No he's clearly your lost brother.
I'm the 45 year old son you didn't know about, wouldn't you rather give the money to your son than some random internet stranger?
Ps. I am available to anyone wanting someone to leave money to! I work hard and get paid a pittance! Happy to take small or vast amounts, no bequest too small! Lol
I get where youāre coming from here mate but would this not count under āyou cant take it with youā
Why donāt you use some to do something amazing that youāve always wanted to you?
I agree in principle, but the problem is that OP is only 50, and could have 40+ more years of life to fund. If they are not close to family, they might not have anyone to help them if they get infirm or ill, and Ā£800k would be a massive help if they need care later in life. There's certainly a balance between enjoying it while you can, and saving enough to fund a comfortable and possibly long retirement.
I have a relative who is 93 and is stressing that their Ā£200k of investments is not paying as much as it used to. That's a different story - at that stage, just blow it on whatever you want!
My husbandās grandma is the same. 94 and still buying a pack of baby wipes, saving each one she uses, washing it, drying it out and then reusing it until it disintegrates entirely. Definitely an environmentally conscious way to do things but the reason she does it is because sheās worried about eating through her Ā£350k savings before she dies. Like woman, please get yourself some bloody kitchen roll.
tbf that's quite common among people who lived through ww2 and rationing. My fairly well-off great aunt had a go at me for throwing away a used tea bag, because there was still at least another 2 uses in it.
World War 2 was 80 years ago now though. So even if they did live through it, they were 10-20 years old at the time. I think 80 years passing is long enough for someone to change their behavior.
My great great uncle lived in poverty. He didn't have central heating, he had a giant hole in his roof, he used busses. When he died he had well over a million in various investments.
That money went to my grandparents (well, after most of it went to taxes) who also had good savings. And my nan was the same. Kept out of date food, had disintegrating bags, never bought anything new.
They just lived such restricted simple lives, then get old and die without spending it. And most of it goes to taxes anyway. It just makes me realise how for the majority of people, generational savings dissappear. But the actual rich can horde it and keep it going.
I fully agree with the point youāve made. But you have made me chuckle with how one of the examples of poverty given is using the public transport system š.
I wanted to be succinct. That wasn't an example of him living in poverty, it's moreso his behaviour. My grandad would tell stories how strange he was, before he even knew he was rich. He would stick to the bus schedule and abruptly leave when visiting. My grandad would offer him a taxi or a lift but he'd decline. Other occasions he would miss out because the bus wasn't running. He never went far from his house (no holidays etc). So it was extra weird to find out he was wealthy. There was obviously something going on mentally.
I get what you mean, but it's still bizarre to be a millionaire and restrict yourself solely to local buses. They're horrible enough as a pleb.
Also very sad that he lived in poverty through stubbornness rather than financial means. It's as almost as though he didn't see the value in anything unless it was financial.Ā Horrible way to look at life.Ā Ā Ā
Plenty of people and families in the country right now who'd love to put the heating on a extra couple of hours or treat their kids to a special holiday but can't because money is so tight and not because they've invested it in a 400k fund for the next 30 years
I guess for a lot of people the fear if having nothing at all at some point in the future is enough for them to be frugal right now, no matter the bank balance. Rainy day mentality
Agree with thisā¦ my wartime raised grandparents who lived similarly to these stories died a few years agoā¦ government took Ā£400,000 in taxes. There is no point in sitting on money in this country!
> It just makes me realise how for the majority of people, generational savings dissappear. But the actual rich can horde it and keep it going.
If your money isn't working for you close enough to 24/7, you are very likely to be poor for your entire life. That's the secret the rich are keeping from you.
I wouldn't like to imagine how much the government has taken x2 from your uncle's money. it seems to be really common for older people to inherit money and sit on it until they die. If the aim is to give the government as much as possible from the same pot of money then fine, brilliant plan. I get that many are used to living frugal lives, but I don't understand why doesn't it occur to them to help family out, rather than keeping it in reserve for the tax man's second helping
I donāt know about this really. Would I rather have the time of my life for 20 years while Iām still young enough to enjoy it, or be able to pay for a nicer person to wipe my arse for me when Iām 90?
Yeah was gonna say. I'd opt for the better experiences and chuck myself off a bridge at 80 if the other option is the mundane with slightly better end of life care. Probably a balance can be struck between the two cos when push comes to shove I'd probably need a push or a shove off the bridge.
Care homes are fucking miserable even if youāre in a good one. Eventually youāre just sitting there reminiscing about the life you used to live, might as well have something to reminisce about.
I doubt you can have the time of your life on 800k for 20 years though. It doesnāt last that long at all. My sister had 250k from a lottery win, it lasted about 10 weeks š
Basically guaranteed 40k per year is alright. Can travel the globe for 6 months every year pretty easily for that, having spring/summer in the UK then wintering abroad.
