Interview
" Not having a Will before death is more terrifying than death itself! "
Mr. KC Chan, the founder of MyWishes2u.com, explains to you in this exclusive interview on the necessity of making a Will in all aspects!
[2024/1/15, CHINA PRESS]
Interview with China Press: Not having a Will before death is more terrifying than death itself!
When it comes to Will, traditional thoughts are linked to negative concepts such as "death", "taboo", and "unlucky". Although the practice of "making a Will before death" has been greatly promoted through promotion in recent years, some elders still reject the idea of making a Will. Even though younger generation do not reject such an idea, but at an age when they are healthy and active, they feel that they are still far away from the stage of “telling the story of what will happen after their death”. But not to forget, death itself does not discriminate on your age!
Looking back at 2023, we are safe and sound, but some people have left us forever. In the Malaysian entertainment industry alone, Some of them were in their prime, but died suddenly due to acute heart disease or sudden death. These bad news came and made us lament the impermanence of life.
When people are gone, what can they leave behind for their loved ones?
" Mr KC Chan, committee member of the Lecturers Association, and a wealth planner and founder of MyWishes Integrated Service, was invited to China Press' "Breaking Point Interview" to explain the necessity of making a Will for readers of China Press. It turns out that this Will document may be the best gift you can give to your family!"
Mr Chan stressed that there is no distinction between the rich and the poor, the young and the old, when writing a Will. He said that anyone who owns a personal wealth, such as a car, a house and a bank account, should make a Will according to his own wish. He pointed out that in fact, everyone "has" already written a "Will" which might not be in accordance to their wishes via the legislation of the Government, namely the "Distribution Act 1958". Therefore, if you do not write another Last Will & Testament again, your assets will be distributed in accordance with the Act, and not in accordance with your personal wishes!
8 major benefits of making a Will:
You can nominate the beneficiaries of your estates and how your assets will be distributed.
You can nominate a trustee and executor to manage your estates and help you to execute the Will and the relevant legal procedures.
You can create a testamentary Trust for minor children, heirs with special needs, or a charity fund.
You can nominate a guardian for your minor children.
You can reduce the likelihood of family disputes over your estates.
You can speed up the estate distribution process so that your beneficiaries can quickly receive their inheritance.
You can minimise the legal fees for your estate distribution.
You can express your wishes on your funeral arrangement, such as which religious ceremony you wish for your final funeral event.
The Consequence of Not Making a Will
If you think not making a Will now is not a problem in the future, then read on.
The most important thing about making a Will is to save your family endless trouble. If there is no Will, upon the death of the person concerned, the legal procedures for handling the assets are time-consuming and laborious, often lasting for several years. Not only it is difficult for the family to receive the inheritance, but the entire process is also quite tiring and stressing.
Mr KC Chan shared that not making a Will will first affect how soon your family can receive the inheritance. Families need to wait for a long time (ranging from more than 2 years, depending on the complexity of the estates involved), because the application for Letters of Administration (LA) is time-consuming and cannot be processed quickly.
"When your bank accounts or other assets are frozen, it may cause your family members to be unable to maintain their current lifestyle and face immediate financial difficulties."
It is common to hear of family discord and siblings disputing over parental inheritance in court. One of the reasons is asset disputes due to the absence of a Will by the deceased.
He gave an example. If there is no Will written and you transfer the title of the house to your children through "donation" (transferring asset to others during your lifetime), it may happen that the children are unwilling to support their parents, and the two elders in the family are kicked out of the house, leaving them homeless.
"Either it may be that the other children did not get the house, are mentally unbalanced, and are unwilling to take care of the parent, which may lead to asset disputes."
He specifically pointed out that many couples buy a house jointly and think that if the husband passes away first, 50% of the share of one of them will be transferred automatically to the wife. In fact, this is not the case, because according to the estate Distribution Law, only a quarter of the husband’s share belongs to the surviving spouse and another quarter belogs to the surviving parents.
"In case one of the parents passes away first, the share of the house will be distributed to the husband's remaining brothers and sisters, so the house may become a multi-person property, which will be difficult to deal with in the future. For example, when the house is sold in the future, each owner will have to agree unimously. When there is any disagreement, there will be disputes.”
In addition, not having a Will also has an economic effect, because with the presence of a Will, the legal fee for applying for Grant of Probate (GP) is lower; without a Will, applying for Letters of Administration (LA) requires a high legal fee.
"Last year, the government has also encouraged people to write a Will in the Budget announced, which has waived the expensive stamp duty. The legal fees for Wills and change of Titles are also relatively lower."
Will vs Trust
We often hear about the combination of Will and Trust. Trust is getting popular nowadays, but is Trust equally necessary as a Will? Mr Chan said to distinguish between the two is very simple. A Will is to "distribute" wealth while a trust is to "retain or manage" the wealth.
“We can use Trust to manage wealth retention and inheritance. For example, if you don’t want to distribute a house, or you don’t know who to distribute it to, you can keep it through a Trust as your ancestral home for the next generation to live in.”
He added that if we are worried that our children are not good at managing finances, we can also use a Trust to remotely control the distribution of the inheritance. For example, we can allocate expenses to the children on a monthly basis and gradually distribute the inheritance to them as they mature.
Making Will - Fast, Simple and Convenient
According to the Malaysian Institute of Estate Planners (MIEP), more than 90% of Malaysians have not yet made a Will. This shows that people still do not pay attention to the imprtance of Will, or they find it troublesome to make one and keep on delaying on it.
Mr. Chan pointed out that writing a will is actually not as complicated as imagined. You only need to list down the wealth accumulated by you ONCE only.
"For example, the house address, bank accounts, land location, cars model, etc. must be listed one by one. Failure to do so will cause the beneficiaries to go through the complicated procedures to locating these assets."
He suggested that those who want to make a Will should contact a professional estate planner for advice or seek the assistance of a lawyer. Based on his past experience, the cost of making a Will ranges from RM600 to RM2,000, depending on the asset distribution provisions.
He also reminded the public that there are four circumstances that can lead to the revocation of an original Will, namely marriage or remarriage, intention to revoke, conversion to becoming a Muslim and writing a new Will.
To pass on your wealth and not debt, it is not just a slogan, but you must also know how to put it into action. Mr KC Chan pointed out that different types of assets should be passed on to the next generation through different inheritance channels to avoid unnecessary disputes and allow your beneficiaries to receive the estates more quickly, without causing any problems to them such as unpaid taxes, unpaid debts or assets shrank.
"We should use our existing wealth to create more liquid funds and pass on our "love" more effectively."
The greater significance of writing a Will is to pass on your wealth and affection to your loved ones.
