Why You Need a Will in Your 30’s…

As someone in my 30’s, the reasons I have heard from close friends, family and clients as to why they don’t have a will all seem to follow a similar trend – either they think they are too young or they don’t believe they need a will just yet.

“I am still young”, “It is something to think about when I am older”, “I don’t have anything”

The truth is, unless you are single and broke, you need a will.

If you are single, the law provides that if you pass away without a will (also known as dying intestate) your parents are the first in order to receive your entire estate. While this might sound reasonable – you need to make sure this wont impact on their pension payments or other benefits they receive. Also you may wish to provide for other loved ones such as your siblings, nieces, nephews, close friends, a charity – you need a will to do this.

If you are married, you need to make sure that your spouse receives your assets when you pass away and consider whether your estate is best left your spouse outright or in a trust. Alternatively there may be ‘others’ you wish to benefit and to do that – again you need a will.

If you have children, the need for a will becomes two-fold. Firstly you want to make sure that your children inherit from your estate in accordance with your wishes and that you don’t leave any room for discretion. Secondly, you want to direct who will be the guardian of your children and responsible for your children if you should pass away while your children are still minors.

For each of us, we don’t know when our time is up and therefore having your estate plan in order is important at all ages and stages of life. Getting legal advice regarding your estate planning in you 30’s will not only ensure that your estate will be distributed in accordance with your wishes, but will also enables you to be informed about the best way to make important decisions in your 30’s and beyond regarding your superannuation, taxation and how you may choose purchase property in the future.

If you need to prepare you Will or update an old Will get in touch with our experienced Wills & Estates team.

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