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About wills

Who should make a will?

Every adult can and should make a Will.
If you are married, both you and your spouse should prepare Wills. This is true even if marital assets are primary in the name of one spouse. Usually, you will wish to name your spouse as your main beneficiary and name an alternative beneficiary if he/she predeceases you.

How long is a Will Valid?

Once a Will has been prepared, it is valid until such time as it is revoked.
If you are living with someone, but are not married and you want that person to benefit from your estate, it is particularly important to make a Will. This is so because the rules of intestacy make no provision for unmarried partners. If you were to die intestate, your partners would receive nothing from your estate.

How to Make a Will?

Get in touch with us to find out!

Locally based in Manchester

Based in Prestwich Manchester, we are able to offer home visits locally through Manchester and outlying areas.

We offer phone/Skype meetings for clients further afield.

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important things you should know

Questions And Answers

Someone’s estate is everything that they own; all of their assets (whether real property or personal property) and their liabilities.

An Executor is a person who is appointed in the deceased’s Will to deal with the administration of their estate after their death. It is an Executor’s responsibility to:

  • Determine what property and other assets the deceased owned, as well as their liabilities.
  • Arrange for current valuations of personal possessions, property, investments, any pension or insurance entitlements due and also any debts and bills
  • Arrange for the payment of the funeral
  • Establish Income Tax, Capital Gains Tax and Inheritance Tax liabilities and complete the necessary tax returns to submit to the Revenue
  • Complete and submit the necessary Probate Registry forms
  • Arrange the clearance and sale of any property
  • Collect assets and pay any debts
  • Arrange for the distribution of legacies and gifts to the beneficiaries
  • Compile detailed accounts to give to the main beneficiaries
  • In the case of minor children being beneficiaries, then the Executor may act as Trustee for ongoing trusts, to hold their monies until they reach 18

A general term for somebody entitled to deal with the Estate Administration is a Personal representative. When a person dies without making a Will, the closest next of kin would be an Administrator who would be entitled to extract the Grant of Letters of Administration. An Executor is someone who has been appointed under a Will to deal with the estate administration.

It is the duty of the personal representative to pay off all debts of the deceased and if this is not done then they may be personally liable to pay money back into the estate.

Probate is the court’s authority, given to a person or persons, to administer a deceased estate and the document issued by the Probate Registry is called a Grant of Probate. This document is usually required by the asset holders (such as banks) as proof to show the correct person or persons have the Registry’s authority to administer a deceased person’s estate.

The Probate process is needed when investments (typically over £5,000) were held in the deceased’s sole name and the banks, building societies and other organisations request for a Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration in order to release the funds held.

A Grant of Probate/Letters of Administration is also required where one had held the property in their sole name in order to sell or transfer the property.

No, this vests in the deceased person’s estate. It is a common misconception amongst people that when a person dies their debts disappear but this is not the case unless otherwise stated. When a person dies their debts are paid for from their assets at the time of death. If their debt exceeds their available assets then the estate will be insolvent. Sometimes it is not known if an estate is insolvent until the grant of probate has been received. When the estate of the deceased is insolvent, gifts and legacies cannot be distributed to the beneficiaries under the Will. This part of the law is governed by Administration of Insolvent Estates of Deceased Persons Order 1986 (DPO 1986).

Contact us and we will talk you through it all.

Wills Ways is a certified member of the Society of Will writers, you can be assured that you will be receiving a quality, professional service.

The society was established in 1994 as an independent body representing the professional Will Writer and the interests of the consumer.

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