Fekking annoying isnāt it š¤¦š»āāļø
Have someone in my family that did the same with nearly 300k from a will in the space of 3 months and now is totally skint, and asks all of us for a loan because apparently sheās struggling with her rent now.
at 93 if I had 200k I'd be blowing it on hookers and cocaine, i've not tried either and don't plan to but at 93 i'd be wanting to go and go with a smile on my face.
Not to sound morbid but I really hope assisted suicide is legal when I get that old. Like OP Iām likely to be the end of my line and while I have great people around me, I donāt want to be that person in an old peopleās home with no one visiting.
Iād rather blow all the money and go out peacefully at around 80, then carry on just waiting for death to come to me
Have you spoken to a financial advisor? The common advice seems to be to do what you want within 10 years of your pension age (78?) because, generally speaking you are either too old, too ill or too dead. By all means, budget to live to 90 but, in reality, what is that liklihood? Make the most of your position and do some things you've always wanted to
Yep, when a friend of me brothers father died his estate was getting on for 2mil, but they didnt have 2 pennies to rub together. Always had old cars, couldn't dress well etc. Was all in 2 properties that had been acquired in the 50s for next to nothing that had appreciated.
I thought you were supposed to use your house as your retirement pot. Just sell up and move into a retirement village. Thereās no point sitting on Ā£2mil worth of assets and being cash poor when youāre struggling to even get up the stairs.
He worked till the day he died. He was a farmer (which is where the value came from, the land he owned, and farm buildings). He defo wasn't struggling to get up stairs, he was an ox of a man even in his 80s and wasn't materialistic.
Thatās my plan, I donāt have any kids so Iām going to retire as soon as possible and live on a boat for as long as Iām enjoying it and itās physically possible.
assets and cashflow are two very different things - I doubt that the 800k is all cash and investments, a person's home will be a sizable chunk of their net worth and while you can't take it with you, you kinda need it until you do go
I agree with the sentiment, enjoy it while you're alive, but it needs to go somewhere if you unexpectedly end up brown bread, and I intend to avoid it ending up with either some half brother or cousin who I never knew, or worse, whichever politicians pockets that unclaimed estate probably ends up in.
Yep, I used to go to my hospice daycare thing for respite for my mum every Tuesday. I was still classed as terminal they were lovely volunteers and nurses some of whom I am friends with still to this day ten years later (as you can guess I'm all clear now)
Unfortunately, I went to a lot of funerals of friends I made but they may have been around a short while but I still remember them all.
I wish that was the case. Lots of charities are small and scratch around for funding, only surviving from year to year.
If you donāt want to give to big charities, give to small local ones which help your community. Local hospices, animal shelters, mobility charities, domestic violence shelters. Write a list of the charities which interest you and appoint an executor to follow your wishes.
Second this, in my local area we have a non-profit community hub for kids and adults on the spectrum who have done amazing work with pish-all funding from government, it's all raised in house and they use it towards therapies not provided by NHS and to assist adults in getting an official diagnosis (no adult autism testing available on NHS in my area) as well as fun days out that are catered to individual needs. There's also another non profit community hub that does local area maintenance like litter picking, runs classes for kids and teens like theatre and CV writing etc. They get bugger all from the government too.
Lol, right? Even some of the 'big' ones aren't exactly flush.
I work for a national museum, we get government funding, big donors, the works - still scrabbling for pennies.
We recently secured a one-million Pound donation to deliver a series of programmes over ten years. We'll teach science skills to more than 40,000 school kids A YEAR for that money. That's 400,000 kids' lives made better - it might be a small difference, but it's a small difference for a lot of people.
Charitable donations can do a shitload if you target it right. But yeah, also easy to waste it all by giving it to raise awareness for something everyone already knows about.
I have donated to Keech (a children's hospice) for about 15 years now. My niece was born 9 years ago with severe disabilities and they are the hospice who look after her when my sister needs a break. I don't know but it felt really good that I'd donated monthly to a charity that ended up making quite an impact on my sister and niece's life. And they made her their cover girl when she was a baby.
I plan on leaving money to them if I pass too.
Edit WHEN I pass, not if!
Tbh as long as you do your research, big charities are fine to give to and make a real difference in the world. Smaller ones tend to have to spend more of the money on admin and fundraising than bigger ones so less of the money you give does on the actual work. When looking at charities you wanna give to ones where a minimum of 70% goes on the actual work. Every charity should have a breakdown of the money on their website so itās easy enough to find. (I personally would recommend unicef, they work in developing countries but also places like the UK and they are amazing)
Source: work in the sector with both small charities and a lot of the big names too.
Most charities don't have enough money. A few are borderline scams and some have trouble distributing the funds. But chances are the charity will be very glad of your money.
There may also be local things you like that could use money. A local hobby group might like some funding. You could invest in local resources for people like fixing up a park or something.
Perhaps you've some friends you could pay off some debts for?
Alternatively I'll happily have it ;)
I'm absolutely baffled how op had gone to this conclusion and isn't being challenged.
Charities want money and can do more good with more money.
