YOU think you won't die early and even if you do, your property and wealth will pass on to your spouse.
But this is not true. Depending upon the law under which your marriage comes, your children and relatives can also claim to your property.
If a person does not leave a will, then his property and wealth is governed by his personal law. For example, according to the Hindu Succession Act, a person's property is to be distributed equally among his first-degree relations — wife, children and parents. If the person does not have first-degree relatives, the property is distributed among second degree relatives (brothers and sisters.
However, the distribution is a cumbersome process as it would require that the property be sold off and the proceeds be then distributed equally among the beneficiaries. Also this could lead to disputes among beneficiaries.
Therefore, it's advisable to prepare your will to ensure that your wishes with respect to your estate are followed after your death.
In legal parlance, a will is defined as 'the legal declaration of the intention of the testator, with respect to his property, which he desires to be carried into effect after his death'.
How to write your will?
Ø The process of making a will is simple. You can write your will on a plain paper in your own handwriting or type it.
Ø You do not require stamp duty or registration, although most experts advise that a will must be registered to ensure its legality. A registered will gets precedence over an unregistered one.
Ø Start with declaring in the first paragraph that you are making the will in your full senses and without any kind of pressure.
Ø Make a list of all your movable and immovable property. Movable properties are your bank fixed deposits, cash, jewellery, shares, partnership shares, mutual fun ds, insurance and postal investments. Immovable property is your house, land and all the real estate properties that you own.
Ø State the name of the person who should own each of the assets after your death.
Ø You can distribute the assets to more than one individual.
Ø If you are declaring that your assets go to a minor then you will have to appoint a custodian to take care of your assets till the minor reaches adulthood.
Ø Once you have completed, you need to sign the will in the presence of two witnesses. One of them should be a doctor.
Ø After your signature, the two witnesses should sign stating that you are in proper state of mind while writing the will.
Ø State the date, time and place at the bottom of the will.
Ø Appoint a trustworthy person who is unlikely to die before you as the executor.
An executor is your representative who will execute the contents of the will after your death.
Store the will in a safe place preferably in a bank locker and inform your relatives about the place where it has been stored.
