Simple Will?

Some people require only a simple will and a very basic estate plan. The test is not how much money you have, but whether your circumstances are actually simple.

You may only need a simple Will if:

You want all of your assets to go to your spouse (married or common law) if they survive you, and to your children equally if your spouse has predeceased you; and,
You want your spouse to be the primary estate trustee; and
Your spouse is the parent of all of your children; and
You are not estranged from any of your children; and
None of the beneficiaries is disabled; and
You do not own any property outside Ontario; and
You do not own a business or shares in a private 0company; and
You are certain that all beneficiary designations on your registered accounts (TFSA, RRIF, RRSP) and life insurance are complete and up to date;
Your house and bank accounts are owned solely by you or jointly with your spouse (no joint ownership with a child or a person not your spouse).

A simple Will is not a good solution for you if any of the following applies:

You do not want your estate to go outright to your spouse (married or common law);
You do not want your spouse to have complete freedom to deal with the assets after you die;
You are excluding one or more of your children from sharing in your estate;
You have a blended family and want to make sure that your own children will share in your estate;
You want to choose an executor or guardian who does not live in Canada;
Someone you want to benefit is on social assistance, disability support (including ODSP), or is incapable (for any reason) of managing their finances well;
You want to have assets held in trust for any beneficiary for a number of years or for life;
You own a business;
You own assets outside Ontario;
You own a property that is designated Land Titles Conversion Qualified.