• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Unsure of Future

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

scaredasheck

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Florida
My husband is 72 & I am 63. Our wills are about 20 years old. In them we are each the sole beneficiary of the other. After each other, our children are equally the beneficiaries after a church we have not attended for almost ten years, gets a good portion. I want to update our wills and/or do trusts and he won't. I want to do living wills and he won't.
Our home and my vehicle are in both our names. His bank accounts and his vehicle are in his name only. He will not change that and put my name on his accounts or vehicle and insists that my being his beneficiary in our old wills will insure my immediate access to his money and the ability to sell his vehicle. I'm not sure of that. He has kept our money divided for many years.
Though he could have chosen differently, he didn't, and his retirement will stop when he dies. If I die first, he has no worries. If he dies first, I will be in serious trouble. He has an insurance policy and I am the beneficiary. After our mortgage is paid off, the balance of the proceeds should last me for seven or eight years if all goes well. I am self-employed and will have to continue working. I have chosen to wait to collect Social security, until I am 66.
I have bought and paid, with my own money, for every item in our home, from the dishes to the furniture, to the floor tiles & carpets. I have many items that are dear to me and mean nothing to him. When I began making a list and asking my children what they would like me to leave them, he asked what his daughters would get. His daughters have never recognized me as anything but his wife. They have never in their lives given me a gift or a card or a phone call, so his statement surprised me. I asked why they would even want anything of mine since I am a nobody to them. He will not want my things when I die and I want to be guaranteed that only my children get them. How can I do that?
Does a will become effective immediately after death or have to go through probate?
Is a trust better than a will?
Can I do one or the other even if he objects to doing it himself?
Thank you,
UnsureWhat is the name of your state?
 


seniorjudge

Senior Member
Q: Does a will become effective immediately after death or have to go through probate

A: There are two ways you wind up in probate: you have a will or you don't have a will.

You need some serious estate counseling; you are very confused.
 

Ozark_Sophist

Senior Member
Have your husband at least make sure the bank accounts are set up to POD (Pay on Death). This way he gets what he wants (control of the money, and evidently, you not to have any access to it), and you are protected if he should die first. A trust would require him to move all his assets, including the bank accounts, to the trust (which if he will not add your name to the accounts, I don't foresee happening). You can update your own will or create a trust for your assets.
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top