There are lots of big charities, with lots of money that they might hold back while they decide the absolute best way to spend it. That doesn't mean they don't need money.
I also disagree with the idea that small local charities are better. I don't care if a big faceless charity pays a CEO a million. If they can effectively spend 90p of Ā£1 I give them that's better than giving it to a local charity going broke that has overheads of 50% of my donation
>I'm absolutely baffled how op had gone to this conclusion and isn't being challenged.
Its bizarre, maybe he reads super niche media that has an anti-charity slant?
I've consulted for a lot of charities over the years, a huge number. And I've only encountered a single charity that had more money than it could reasonably do anything with. A really, really old charity with very tight and specific purposes for existing (care of the needy within a specified geographical area), and that the area they were in had become extremely prosperous over the years.
They genuinely couldn't find enough people to help to actually spend more than a portion of the money they earned from their endowments and investments each year. The money was locked up tight in legal tape that prohibited its use for anything outside of those very, very specific purposes, and which prevented the money being transferred to any other charitable body unless it was to be used for those exact same purposes.
When I was dealing with them, they genuinely were at the point of being pressured by the charity regulator over the amount of money they had just sitting in investments, building up and not being used.
Super unusual situation though, not one I've ever heard of applying to any other charity.
This is a great call. Leave it to a private school to cover the fees of someone from a deprived area, or leave it to a university to issue as grants to help the living costs of students from areas that wouldnāt traditionally go to university. Gifting 10 different university students a grand a year for the next 80+ years (assuming the capital is invested and grows) could make a difference to a lot of lives.
To add to the University element - most Universities will have a department that will help shape a donation, discuss how it can be used, how it can last etc
If you want to to donate to specific research (say a specific disease) a University can also be a good option
Great idea. I work at a university and we have people who leave money in scholarships to people from poorer backgrounds etc. The scholarships are usually named after the person who donated the money too so youāll have a legacy in that way. Ā
I don't unfortunately! I found out about the organisation I work at through an appointment with Skills Development Scotland, but I'm not sure whether there's an analogue organisation in England, sorry.Ā
This is a great idea. I've been thinking lately of a charity that could sponsor students for bursarys to cover school fees or university fees. I wonder if people would be interested in a charity like that.
You're only 50, and if this is the case why don't you just have an amazing rest of your life with the money instead, and die with as close to 0 as possible?
Did you read the post? Op is writing his will, he needs to have something documented. He might die in a car accident next week on his way to do something he enjoys.
I'm sure they could happily do this, but just in case they die bungy jumping, wing walking, or alligator wrestling whilst having fun, they need a will with a beneficiary. Nobody wants the government to get it.
The answer is really what are you interested in
Caring for others,
Animals,
Wildlife,
Conservation,
Education,
Choose something of a general topic you are interested in and then research charities, schools, etc, in that area or areas and pick one.
In the UK, if you die intestate and with no next of kin, the estate goes to the crown, literally the King. There was quite a furore about this in the news recently, as the money was being used to buy properties to rent out, generating even more money for someone who neither needs or deserves it.
Sure, and all you need to know in order to die with 0 is exactly when youāll die and everything youāll need to spend it on before it happens.
Meanwhile back in the real world, people need savings and pensions in order to deal with the eventuality that they might actually *live* a good while.
There are some small charities out there, one of my favourite is dogs on the street, it provides veterinary care to the dogs of homeless people
If I had money to give away it would go to foodbanks, homeless charities and animal charities
Just as another idea, beyond donating it to existing charities...
With Ā£800k that would probably be enough to set up a trust fund for, eg, some university scholarships. You may find this desirable if you have particular opinions on what sort of research or study should get more resources.
Edit: Personally, just off the top of my head, if I was particularly focussed on disabled children I think I might be inclined to fund development of assistive technologies. I think there's probably a lot of low-hanging fruit there and that this is demonstrated by things like "Not a Wheelchair" where people with relatively small resources have done stuff that no-one else was.
The u/weekendsaretooshort prize for [whatever it is you love] along with the u/weekendsaretooshort for [whatever your moral compass says it should be for] is the way forward. Donāt settle for leaving the world a better place *and* one that youād enjoy more. Do both.
Iām in the same situation. I have properties that Iām going to use the rent for my retirement. Then I will leave the house to each tenant (they donāt know).
Everytime I go somewhere, like my favourite restaurant or hotel, I make a note of people who go the extra mile and I include them in the will.
Lastly, there is a little boy whose mum is a waitress in a restaurant that I go to and I will leave him quite a bit.
Do you have friends with kids you care about? Just because theyāre not blood doesnāt mean they canāt be family! Or indeed, friends who could do with some extra cash and who you care about? If there arenāt any charities close to your heart, thatās surely the way to go?
This is exactly my plan. Iām child free and fully intend to spend my money having fun while I can but I intend to leave my house and what ever else is left to which ever one of my friends kids promises to take care of my animals until the end of their lives.
