Writing a will makes sure that the people you leave behind when you die, the people you love are taken care of and they get what they need and perhaps what they want from your estate.  Having children or other dependents is not the only reason to write out a will; anyone with assets should take the time to sit down and write out a will for those who will be left behind.

Writing out a will forces a person to imagine the worst about themselves and the people they would leave behind. If you died tonight, who would pay your bills? Who would care for your children? What about your parents and your beloved dog or cat? A will is not just about money and your stuff, it’s about the people you care about and the ones you care for.

Without a will, the state in which you die will seize your assets and run it through a special formula to make sure everything is paid first before family members get what is left. If there is no will stipulating where the children are to live, an attorney is usually summoned and those who want the children to live with them will be scrutinized to see who is the best replacement parents for the now orphaned children, so if you don’t want your crazy brother-in-law and his wife to raise your children in their trailer with four other children, be sure to write down your wishes for who you want to raise your children in case of your untimely death.

Don’t assume anything about your assets going to your family, especially if you have debit because creditors will always be paid first, leaving your family out in the cold.

There are four things a will must spell out and then make it legal – 1. Your possessions and assets you want distributed; 2. Who (benefactors) gets what; 3. Who will be the guardian of your children, if they are minors; 4. Who will be the executor of your will – the person who will organize and carry out your wishes

Making it legal could be as simple as taking the document to a notary to have their seal and signature along with a witness’s signature on it. And if you have this done at a bank, keep the document in a safe deposit box so it doesn’t get lost in mounds of papers and so that your family members can easily find it after your death.

Tell someone about the will, either a spouse, sibling or parent so they know where it is and that there is one if they ever need to find it. Tell them which bank and where the safe deposit box key is kept.

Lawyers and online computer programs can help an individual with writing a will to make sure they don’t miss anything important, because writing a will can be a stressful task.