What happens if you die without a Will? Well, really no one dies without a Will, because if you haven’t created one for yourself the state you live in will. Dying without a Will is known as dying “intestate”, which basically means the state at which you live at the time of death already has specified laws to determine how your assets will be divided should you NOT have a Will. Depending on your marital status, your children (whether from a previous marriage, current marriage, both, or if they were adopted), as well as whether your parents are still living, all are factors involved in the actual division of your estate. Of course, each state’s intestate laws could differ; however, the main point is dying without a Will definitely allows the government to dictate your assets destination. Answer: Dying without a Will in the State of Alabama: -If you die married with no children, and no parents, your spouse will receive your entire estate. -If you die married with no children, but have parents, your spouse will get the first $100,000 plus one-half of the balance with the remainder going to your parents. -If you die married with children which are also your spouse children, your spouse will get the first $50,000 of your estate plus one-half of the balance with the remainder going to your children. -If you die married with children, but not all of the children are also your spouse’s children, then your spouse gets one-half of your estate with the remainder going to your children. Due to the extent of this blog post more complex issues were not viable to explain. Main point is everyone needs some form of a Will.
Sources: Disclaimer: I am Andrew D. Rice, Vice-President of Money Management Services, Inc. a SEC Registered Investment Advisor. This blog post on “Dying without a Will” should NOT be construed as personalized advice. Andrew D. Rice, AIF®,CTS™,WMS