Writing guide

How to write a will?

If you’re young, you rarely think about writing your will. But at the latest when a family is founded or possession is acquired, it makes perfect sense to put his famous last will in writing on paper.

When it comes to your own will, many are often hesitant. But it is not so much that they do not want to deal with their own death, but rather that they do not know how to write their will.

Of course, there are some formal aspects that the testator must learn and pay attention to when writing his will, but overall, it is not as complicated as widely believed.

Write instructions and testament tips

One of the most important formal aspects of a will is that it must be clear. There are several ways in which the testator can write his will.

The simplest way is to write the will by hand and give the date and place. However, the entire will has to be handwritten because the manuscript in this case serves as proof that it really is the last will of the testator.

Less important, however, is how the document is named, in what form it is written, and how it is signed. This means that the testator does not necessarily have to tithe his letter under the heading of a will or sign his name and surname. Likewise, a handwritten will is valid, for example, if it is written in the form of a letter.

First and foremost, it is important that the will can be clearly assigned and a signature proves that the will ends at this point. If you do not want to write a handwritten will, but would rather type it by computer, you must hand over your will to a notary for it to be valid. In this case, a handwritten signature is not enough.

As the testator divides his assets, basically left to him. However, there are relatives such as the children who have a claim at least on the so-called compulsory portion. In order to avoid later complications, it makes sense to consider the compulsory shares in the distribution of the assets, in case of doubt a lawyer can advise accordingly.

Apart from that, the testator does not have to follow any specific instructions. For example, he may leave a property to an heir and consider another heir with a sum of money. Likewise, he can also dispose of his property being sold and the proceeds then shared between the heirs.

Amounts can be inherited on the basis of fixed sums or in the form of percentages. However, a will does not have to be purely limited to heredity, but may also include other dispositions. For example, the testator can regulate housing rights for his spouse or determine the conditions that his heirs must fulfill in order to be able to claim their inheritance.

Versions and storage

If you want to write a handwritten will, you can keep it at home later. However, the deceased should pay attention to two tips. First, he should keep his will in such a way that it can be found after his death.

On the other hand, he should necessarily destroy older versions, if he has changed his will in the meantime, otherwise it can easily cause confusion. Those who do not want to keep their will at home can either deposit it with a person of trust, in a bank locker, with a lawyer or with a notary public.

A will that is not written by hand must be given to a notary. The notary then deposits the will with the probate court, which in turn reports the will to the registry office. This will ensure that the will is executed when the death of the testator is reported.

One aspect the deceased should consider when writing his will is the execution of the will. This is important if there are several heirs. The executor is responsible for ensuring that each heir receives the inheritance portion that the testator had chosen for him.

Who should take over the distribution of the genetic material, is up to the decision of the testator. Thus, for example, he can appoint an heir or a lawyer, whereby the executor can accept or reject the task.

If the executor refuses to perform the task, or if the deceased has not designated an executor, the Probate Court appoints a person to assume the distribution of the estate against an allowance.