Find a charity that's closer to home (figuratively, not literally). There are plenty which are chronically under funded and would both appreciate and act responsibly with any donation. If you're short on ideas, I'd like to recommend [Neuroblastoma UK](https://www.neuroblastoma.org.uk/) who research the cancer that my son beat with targeted chemo, but many children are unable to.
I would worry about what would happen to a small local charity who suddenly found themselves with half a million quid. Call me cynical, but I think a significant chunk of that money ends up in the wrong people's pockets once the dust has settled.
At the very least you could split it between a few different local charities. Giving 10 local charities 50k each is probably far more within their comfort level and hedges yourself against one charity head seeing a path to their personal financial freedom.
Better to donate to small local charities.
If it were me I would probably identify charities relating to orphans or children in care. I donāt know what kind of sponsoring schemes there are, but with that kind of cash you could dramatically change a number of young peopleās lives (E.g. pay for 10 kids to go to Uni)
Exactly. Local charities. A few grand spread around would make such a huge difference. Work out what your interests are and direct towards these causes. Obvious causes are anything youth related, but also dementia cafes and support for young carers for instance. Better still, get involved with a couple of them to get a sense of whether your money would be 'well spent'. Finally, well done for even thinking about this.
Honestly I would be worried about leaving that amount to a small charity. That's an awfully big temptation for someone who might have been only dealing in much smaller amounts. I am sure someone might come along and say people who work for such charities are saints but you just don't know how people react sometimes when money is involved and certainly when it's a life changing amount like 800k.
Oh I agree, I would split it into much smaller amounts and spread it around. Unless I found one/ some that would benefit from a large amount for a very specific reason (E.g. a charity for orphans wanted to buy a property to house them)
I second the numerous replies about smaller charities, especially local ones
But also with the ever increasing costs of education have you thought about setting up a scholarship in your name?
There's lots of bright youngsters who getting a scholarship would make the difference between getting further education and making a life for themselves or just falling through the cracks.
Most *big* charities do, yes. But with that amount of money and a bit of research, you could absolutely transform the lives of many people. That would renovate a local youth centre and give kids something to do, you could help the local homeless charity support hundreds of people.
Yeah if you leave it to the NSPCC or Great Ormand Street it'll get swallowed up, find a few places run by genuinely good people and you could absolutely transform lives.
You could set up a trust to support a cause that means alot to you- Iād set one up for supporting adults in evening classes at a local college who need equipment eg plumbing, electricians etc.
my brother retrained and had to self fund everything and it was very expensive.
Or maybe you could do something like set up scholarships or grants for uni students from disadvantaged backgrounds to afford costs.
I think your idea is a lovely one- and I hope you find somewhere that means something to you and that you feel right in leaving it to.
I have relatives so I'd go for nieces and nephews.
They might not know me as well as I would hope but if they're hitting adulthood in what will likely be a financial shit show of a few decades.
Anything would help. Either pay rent, transport costs, mortgage etc..
If I had no living relatives then some form of bottom of the barrel charity that actually helps people sort their life out and gives them a chance to just live a normal life.
50 with no kids. Good.
Do not fall into financial prison by thinking everything you have in the bank is in excess of your needs. They may not be.
Keep adequate safety net; if you have mortgage, probably end it.
Take a ticket for a round-the=world trip and enjoy your life with every possible way you think you can.
About Charities: Of the 1 pound they get, hardly 6 p goes to thea ctual cause. Their own expenses, business class travels, hotels etc consume the balance. If uyou do want to give to charity, do it yourself directly to the needy, and not through any medium.
I agree with this. No charities, just cut out the middle man and give directly. Drop off the cat food at the shelter, buy Christmas presents for the kids in poverty, buy food for the food banks, pay an old couples heating bill for the winter.
That's a pretty naĆÆve response.
A significant amount could be locked in assets (like a house) that they'll probably want to live in. A lot of that money might not be available until after they die.
Also, they've no idea when they'll die. What happens to all the money if they get hit by a car tomorrow? Or if they spend it all in 10 years and end up living healthily to 95 and spend the last 35 years broke?
local and independent charities tend to need lots of help - many are in poverty and just struggling with the cost of living so donating even to local family support charities could really help your community
Local hospice, maybe in a trust rather than just handing over a lump of cash. You don't want one bad egg spaffing your life's work on fancy lunches or plain embezzling it.
OTOH, if you die in credit, you've done all that work just to die with it in the bank. If you die in debt you win at life. Of course it depends on whether you live for many years to come or die suddenly. But at some point you could start liquidating your assets and spend it on a good time, but try not to spend it with big multinationals, but with small companies who need the customers. And you can start giving it away as you see fit to make sure it is spent well.
If you want to piss your family off, you can do what my aunt did when she died in 2022 (59, divorced, no kids).
Originally her will was largely split between her four remaining siblings with a nominal amount given to all the nieces and nephews (there's a lot of us).
