How Do You Make a Will, and What Does It Cost?

Detailed Explanation

A will is the legal document that says what should happen to your property after you die, and who should deal with it. Without one, the law of the place you lived decides who inherits (see what happens if someone dies without a will), and the result may be quite different from what you'd have chosen. Making a will is usually straightforward, but the legal formalities are strict, and they're set country by country and, in federations like Australia and the US, state by state.

What a will should cover

A useful will usually does four things:

• Names an executor. This is the person, or professional, who collects the assets, pays debts and hands out what's left. Naming a backup is sensible in case the first choice can't act. See what an executor does.
• Says who inherits. This can include specific gifts (a sum of money, a house, a particular item) and, just as importantly, who gets the "residue": everything left after debts, costs and specific gifts.
• Names guardians for young children. If both parents die, a will is usually the main way to say who you'd want to care for them. See choosing a guardian for your children.
• Covers what-ifs. For example, what happens if a beneficiary dies before you, or if you and your partner die together.

Some people also add funeral wishes, but a will is often read after the funeral, so it's better to record funeral wishes separately as well.

What a will usually doesn't control

Several kinds of property commonly pass outside a will altogether, in many countries:

• Pensions and retirement savings, which usually follow the scheme's beneficiary nomination instead. See what happens to a pension or retirement savings when someone dies.
• Life insurance with a named beneficiary.
• Jointly owned property and accounts held with a right of survivorship, which pass automatically to the surviving owner.

Making a will is a good moment to check these nominations and ownership arrangements too, so they don't contradict the will.

What makes a will legally valid

Most common-law countries share the same basic ingredients: the will-maker is an adult with mental capacity, acts voluntarily, puts the will in writing and signs it, and the signature is witnessed. The details differ, and small mistakes can invalidate a will or a gift in it.

• England and Wales: the will-maker must be 18 or over, of sound mind and acting voluntarily. The will must be in writing and signed in the presence of two witnesses aged over 18, who both then sign in the will-maker's presence. A witness, or a witness's married partner, can't inherit under the will.
• Scotland: Scots law is separate. A person aged 12 or over can make a will, and a will signed by the will-maker and one witness (with the witness's name and address) is presumed to be validly signed.
• Northern Ireland: has its own wills legislation with broadly similar formalities to England and Wales. The nidirect guidance covers the basics.
• United States: each state sets its own rules. California, for example, requires the will-maker to be 18 or over and of sound mind, and the will to be signed and witnessed by at least two people present at the same time who understand it's a will. California also accepts a handwritten ("holographic") will without witnesses if the signature and main provisions are in the will-maker's handwriting, and publishes a fill-in-the-blanks California Statutory Will form. Other states differ on handwritten wills, notarised "self-proving" affidavits and electronic wills, so the rules of the state where the person lives matter.
• Australia: each state and territory has its own Wills Act, but the core rules are consistent: 18 or over (with limited exceptions), in writing, signed, and witnessed by two adults present at the same time. The Australian pages below cover the detail.

DIY, online service or professional?

• Will kits and online services suit simple situations: one relationship, straightforward assets, and a family unlikely to argue. They're cheap, and valid if the signing rules are followed exactly.
• A solicitor or lawyer is worth the cost for blended families, business interests, trusts, property in more than one country, a beneficiary who needs long-term care, or any real prospect of someone challenging the will. They also make sure the wording does what you intend, which matters later at probate.
• Public and community services exist in some places. Australian states have Public Trustees that prepare wills, some free for eligible people. In Northern Ireland, the official guidance points to voluntary organisations such as Age NI. In the US, some legal aid organisations help people on low incomes with simple wills.

What it typically costs

There's no universal price, and fees change, so treat any figure as a rough guide and check current prices locally.

• Kits and statutory forms are the cheapest route: from nothing (California's Statutory Will form is published in its Probate Code) to tens of dollars or pounds for a commercial kit.
• Online will services usually cost more than a kit and less than a solicitor. Some charge a subscription to keep the will updated.
• Solicitors and lawyers charge the most, and the price rises with complexity. Northern Ireland's official guidance (nidirect) notes simply that costs vary between solicitors and depend on how complicated your affairs are.
• In Australia, public and government sources put the range from free (Queensland's Public Trustee prepares wills free for adult Queenslanders) through modest Public Trustee fees in other states to around $1,000 or more for a solicitor. The Australian cost page below compares the options state by state.

Whichever route you choose, cost is small next to the cost of an invalid or unclear will, which can mean legal fees, delays and family conflict later.

Signing, storing and keeping it current

Follow the signing instructions exactly: right number of witnesses, all present when required, nobody who benefits acting as a witness. Store the original somewhere safe (with a solicitor, a public trustee or a secure place at home) and tell your executor where it is. Review it after big life changes such as marriage, separation or divorce, a new child, or the death of a beneficiary or executor. Some of these events can change a will automatically, depending on where you live. How to change or update a will explains how to do that properly.

A will sits alongside other planning documents: a power of attorney covers decisions while you're alive but unable to make them, and a will only takes effect after death. Some people also use the time to think about how they'd like to be remembered, and an online memorial is one place family can later gather those stories.

How it works where you are

• In Australia: how to write a legally valid will in Australia, covering state Wills Acts, witnessing rules, and DIY kits vs solicitors.
• In Australia: how much it costs to write a will in Australia, comparing kits, online services, solicitors and each state's Public Trustee fees.

Things to Consider

• Where you live decides the rules. If you've moved country or state, or own property in more than one place, check that your will works in each. Cross-border estates are a situation where professional advice is genuinely worth having.
• Capacity can be questioned later. A will made late in life or after a diagnosis is more likely to be challenged. A lawyer can arrange evidence of capacity at the time of signing.
• Your family may have claims regardless of the will. Many places let close family ask a court for provision if they were left out or left too little, and in Scotland a surviving spouse or civil partner and children have "legal rights" to part of the estate. A will can't always override these. If a claim looks likely, it's worth getting legal advice when the will is made.
• Keep passwords out of the will. A will can become a public document after probate. Leave access details separately.

Common Mistakes

• Getting the witnessing wrong. Too few witnesses, witnesses not present together, or a beneficiary acting as witness can invalidate the will or a gift in it.
• Forgetting the residue. A will that lists specific gifts but doesn't say who gets everything else leaves part of the estate to the default intestacy rules.
• Assuming the will covers pensions and insurance. Beneficiary nominations usually control these, and they need updating separately.
• Naming only one executor. If that person dies first or can't act, the court may have to appoint someone, adding time and cost.
• Never reviewing it. A will written before a marriage, divorce or new child may no longer say what you'd want, or may have been changed or revoked automatically by law.
• Writing changes onto the signed will. Handwritten alterations after signing are generally ineffective unless formally signed and witnessed. Use a codicil or a new will instead.