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Dying Without a Will: Who gets what?
by Jim Miller
 Dying without a will is very common in this country. In fact, nearly 40 percent of Americans over age 50 don’t have one. If you fall into the “I didn’t get around to writing a will” category and happen to die, what happens to your assets will be determined by your state, and it may surprise you a little. Here’s what you should know.
Who Gets What
No one ever really dies without a will. That’s because even if you don’t get around to creating one yourself, the state you resided in will make one for you. But that also means the state gets to determine who get’s your property and money – not you.
The state laws that determine how your estate will be distributed if you die without a will are called intestacy laws, and they can vary greatly from state-to-state. The best way to find out how your state works is to go to MyStateWill.com. This is a user-friendly, free site that has an intestacy calculator for every state so you can get an exact breakdown of how your estate would be distributed.
In the meantime, here is a general (not state specific) breakdown of what can happen to a person’s assets – depending on who they leave behind.
- Married with children: When a married person with children dies without a will, all property, investments and financial accounts that are jointly held automatically goes to the surviving spouse, without going through probate, which is the legal process that distributes a deceased person’s assets. But for all other separately owned property or individual financial accounts, the laws of most states award one-third to one-half to the surviving spouse, while the rest goes to the children, regardless of their ages.
- Married with no children: Some states award the entire estate to the surviving spouse, or everything up to a certain amount (for example the first $200,000). But many other states award only one-third to one-half of the decedent’s estate to the surviving spouse, with the remainder generally going to the deceased person’s parents, or if the parents are dead, to brothers and sisters. (Note: Jointly owned property, investments, financial accounts, or community property automatically goes to the surviving spouse, bypassing probate.)
- Single with children: All state laws provide that the entire estate goes to the children, in equal shares. If an adult child of the decedent has died, then that child’s children (the decedent’s grandchildren) split their parent’s share.
- Single with no children:In this situation, most state laws favor the deceased person’s parents. If both parents are deceased, many states divide the property among the brothers and sisters, or if they are not living, their children (your nieces and nephews). If there are none of them, it goes to the next of kin, and if there is no living family, the state takes it.
Simple Wills
If you don’t like the idea of your state handling your financial affairs after you’re gone, you can change that by creating a simple will, and with all the self-help resources available today it’s quick, easy and inexpensive. For example, Web sites like Buildawill.com and Legacywriter.com create a will for you by asking you questions and inserting your answers. The whole process takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish and costs only around $20. Or if you need a little extra help, try Legalzoom.com for $69. This site works like the others, but then has a specialist double-check your answers for completeness.
Or, if you don’t find the online resources appealing check out Nolo’s“Quicken WillMaker Plus 2010” ( Nolo.com, 800-728-3555), which offers a downloadable computer software program for $40, or you can get it on a CD for $42. Nolo also offers a new online will service for $50. And if you don’t have a computer, there’s Nolo’s “Quick & Legal Will Book” ($13), which comes with legal forms and step-by-step instructions. ,
| Jim Miller creator of Savvy Senior, a syndicated information column for older Americans and the families who support them that is published in more than 400 newspapers and magazines nationwide and can be found online at savvysenior. Jim is also a regular contributor on NBC’s “Today” show, and is the author of The Savvy Senior, The Ultimate Guide to Health, Family and Finances for Senior Citizens, (Hyperion, 2004). You can reach jim at jim@savvysenior.org |
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