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The risk of dying without a will in Iowa

On Behalf of | Jul 11, 2024 | Estate Planning, Wills, Trusts & Probate |

Everyone dies eventually. Some people pass on without having a plan in place. Estate planning is an adult responsibility that many people find unpleasant. They do not like contemplating their own mortality or the risk to their loved ones should anything happen to them.

Many adults in Iowa delay creating estate plans. If they die, Iowa does have laws describing what should happen. Many people who learn about those laws may reach the realization that they want to take control over their final legacy instead of allowing standard statutes to dictate what happens with their family and their property.

How do intestate succession laws work?

During the initial stages of probate proceedings, family members present estate plans or wills if they can find those documents. When they cannot, they may need to initiate intestate succession proceedings instead.

When someone has a will, their instructions guide the distribution of their property and determine who serves as the personal representative of their estate. If they die without documents, then the courts choose the representative. State law determines what happens with their property.

Intestate succession law focuses on close family members. Specifically, spouses have very thorough protection under intestate succession law. After all, they have a marital right to the income and property of the decedent. Children also have the right to inherit from an estate where there is no estate plan. What children inherit depends on whether the surviving spouse of the decedent is also their parent or only a stepparent.

If someone dies without a spouse or children, then their parents may receive the property from their estate. Other distant family members can inherit when there are no close relatives that the state can identify. If there are no surviving family members, the decedent’s property may eventually transfer to the state itself.

How estate planning can help

Most people would prefer to have more control over their estate than simply allocating a portion of their property to specific people. They may want a child to receive certain assets or to leave resources for friends, grandchildren and other loved ones. They may want to provide funding for charitable causes.

Any of those desires may warrant the creation of a will or a more thorough estate plan. People may want to consider how vulnerable they could be in a medical emergency, especially if they do not have a spouse. Neither parents nor children necessarily have the right to access someone’s medical records, make healthcare choices on their behalf or handle their finances without proper documents in place.

Estate planning can help someone control their legacy, support the people who matter to them and protect themselves in the event of a personal emergency. Adults who create estate plans and regularly update them as their situations change can feel more confident about the challenges they may face later in life.