which will cause extra troubles for your survivors and cost the loss of some of your estate to the state.
I know all this because my brother died intestate 6 years ago. Any accounts with designated beneficiaries were quickly settled and the money distributed. But the bulk of his estate had to go through legal procedures in the state of Virginia (in the US, every state has different laws and procedures regarding these occurrences). It took two years for my parents to finally settle the estate and cost them much time and money. It also painfully extended their grief over my brother's death.
EDIT: Fixed typos
Last edited by Woland on Sun Mar 11, 2007 8:39 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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