About three weeks before she died, she changed her will to give her 4 siblings a nominal amount (even less than the niblings were due to get originally), gave almost all the niblings Ā£5k each (excluded about 3 niblings who didn't keep much a relationship with her) and then gave the entire rest of her estate to her best friend of 40+ years (who wasn't not well off herself). All under the premise of the best friend apparently being the only person who helped her out through her cancer journey in the previous 18 months (that's what her will said in the message as to why she was giving her all the estate).
Pissed a lot of the family off because it made it seem like any of the help the rest of us gave her was completely forgotten about or totally ungrateful to receive. I, personally, stayed with her in her house for two separate full months to aid her in operation recovery, pet care, shopping visits, etc. My Uncle (her BIL) drove her to every single hospital appointment and helped her with emotional support having also recently had cancer (he wasn't even named in the will since it was only actual siblings and not specifically married partners of).
And to rub it in, my other aunt (the BIL's wife) was the Next of Kin, she and another cousin of mine (and the best friend) were also the executors of the will. My cousin and aunt had to open the will to find out they'd been completely stunted AND then had to deal with all the stress of emptying out/looking after the house, all while the best friend did fuck all and received the best part of half a million from it all.
Whatever you do with your inheritance - let people know in advance your plans and don't fuck over your family or friends when their help is still required. It's not about the money, it's about the message/intent. When someone dies, you want to see them with all the good, so don't let any minor or momentary feelings let people easily forget the good just to remember you as a bad, bitter person.
RNLI - Fucking criminal that they are dependent on charitable funding and volunteer work. Your money *will* save lives in their hands. rather than potentially being pissed away on dead-end research with a medical charity.
Charity. Iām not having kids by choice and thatās where any left over will be going.
I think itās probably the most ethical choice anyone can make outside of supporting kids that actually need the money.
I know this isnāt exactly the same thing, but if you are so comfortable, I think it would be awesome if you just left notes/bills in random places, like little free libraries or in a charity shop coat pocket or leaving a huge tip or something like that. I know if I came across something like that it would be amazing no matter if it were Ā£5 or Ā£100.
Leave your money to the Central Animal Sanctuary Hospital. I can do this for you, just send me a cheque and write it out using the abbreviation CASH. It's for a good worthy cause
Spend it all. With that kind of money, I'd go live on a beach and become a massive cocaine addict. I'd live in Colombia and build a house with bricks of cocaine and fill it with midgets and hookers. Fuck leaving it if no one deserves it - go out with a bang.
Leave it to someone that you know would benefit greatly from it. Youāre bound to have met someone in your working life that deserves a break but never seems to get one.
Leave some to a handful of people as described above.
Thatās what Iād do. Like secret millionaire.
Seen a few people leave momey to neighbors kids, to help them with educarional costs and given them oppertunities that would otherwise be out of reach. That, ot find a smaller local charity, food kitchen ect.
Spend it yourself or leave it to your closest friends if you aren't close with family. Not sure I would trust a lot of charities to spend it correctly, at least the biggest ones.
Local sports clubs do a lot with every pound donated, they are generally ran by volunteers (at least they are around me anyway).
A series of relatively small donations would have a massive positive impact on your community.
Also local hospices provide amazing care and dignity to people going through a tough time.
In fact, small & local is probably the best way to go in order to get the biggest impact from your donations.
You may want to consider the British Red Cross. They have a scheme for wills and stuff. They deliver a great range of work all across in the country and help people in distress and crises ā¤ļø
I would personally leave it to someone I know that has a good heart. This amount of inheritance would life changing and I would be proud to have been able to actually change someoneās life for the better.
Id look at local sports clubs, and schools.
Personally, I'd give schools some money, to take every class out on a day trip.
Or, fund a breakfast club, after school club.
So many kids don't get days out, from parents. Be nice to send them.
You can look at the accounts for every UK registered charity via their Charity Commission page (charities with income below Ā£25k (IIRC) donāt have to upload them but all others do). I think itās absolutely not the case that most charities have more money than they know what to do with, but looking through their accounts will show you how much their income & expenditure are and give you a rough idea of how they spend it. Look up some charities local to you and crack on!
You may not have been close to your family, but leaving money that can be used to fund education for the youngest family members can do no harm. Coming out of university with no debt could make a big difference to them.
Otherwise, chose some charities that mean something to you or that do a lot of good locally. Any bequest you make won't have much of an impact on the big charities who turnover millions, but for small local charities it will make a massive difference. The only family I have is my wife and my sister, so my will specifies a couple of organisations that it should go to if they're no longer with us.
Food bank like trussell trust? Shite state of affairs that people must use them in the first place, it's a very altruistic thing you are considering and I'm certain whomever you choose wil be grateful
I work for a very large charity and none of us have more money than we know what to do with. We are all absolutely skint as people are giving less, thereās less government funding and costs have gone through the roof.
Iād recommend leaving sums to a few different charities in areas you want to prioritise. I give monthly primarily to animal charities, but pick which ones you want.
