Making a will is crucial for anyone wanting to protect their family from financial and emotional turmoil after they die.
A common mistake is to think that because you may not have considerable savings or property, you do not need to make a will - everyone needs a will if they own any assets.
If you have children or grandchildren; if you are separated or if you are living with someone you are not married to; if you own a property with someone else; or, if you want to leave money to young children, or to adults who are not capable of managing their own affairs, it's important to seek advice from a solicitor who will assist you with your Will and know how to avoid the pitfalls.
Without a valid will, the present rules governing your estate if you die without a will have little regard for your wishes.
Your loved ones may not receive the inheritance that you would wish and you potentially run the risk of depriving your spouse or partner of their home and increasing the inheritance tax (IHT) burden.
There are four other major problems with dying intestate (without a will):

1. Even if things go smoothly, it takes much longer to deal with an intestacy than if there is a will.
   
2. For unmarried couples, a common-law husband or wife has no legal status so without a Will, their estate will be passed to the immediate family.
   For example, your separated spouse could inherit the house that you share with your partner.
   
3. The rules of intestacy will be followed to the letter.
   So if there is a long-lost sibling last heard of in Australia's outback who inherits under the rules, that person must be traced or at the very least thorough and exhaustive enquiries made to achieve contact.
   If they are dead and had children, they will all have to be traced.
   All this might take years and it might all be for a person who you would never have wanted to inherit under your will.
   
4. If you have young children, should you die it's left to the courts to decide who they are entrusted to.
   Making a Will appointing guardians for your children is essential so that they can be cared for and receive appropriate provision for financial support according to your wishes.
   A properly drafted will can provide for all of these.
   

As your life circumstances change, it's equally important that your Will is regularly reviewed to reflect the increasing value of your estate, marriage, divorce, a new addition to the family or the death of a family member.
Imagine you write a will when you're happily married and then you move on and find a new partner.
If overlooked and you die without revising your will, your partner could be left with nothing.
Regrettably also, as you get older, the people you may wish to inherit your estate may die.
You need to ensure you include substitute beneficiaries in the event that any of your main beneficiaries die or you may find family members that you may not have intended to benefit will receive everything.
For your relations and for anyone who is important to you, but not related, it's substantially easier - and cheaper all round - if you have taken the important step and prepared in advance by writing a Will.
There are no excuses for not making or reviewing your will.
Instead of putting it off, we should all act now to protect our loved ones before it's too late.
So we finally get our Will sorted and can breathe a sigh of relief but where can we store it so it's easily found? A Will can be easily lost if kept in the home as often happens when people move house, for example.
There is also the added question of security; do you want other members of your family to have access to your Will? Your Solicitor can keep your Will stored for you but the final step to completing the process is to have it registered with a Will register.