Categories Of Wills
Death is something that cannot be controlled or even prevented and thus important to make sure that after you are gone, your kids or other heirs properly get portions of your assets according to your wish and hence the need for writing a will. It is important for any person intending to write a will to understand the various rules as required by the court to make it a standard and a valid document even after he or she dies.
One of the legal requirements for writing a will is a minimum age of eighteen years as the court considers people which above 18 years with sound minds and in good legal positions to make very sound decisions. Wills are executed after the death of the testators, these are the people that create or write wills, and thus the need for every testator to have an executor in order to explain how the property should be distributed among the heirs in accordance to the testators wishes. There are however several types of wills that are common in many parts of the world. Some common types of wills that are available in many parts of the world and also recommended to various estate owners are discussed below.
The first type of a will which is greatly preferred by many people is known as a simple will. Just as the word suggests, simple wills distribute simple assets to the beneficiaries. It is important to understand that simple will must be in writing and typed. The name, address and marital status of the testator as well as the instructions for the division or distribution of the property are some key elements of simple wills. Executors of the will are simply the witnesses of the will in the court of law and thus required to sign the date of the will.
Testamentary trust will is another common type of a will that you can write depending on the circumstances. In this wills, the estate is placed into a trust and based on the terms of the trust the assets are therefore distributed to the testator’s beneficiaries. In case you have an estate and would like to leave it to your spouse after you die, then writing a joint will is the way to go.
It is important to note that once the testator dies, a joint will cannot be revoked. Living wills are the last types of wills that are very different from the above three wills since in here the distribution of the properties or estate is done when the testator is alive but in worse health condition that would be hard for him or her to recover.