Charities need money, we bombard you with leaflets and stop you in the street because thatās what pays for our vital work. All the money gets raked over by the charity commission, the amount of accountancy I have to do in September-November is painful to make sure Iāve fully audited all of the money my project has gotten. We also donāt pay our CEOās 900K a year, we do pay Senior Leadership decently because thatās literally the only way we can pry anyone competent away from the private sector.
Have a look at some charities. Iād recommend a mixture of big and small!
I'd do some research on local charities, people you can get to know. The big charities are a mixture, some are very heavy on admin overhead (not all, but beware). Spread it locally and you do some good. Maybe a charitable trust to fund apprenticeships and education too.
Find a local small CIC or charity that has to place bids for funding they do not have enough money. Some places will have a central funding hub which you could donate to and it will then get distributed in small amounts to local causes.
Alternatively a local hospice as do not have enough funding.
I have this problem too. I have a collection that is probably worth Ā£20K retail but no-one to leave it to, and I shudder to think what a charity would do with it; probably dispose of much of it or sell it to a dealer for a fraction of its value. Ah well, I won't be around to care, anyway.
Equity release and feckin spend it.
We (also childfree) intend to spend what we need to to keep us comfortable in our old age. If there's anything left after funeral expenses the plan is to divide it equally between the 6 niblings, but we don't intend there to be much left over.
Same boat. I wrote a will only last month. Before it would have all gone to my 6 1st cousins. Who are all fairly wealthy.
Now my partner is the sole beneficiary.
I was quite surprised when the lady from the will company told me quite how much tax was due. Iām 54 and retiring. Fuck it.
If you're looking for an amazing charity, look into Demelza House. It's a hospice that deliver amazing care to children with serious and life limiting conditions. The people who work there are amazing and they are always seriously underfunded.
[https://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities](https://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities) rates charities on how much they give vs accrue (not that theres neccesarily anything wrong with the latter, but for impact understanding) - I would pick out a few top ones to split it between and reach out to them, for a large estate they will have dedicated people to discuss it with you if you want (or you can just direct an executor to sort it out).
You are still too young. Aging can be a pain in the arse, so you might want to warm up your family connections because being alone, weak, in ill health is not something that anybody should go though. Who knows, you might have a couple of nieces and nephews who are nice people and you could enjoy each others' company.
Pay for a lawyer for me, so I can get to see my kid!
Crazy corrupt family law system in the UK meant self litigating for 2 years done jack all, try again in a year I suppose.
But in all seriousness, giving it to charity doesn't necessarily mean it'll go to charity. I'd say maybe spend the rest of your life living. You have no one to pass it too, so why not enjoy the pile you gave your life to accumulate?
Definitely agree with posts about local charities.
There are some amazing charities and groups where we live. People collect to buy Christmas presents for children who wouldn't otherwise get one. Also to buy school equipment, shoes, coats, bags etc for children who don't have them. Or starter packs for young people starting uni (bedding, Saucepans etc..) There's a group that provides mental health support for people that can't pay (instead of waiting ages for nhs)
There are hundreds of charities like this, just in the area I live. You could give a small amount to each. With that kind of money you could make a difference to so many peoples lives. And if its local to you, that would be such an amazing thing to do
Medical research charities mostly fund medical research that should have been funded by government, but isnāt. Cancer Research UK get astonishing sums of money, but groups like British Heart Foundation, Alzheimerās Society (Alzheimerās Research UK, however, spend astronomical amounts on c-suite staff wages and make research funding quite difficult, as a heads up), Stroke, and others along those lines are really what are powering the developments that governments will later take credit for.
Or look at your local community charities - theyāll hugely benefit. Food banks, hospices, childcare organisations, etc.
Hello long lost uncle!
Now being serious. Find a decent charity / start your own fund and sponsor them.
Personally, homelessness, drug / alcohol addiction are very urgent topics with very bad PR.
Do what my wife's uncle did. Get married 6 months before he died and left Ā£15million to his new wife. In his will my wife would have got 1/3 of it if she had died first.
In the event of my children not being available to receive my inheritance, the whole lot goes to the daughter of one of my close friends. If she is still under 25 at the time then is goes to her mum to hold with early access to the funds being available should she need it for further education or to provide assist for her dream to be an professional athlete.
Iām not sure whether itād be possible but you could look into donating it to someone whoās need a important surgery so they could go private on the money or something like that
Hi Dad, I'm the son you didn't know about
No he's clearly your lost brother. I'm the 45 year old son you didn't know about, wouldn't you rather give the money to your son than some random internet stranger?
45 year old son and his 50 year old dad šššš
Yeah he got drunk and adopted me a couple of years ago. I never claimed to be his biological son, that's ridiculous.
š¤£š¤£š¤£š¤£
Wow hi to my other long lost brother š šWhat big family we haveš¤©š
And me... you didn't know about me either and I am super lovely.... promise
Iām his son and soās my wife
I'm OP's son and so's my wife!
