The following article is courtesy of Jonathon Bailey.
Wills are commonly associated with death, primarily because this is one of the only times when they are used. As a result, this is a topic that we rarely talk or think about, seeing as it relates to the end of your life. The problem with this is that too many people don’t have wills in place – even if they’re midway through life. It is only something people think about when someone close to them passes away and they are reminded that wills exist.
If you own a business or have made a lot of investments in your life, you need a will to dictate where all of your money and assets go if you pass away. It’s a core part of the overall estate planning process, which is also crucial if you become incapacitated. Without a will, your estate will be handed to direct relatives and family members – some of which you might not have spoken to for years. Not only that, but any ideas you had for where your savings might go will be invalid – perhaps you wanted a lot to go to charity, well, you can’t do that if there isn’t a legal document stating it is your will!
With all of this in mind, when should you start thinking about writing a will? How early is too early?
When you get your first job
Some people suggest that you should start estate planning and writing a legal will when you get your first job. This can be a good idea, but it depends on when you are employed. Many people have jobs before they are legal adults, so is this a bit too early to start thinking about a will? In a lot of cases, the answer is yes; you are simply too young to understand what you are doing, and you also don’t have enough assets to truly warrant writing a will.
When you become a legal adult
Okay, what about when you become a legal adult? Again, this depends on if you have a job or not. If you aren’t employed for whatever reason, there’s no point in writing a will just because you’re a legal adult. However, if you are employed, this could be a good time to start.
A few years after you became a legal adult and have a job
Keeping everything in mind, this is the best time to start writing a will and seeking estate planning attorney support to get everything in order. A few years after becoming a legal adult, you should have better control over your finances. You should also have a job and might have some investments or savings stashed away. It still might seem a bit early for some, but you genuinely have no way of knowing what life throws at you.
At the end of the day, it’s better to have a will from a young age and not need it, than for something bad to happen out of the blue and you are left without a will. If you want to protect your finances and assets when you’re gone, you need to start thinking about this.
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