Buying a new house, or buying an additional property, is probably the perfect time to update any existing Will you may have, or to consider making a Will for the first time.

Some of the many benefits of making a properly executed Will are:-

• Certainty that your wishes will be carried out
• Appointing Guardians for your minor children
• Potential Inheritance Tax (IHT) saving (The new IHT threshold is £312,000)
• Protecting the value of your house from Long Term Care assessment
• Ensuring that your children do not Inherit large sums of money until reaching a certain age

Unmarried couples should certainly consider making a Will, as under current legislation, the Intestacy Rules, which govern the distribution of assets where no Will has been left, do not provide for co-habitees.

Changes announced by the government in the pre-budget report in October 2007, have now made it far easier for married couples to maximise their Inheritance Tax allowances. If Mr X dies first leaving all of his estate to his wife Mrs X, there will be no IHT payable as spouses do not pay tax. However, when Mrs X subsequently dies, she will now be able to leave both her allowance of £312,000 and her late husband’s allowance of £312,000 to their chosen beneficiaries. Prior to October this would only have been possible had the clients effected tax efficient Wills to incorporate a Nil rate Band Discretionary Trust.

As IHT planning for the majority of clients is now not necessary, most clients are able to sign simple Wills, unless they are slightly older and are concerned about the implications of Long term Care assessment. In many cases, client’s properties are having to be sold to fund their care in residential or nursing care. Through correctly written Wills it is possible to protect “at least” 50% of the value of the property for the benefit of your chosen beneficiaries.