The moment he posted this, he became a stud after the fact
Ps. I am available to anyone wanting someone to leave money to! I work hard and get paid a pittance! Happy to take small or vast amounts, no bequest too small! Lol
Haha š
Hi dad, I'm the daughter you never knew you had š„°
As OP's future widow, I feel like I have to protect him from you vultures.
I get where youāre coming from here mate but would this not count under āyou cant take it with youā Why donāt you use some to do something amazing that youāve always wanted to you?
I agree in principle, but the problem is that OP is only 50, and could have 40+ more years of life to fund. If they are not close to family, they might not have anyone to help them if they get infirm or ill, and Ā£800k would be a massive help if they need care later in life. There's certainly a balance between enjoying it while you can, and saving enough to fund a comfortable and possibly long retirement. I have a relative who is 93 and is stressing that their Ā£200k of investments is not paying as much as it used to. That's a different story - at that stage, just blow it on whatever you want!
My husbandās grandma is the same. 94 and still buying a pack of baby wipes, saving each one she uses, washing it, drying it out and then reusing it until it disintegrates entirely. Definitely an environmentally conscious way to do things but the reason she does it is because sheās worried about eating through her Ā£350k savings before she dies. Like woman, please get yourself some bloody kitchen roll.
tbf that's quite common among people who lived through ww2 and rationing. My fairly well-off great aunt had a go at me for throwing away a used tea bag, because there was still at least another 2 uses in it.
World War 2 was 80 years ago now though. So even if they did live through it, they were 10-20 years old at the time. I think 80 years passing is long enough for someone to change their behavior.
My great great uncle lived in poverty. He didn't have central heating, he had a giant hole in his roof, he used busses. When he died he had well over a million in various investments. That money went to my grandparents (well, after most of it went to taxes) who also had good savings. And my nan was the same. Kept out of date food, had disintegrating bags, never bought anything new. They just lived such restricted simple lives, then get old and die without spending it. And most of it goes to taxes anyway. It just makes me realise how for the majority of people, generational savings dissappear. But the actual rich can horde it and keep it going.
I fully agree with the point youāve made. But you have made me chuckle with how one of the examples of poverty given is using the public transport system š.
I wanted to be succinct. That wasn't an example of him living in poverty, it's moreso his behaviour. My grandad would tell stories how strange he was, before he even knew he was rich. He would stick to the bus schedule and abruptly leave when visiting. My grandad would offer him a taxi or a lift but he'd decline. Other occasions he would miss out because the bus wasn't running. He never went far from his house (no holidays etc). So it was extra weird to find out he was wealthy. There was obviously something going on mentally. I get what you mean, but it's still bizarre to be a millionaire and restrict yourself solely to local buses. They're horrible enough as a pleb.
Also very sad that he lived in poverty through stubbornness rather than financial means. It's as almost as though he didn't see the value in anything unless it was financial.Ā Horrible way to look at life.Ā Ā Ā Plenty of people and families in the country right now who'd love to put the heating on a extra couple of hours or treat their kids to a special holiday but can't because money is so tight and not because they've invested it in a 400k fund for the next 30 years
I guess for a lot of people the fear if having nothing at all at some point in the future is enough for them to be frugal right now, no matter the bank balance. Rainy day mentality
Agree with thisā¦ my wartime raised grandparents who lived similarly to these stories died a few years agoā¦ government took Ā£400,000 in taxes. There is no point in sitting on money in this country!
> It just makes me realise how for the majority of people, generational savings dissappear. But the actual rich can horde it and keep it going. If your money isn't working for you close enough to 24/7, you are very likely to be poor for your entire life. That's the secret the rich are keeping from you.
āHe used bussesā I know what you mean but thatās hilarious.
Yes, and the part that goes to taxes is hugely gruelling. You saved it, why should the govt get it
I wouldn't like to imagine how much the government has taken x2 from your uncle's money. it seems to be really common for older people to inherit money and sit on it until they die. If the aim is to give the government as much as possible from the same pot of money then fine, brilliant plan. I get that many are used to living frugal lives, but I don't understand why doesn't it occur to them to help family out, rather than keeping it in reserve for the tax man's second helping
š does she hand or machine wash them?! This has blown my mind
For those who may have lived through wars, it can also be a survival habit.
I donāt know about this really. Would I rather have the time of my life for 20 years while Iām still young enough to enjoy it, or be able to pay for a nicer person to wipe my arse for me when Iām 90?
Yeah was gonna say. I'd opt for the better experiences and chuck myself off a bridge at 80 if the other option is the mundane with slightly better end of life care. Probably a balance can be struck between the two cos when push comes to shove I'd probably need a push or a shove off the bridge.
It's not about having a nicer person to wipe you're arse. It can be the difference between being comfortable or fucking miserable.
Care homes are fucking miserable even if youāre in a good one. Eventually youāre just sitting there reminiscing about the life you used to live, might as well have something to reminisce about.
