How often should you review your Will and other estate planning documents?
If there is a death, birth, adoption, divorce, or other life-changing events in your life or the life of a beneficiary, executor, trustee, guardian, or power of attorney, it is worthwhile to review your estate planning documents to see if any changes need to be made. Also, if you have a Living Trust, it is worthwhile to review your trust documents annually to see if anything needs to be updated and to make sure all assets are properly titled.
Over time, changes in relationships, health, and who is still living can affect whether they can or would serve in the role designated. With certain changes, you may want to update or make changes to certain roles. This is especially true when designating spouses of a child, spouses of a friend, or spouses of a family member.
An attorney who works in estate planning can help advise you of recommended changes and help you make those changes to your estate plan. If you would like to review your estate plan with an attorney, call the Law Office of Roy Neal Linnartz, PLLC at 830-625-9300.
Why you need a Will, a Scenario:
- Decedent died intestate (without a Will). Decedent has 3 children from a prior marriage. Decedent remarried and had been married to his current wife for 20 years when he passed. Decedent had a farm he inherited (separate property), a homestead house purchased with his current spouse (community property), and $100,000 cash (community property).
- The 3 children get the farm but the spouse gets a life estate in 1/3 of the farm.
- Spouse gets 1/2 of the Homestead house and each child gets 1/6 of the house.
- *Spouse gets Constitutional right to occupy homestead during her lifetime.
- Spouse gets $50,000 of the cash and each child gets $16,666.66 of the cash.
The surviving spouse thought she was getting everything from her deceased husband’s estate and was shocked when told she did not get everything.
This is an oversimplified example of what can happen if you don’t have a Will. If you would like to schedule an appointment to discuss getting a Will or updating a Will or other estate planning documents, please contact the Law Office of Roy Neal Linnartz, PLLC at (830) 625-9300.
Can I use an Affidavits of Heirship to sell real estate of which I am an heir when the Decedent didn’t have a Will?
Possibly. Affidavits of Heirship (“Affidavits”) are not like a deed that conveys title but rather is evidence of who the heirs are to complete a chain of title so the heirs can sell the property. The Affidavits are evidence for a court proceeding on an heirship once the Affidavits have been recorded in the County Records for five years. However, many title companies will accept Affidavits that have been recorded less than five years.
The Affiant, person making the Affidavit, cannot be an interested person (someone who is an heir or has an interest in the estate) and must swear to the following facts (there must be two Affiants):
- That Affiant knew the Decedent and dates which they knew Decedent
- The date and location of the Decedent’s death
- Address where Decedent resided
- Decedent’s marital and family history and identification of heirs
- That Decedent died without a Will
- That Decedent has no debts and owes no taxes or a list of unpaid debts and taxes
- That there is no administration of the estate
- A description of the property
Affidavits of Heirship are not appropriate in every scenario but do serve a purpose in certain circumstances. If you have issues with selling real estate and would like to explore whether an Affidavit of Heirship could benefit you, please contact the Law Office of Roy Neal Linnartz, PLLC at (830) 625-9300.
