Welcome to the Melbourne Community Daily Discussion Thread.
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Anyone done up a will? Thinking now that its more complicated than “Who gets the cats/dogs” I should probably get off my ass. Just wondering if the “Do it yourself” thing is worth it, or if its worth going to an actual lawyer?
I won’t answer your question, but one important thing I’ll add is that your super is generally distributed separately to your will. The ‘nomination’ you make when setting up your super account isnt worth shit. They will ignore it in favour of distributing your money according to their Trust Deed, which favours expectation of ongoing financial support over anything else. ie. Your dad dies, you’re his nominated beneficiary, but you aren’t reliant on him - and he’s been living with a partner for two years, sharing bills etc. New partner gets 100% of the money.
You need to go out of your way to set up a BINDING nomination, and typically you need to renew this yearly.
Well that’s sneakily stupid and fucked up, thanks for the PSA. How does one set up and renew a binding nomination - I’m guessing I have to contact my super directly?
Yes, they will have a special form you will need to fill out, so call and ask them to send it to you (and have them explain what I’ve outlined here, for your information)
Thanks mate. This is really useful info, I appreciate it!
I think it’s worth going to a lawyer, as they will be able to pick up potential problems you might not even realise exist. It is also probably even more important to organise power of attorney documentation, so that if you are incapacitated you have someone who can make medical and financial decisions. A lawyer will be able to go through all of that with you and make sure you have the right combination of things in place.
The other thing you should do if you haven’t already is make sure you and your partner have full access and understanding of things like how to pay the bills and who insurance is through etc. - it is quite common for one person to take the lead on organising that, and for the other person to struggle if something happens and they have to take over. Especially when things are done electronically and there is no filing cabinet of documents you can go through.
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It’s worth going to an actual lawyer. It’s the old thing - pay now, or your inheritors will pay later at a much higher price. Anything more complicated than ‘everything to my kids in equal shares’ needs a lawyer. Can’t stress too highly how much this matters. There are cheaper lawyer options - you don’t have to pay thousands. DM me if you want to chat about this in a general way, based the fact that I’m in the legal documents business. I can’t give financial advice, but do know the industry pretty well. Can’t answer until later tonight or tomorrow.
My mum did one. She wrote that my sister and I get everything of hers and we can decide what to do with them (keep them, sell them, whatever). I don’t know exactly what she did in hers, but it’s just sort of simple stuff. I think left over money and super half goes to me and half to my sister (she’s divorced from my dad but she has a partner but they’re “it’s complicated” so I think it’s just easier giving stuff to my sister and I). There’s probably stuff in there for her sisters and nieces and nephews. But I think most of it just goes to my sister and I.
I don’t think she went through a lawyer, I think she did it online.