Your legacy when you have no heirs

When you have no kids, do you still need a will?

When my husband and I hit our 50s, we thought we had most of life figured out. Then someone asked us if we had a will. We do not have kids, so our first thought was, “Do we even need one?” The answer was yes, but that was only the beginning of the confusion.

At first, we considered LegalZoom. Then I found a blog by attorney Ryan Reiffert titled Reasons Not to Use LegalZoom, which included lines like “Hope your family is normalish” and “Customer service reps are not lawyers.” That was enough to make us nervous. Luckily, my husband’s company offered free legal services, so we took advantage of them. After a quick phone call that covered the basics like your name, your spouse, your end-of-life wishes, and who gets what, we thought we were set.

A move and a reality check

A few years later, we moved to Tennessee, which meant we needed to update our documents. This time, we met with an actual estate planning attorney. She flipped through our paperwork, laughed, and told us we might as well have used LegalZoom after all. Not exactly the confidence boost we hoped for.

Thankfully, she guided us through the proper process. Once we signed and notarized our new will, we assumed we were finished. We left everything to our parents and then to our siblings. But another question surfaced. Do we really want to give them everything when we are both gone? We have savings, retirement accounts, and a few family heirlooms like Mimi’s silver set and a diamond ring. Do we want our siblings to inherit our hard-earned money and all of our belongings? They might appreciate some of it, but do they really want to manage it all? Probably not.

Giving with purpose

That led us to consider donating to charity. According to LegalClarity.org, you can make a charitable bequest by naming a charity in your will. The process is straightforward. Identify the charity, research it, consult your attorney, include it in your will, and consider the tax implications.

For us, the choice was personal. My aunt and several friends have battled breast cancer, so we are considering leaving a portion of our estate to Susan G. Komen. Knowing that part of what we have built will support something meaningful feels right and our siblings still receive something. It gives purpose to planning for something no one really enjoys thinking about.

A plan that feels right

Creating a will without heirs might sound unusual, but it brought us a sense of peace. It is comforting to know that our legacy will support a cause that matters deeply to us. We may not have children to pass things to, but we can still leave something lasting behind.

No heirs, no problem. Just a plan with purpose.