It’s one of the most common estate-planning oversights in the country: a couple leaves everything to each other, the first partner passes away, and years later the survivor remarries. When they eventually die, their new spouse inherits, and the original children receive nothing.
How it happens
Once assets pass outright to a surviving partner, they become theirs to deal with however they wish. They can rewrite their Will, remarry, or leave everything to their new family. There’s no legal mechanism to enforce the original couple’s intentions.
The fix: a Property Trust
A Property Trust ring-fences your share of the home. Your partner retains the right to live there, but ownership of your half is protected for your children. Remarriage, a new Will, even financial difficulty, none of it can touch your share.
It’s a small change in the way a Will is structured, and it solves one of the biggest long-term risks in estate planning.
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