Wills Writing in Singapore

With the government’s initiative to promote active aging, there has been a heightened buzz around wills writing. 

A will is a legally binding document that allows you to decide who gets which of your assets after you pass away. Your assets can include not just local assets in Singapore but even those overseas. Assets can range from a simple gift like a watch to a big-ticket item like a house in Singapore. Many people have the myth that a will is only for the rich but this is not really so because a will is also for the average-income family, as long as you have something in your name. Just a note here that CPF monies are not covered under a will and is to be covered under the CPF Act instead. Your funeral wishes also should not be in your will because let’s be practically honest here - who reads a will immediately after death? The funeral is more likely than not to happen first before the will is read. It is pointless to have your funeral wishes stated in a document that will be read only after you have been cremated or buried underground.

There are various methods to write a will and today we will cover them below:

1. Get a Will Writer - Precepts or Simply Wills

Take note that neither of these entities are legal companies. Precepts do have legal counsellors on their team to assist and advise them on matters though. Precepts can do not just wills but trusts as well but they do generally come at a slightly higher price. These companies say that they can help families in crafting meaningful wills by providing valuable advice or perspectives to consider.

2. Engage a licensed Lawyer

These days, I have seen lawyers doing up wills at a relatively affordable rate - $99, or at least that’s what they advertised their starting price to be. I guess having a licensed lawyer to do the will gives more assurance than just someone who says he or she is a will-writer because after all, a lawyer will be able to advise best on what legal documents are admissible in court and what is not. 

3. Do it yourself 

Many people turn to chatgpt to do almost anything now and that includes writing a will! This option is free and will likely be more popular in time to come. The only issue is that you have to give a good prompt and give a good context ( background setting) as well as an objective, for the results to be closer to what you actually hope for - which not many know how to or what to do.

In my humble opinion, I will likely opt for the extremes - pay to get a lawyer to help me and know for sure ( well, at least 80% chance) that my will will be enforceable when time comes, or just not pay at all and do it myself all the way which is very possible in today’s day and age where information is just a query away.

Which option do you prefer though? Share with me your thoughts!