Should I Update My Will After Moving to a New House?

If you move to a new house, one of the first things you’ll need to do is change your address with all kinds of people. You’ll need to let your doctor, dentist and bank know, and of course, you’ll have to inform the utility services and local council, among others. However, many people forget that if they move home, they should update their will.

Keeping your will up to date at all times is very important; after all, nobody knows what the future holds, and you need to be sure that your assets will be correctly distributed in the way you wish after you die. Yet, many people are entirely unaware that they should always check their will after moving to a new house and update it to reflect the change.

Why Should I Update My Will When I Move?

The first reason why you should always update your will after moving home is that all wills must have an up-to-date address on them. If they don’t, they could be found to be invalid in the event of the testator’s death.

Also, if the testator is the owner of the property, they will need to state clearly in their will what they want to happen to the property after they die. After all, if you move home, it could have a major impact on the value of your estate, and this is something that should be accurately reflected in your last will and testament.

How Do I Update My Will?

Although it’s very important to update your will after moving to a new house, in fact, you should make sure to check your will every five years and make any updates as necessary to keep it up to date and reflect your current wishes.

However, it’s important to be aware that you cannot simply amend a will once it has been witnessed and signed. Rather, a will can only be changed by making a codicil which is an official alteration. This must be witnessed and signed in just the same way as a will is witnessed and signed. There are, however, no limits on the number of codicils that can be added to your will, so if you move to a new house regularly or want to make more frequent changes, you won’t have any problems.

Should I Make A New Will If I Move Home?

In most cases, you will probably only need to update your existing will after moving home; however, you may need to make a brand-new will in some cases. This will be the case if you need to make several minor alterations or a single major change.

You are also more likely to need to write a whole new will if you wrote your previous one more than five years ago since your estate’s value is expected to have significantly changed in the intervening years. So, you’ll need to create a fresh will that more accurately reflects your current circumstances and your wishes after death.

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