Things that shouldn’t be included in a will

Creating a will as part of an estate plan can be a daunting task for many Florida residents. There is a tendency for some people to try to stuff their wills with far more specific details than necessary. It is important to remember that when putting together a will, there is some information that shouldn’t be a part of this all important document.

One of the most important things to avoid putting in a will is any specific instructions for the testator’s funeral. This is because a will is not read until after a person’s funeral. Therefore, any specific instructions that the deceased would have wanted would be ignored. So, if someone has some special requirements that they would like to have at their funeral, it would be better to draw these plans up separately and give them to the executor of the estate.

There are also different types of property that cannot be included in a will. That’s because these kinds of property have rules that are independent of a person’s will. Property that falls into this category includes property in a living trust and joint tenancy property.

Additional items that shouldn’t be included in a will are proceeds from a retirement plan, proceeds from a life insurance policy that has a beneficiary and stocks and bonds that have a beneficiary. That is because these accounts have already identified someone who will inherit the account.

People also shouldn’t provide gifts to their beloved pet in a will since animals cannot legally own property. Instead, they should give the pet to someone who they know will take of them properly. However, they can leave property or money to that individual in order to provide for their pet.

Source: www. findlaw.com, “What not to include when making a will“, Accessed May 5, 2015