I am very happy/proud to say that I fulfilled my promise in Let’s Talk About Death, Part 1, and have given my family a password protected copy of my Family Emergency Binder. Being that I am using the binder to let my family know where my money is invested if something were to happen to me, I just focused on completing those sections. As I mentioned at the end of Part 1, I want to spend a little time talking about what I learned/decided when it came to making a will.
Disclaimer: All the information I share are my own thoughts and opinions and should not be construed as legal advice.
With that out of the way, as mentioned in Part 1, the onset of the COVID pandemic had me thinking about death a decent amount. A well known actor in the Broadway community, Nick Cordero, had become infected with COVID and hospitalized in March of 2020. While I personally did not know him, the theatre community is extremely small, and I had many friends who knew him. From their posts I saw numerous updates about his condition and fight with COVID. Sadly, Nick ended up passing away 95 days later at the age of 41.
This closeness in age really hit home. It reinforced the notion for me that our length of time on this earth is unknown, and how quickly things can change. A will had always seemed like something to do later. When I was in my early twenties, I had next to nothing to my name and felt I had no need for a will. Then, as I became older and acquired more cash and investments, I felt a will was not that important as I did not have any heirs.
Seriously considering the possibility of death made me question these assumptions. Believing I did not need a will, because I did not have any heirs, was something I had made up in my mind. This belief had not been influenced by any legal entity. So, I decided I should probably ask someone with actual legal knowledge if they felt I needed a will.
When it came to estate planning, I found that numerous reputable law firms offer a free consultation to go over what you are looking for and to be able to give a cost estimate. I sent messages to 4-6 firms looking to set up a free consultation, but only heard back from 1. I set up a zoom meeting with the firm and on the call we went over my assets and family structure (single, no kids, no siblings, living parents).
If I remember correctly they quoted me $1,500 to do a will, medical POA, and an advance healthcare directive. While I am frugal, and believe in looking for good deals, I know there are some areas on which you do not skimp. I consider legal matters one of those issues. That being said, nothing we had discussed convinced me that I needed a will. I also like getting at least two price quotes for expensive services.
As I mentioned above, I sadly had not heard back from the other firms I had sent emails to about setting up a consultation, so was momentarily stuck. Around this time I learned from a friend that through our union we have access to a service that gives us a free 30 minute consultation and 25% off a lawyer’s services. I discuss this a bit more in my post, Know Thy Benefits. I called this service and was put in touch with a law firm where we discussed my situation.
I really appreciated getting a second opinion because this law firm directly addressed the question of if I really needed a will. The lawyer with whom I spoke informed me that in Virginia, where I was living at the time, the assets of a child go to the parents if anything happens to the child. Since this is what I wanted to happen to my assets, the lawyer encouraged me not to pursue a will, even if creating one would have made them money.
Now, I can hear some of you screaming at your computer about how this is a horrible idea because without a will everything is going to have to go through probate. I must admit, from articles I have read I do think probate gets a bad name at times, but thankfully, I have also learned how to keep my accounts from having to go through probate.
In almost, if not all bank/investment accounts, there should be an option somewhere to add beneficiary information. This allows you to name a person, a beneficiary, to receive the money in the account after your death. You can even name multiple persons, assigning a percentage of the account to each, or I believe you can also name charitable organizations.
Armed with this information, similar to the Family Emergency Binder, I had begun with gusto to name beneficiaries to my accounts, but then lost steam. So, as I began filling out the Family Emergency Binder to fulfill my promise from Part 1, I made sure to assign a beneficiary to all of my accounts. For the majority of my accounts, this was as easy as clicking on “beneficiary information” and then entering the person’s name and birthday. I do have one account that wanted the person’s name, address, email, social security number, and I think one or two other things, so that account may be going to probate if something were to happen. But other than that, my accounts now have a beneficiary, and the name of that person is written along with the account in my Family Emergency Binder.
I do want to stress that my choice on not having a will is based on me being single, mostly only owning cash or investment accounts, having no siblings, and the real estate business I have being with family members. Though as I type this I realize that I do have another real estate business with a partner, that I’m not sure what would happen if I pass. I should investigate that. But, the point of this paragraph is to say, if you have children, I believe it is imperative that you have a will. While you may have a verbal agreement, or even a non-legally binding document with a friend or family member to take care of your children in case of your passing or if you are incapacitated, the court does not have to honor that. Though as always, make sure you consult with a lawyer before making any decisions!
