Why Every Parent Needs A Will
When my husband and I got married, we agreed we needed a Will. However, life happened, and we never did it. Now that we have children, it is really important for us to get it sorted – YET WE STILL HAVEN’T!
When we had kids, it truly hit home that a Will is for MORE than just who gets what. It’s about what will happen to your children if something was to happen to you – a very scary thought but a pretty damn important one!
Recently, I discovered Kinly – an online New Zealand service that enables you to create a Will, have control over any and all changes, and all within an easy, online and lawyer-free environment and at a fraction of the cost.
Discovering Kinly made me realise that us risking not having a Will, was putting our children at too much risk. So I sat down and did a bit of research and have put together this post. Hopefully it helps to answer any questions you have about Wills, and to show why every parent needs one:
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1. WHAT IS A WILL?
Most of us know that a Will is a legal document that says who will inherit your money, house, possessions, car and anything else that belongs to you, after you leave this earth. You can leave everything to one person, split it amongst several people, or even leave it to your pets (HAH YES this does happen!). However, if you do have kids, a Will takes care of so much more than what they are left – it takes care of WHO they are left with.
We all have friends and family members that we would trust with our kids, and we all know the ones who we wouldn’t. As a parent, ensuring you have a Will is one of the most important things you can do to ensure your child is cared for by the right people.
If you are to pass away before your children become legal adults, you can select a person to care for your children, which will be laid out in your Will. You can also specify who will look after your properties and money until your children reach adulthood.
2. WHAT HAPPENS IF I DIE WITHOUT A WILL?
If you die without a Will, everything above becomes a fictional scenario. There is no guarantee that any of your possessions will go to the people you want, or that your children will be looked after by the people you want.
If you do not have a Will that specifies who will look after your children, someone would need to apply to the court to be appointed as a guardian – and you’re not around to say yay or nay! While a Will can be contested, it is more likely that your family would accept your wishes than argue over guardianship rights.
3. DO YOU NEED A LAWYER TO MAKE A WILL?
NO. The thought and cost of getting a lawyer involved can often put a stop to things, but, if you use an app like Kinly, you can do it all yourself. Kinly has worked with Greatwill to ensure that they can deliver the best online and mobile Will creation experience. Kinly provides a simple and legally valid Will that stipulates:
- how your estate is to be distributed so that your loved ones, including your dependants, will be taken care of,
- the special items you wish to gift to your siblings, elders, or the community,
- the person you trust (Executor) to carry out the instructions in your Will, and
- any specific instructions such as funeral arrangements and organ donation.
4. DOES IT COST A LOT OF MONEY TO MAKE A WILL?
If you went through a lawyer it could do, but if you use an app like Kinly then it won’t. With Kinly, you pay a one-time fee of $36.95 which includes your Will fee of $30 and the first year stewardship service of $6.95. Then the yearly service fee is $6.95. Hardly a price to pay compared to the price of not having a Will.
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As I have written above, a Will is for MORE than just who gets what – it’s about what will happen to your children if something was to happen to you. Just thinking about it, or even having a verbal agreement is not enough. At the end of the day, neither are legal!
Kinly makes the Will creating process easy, and affordable. You can create your Will using their app. Once you have finished, all of your information is digitally timestamped and stored in Kinly‘s high security data centre. They are fully compliant with the New Zealand Privacy Act.
With Kinly you can also store a video recording of yourself, which will be included with your Will, when delivered to your loved ones.
Start writing your Will now – head over to Kinly to find out more and download the app.
Thanks to Kowhiri for making this post possible.