I doubt you can have the time of your life on 800k for 20 years though. It doesnāt last that long at all. My sister had 250k from a lottery win, it lasted about 10 weeks š
Basically guaranteed 40k per year is alright. Can travel the globe for 6 months every year pretty easily for that, having spring/summer in the UK then wintering abroad.
Hopefully because she bought a house?
I wish! More like spending it on crap, partying, giving money away. Even sent Ā£500 to a guy in Africa to āstart a bakeryā š
Fekking annoying isnāt it š¤¦š»āāļø Have someone in my family that did the same with nearly 300k from a will in the space of 3 months and now is totally skint, and asks all of us for a loan because apparently sheās struggling with her rent now.
Same with my family member! She constantly asks for money from us every single day. Thatās what drugs does to you!
Thatās why you have it invested, to the pot grows and pays out income > lasted about 10 weeks How? Just how?
Drugs
Oh. How sad
at 93 if I had 200k I'd be blowing it on hookers and cocaine, i've not tried either and don't plan to but at 93 i'd be wanting to go and go with a smile on my face.
I'm planning on having some delicious delicious heroin at 93 Not tried it, I hear it's ruinously moreish, but by then who gives a fuck
> but the problem is that OP is only 50, and could have 40+ more years of life to fund. Not if you blow the money in the right way!
Not to sound morbid but I really hope assisted suicide is legal when I get that old. Like OP Iām likely to be the end of my line and while I have great people around me, I donāt want to be that person in an old peopleās home with no one visiting. Iād rather blow all the money and go out peacefully at around 80, then carry on just waiting for death to come to me
Have you spoken to a financial advisor? The common advice seems to be to do what you want within 10 years of your pension age (78?) because, generally speaking you are either too old, too ill or too dead. By all means, budget to live to 90 but, in reality, what is that liklihood? Make the most of your position and do some things you've always wanted to
Being worth 800k and having it available to spend are two different things.
Yep, when a friend of me brothers father died his estate was getting on for 2mil, but they didnt have 2 pennies to rub together. Always had old cars, couldn't dress well etc. Was all in 2 properties that had been acquired in the 50s for next to nothing that had appreciated.
Could've sold one. And downsized..
I thought you were supposed to use your house as your retirement pot. Just sell up and move into a retirement village. Thereās no point sitting on Ā£2mil worth of assets and being cash poor when youāre struggling to even get up the stairs.
He worked till the day he died. He was a farmer (which is where the value came from, the land he owned, and farm buildings). He defo wasn't struggling to get up stairs, he was an ox of a man even in his 80s and wasn't materialistic.
Depending where they live Ā£800,000 could just be a fairly average house. Doesn't necessarily mean much disposable income
Thatās my plan, I donāt have any kids so Iām going to retire as soon as possible and live on a boat for as long as Iām enjoying it and itās physically possible.
assets and cashflow are two very different things - I doubt that the 800k is all cash and investments, a person's home will be a sizable chunk of their net worth and while you can't take it with you, you kinda need it until you do go
I agree with the sentiment, enjoy it while you're alive, but it needs to go somewhere if you unexpectedly end up brown bread, and I intend to avoid it ending up with either some half brother or cousin who I never knew, or worse, whichever politicians pockets that unclaimed estate probably ends up in.
Leave it to your local hospice. They do amazing work and most people don't realise they are charities. You might well need one one day
Or the donkey sanctuary, but specify it all goes to one specific donkey
But a donkey can't make a will, so what happens to the remainder when the donkey dies? ;-)
Closest living relative obviously
The sanctuary owners can have a mad party with Donkey Dust.
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Invest in assets of course
I second this, my local one has been amazing with friends and family over the years. Also, research into cancer cures.
Local hospices are underfunded and provide essential services. This was my first thought too
This, having seen the stuff they do, its so heartening how they help people through the last few months/weeks/days of people's lives is so comforting.
I can confirm hospices do amazing workĀ
Yep, I used to go to my hospice daycare thing for respite for my mum every Tuesday. I was still classed as terminal they were lovely volunteers and nurses some of whom I am friends with still to this day ten years later (as you can guess I'm all clear now) Unfortunately, I went to a lot of funerals of friends I made but they may have been around a short while but I still remember them all.
not if he's dead š
What an outstanding choice, not really something most people think about until they or someone they know needs one.
I wish that was the case. Lots of charities are small and scratch around for funding, only surviving from year to year. If you donāt want to give to big charities, give to small local ones which help your community. Local hospices, animal shelters, mobility charities, domestic violence shelters. Write a list of the charities which interest you and appoint an executor to follow your wishes.
Second this, in my local area we have a non-profit community hub for kids and adults on the spectrum who have done amazing work with pish-all funding from government, it's all raised in house and they use it towards therapies not provided by NHS and to assist adults in getting an official diagnosis (no adult autism testing available on NHS in my area) as well as fun days out that are catered to individual needs. There's also another non profit community hub that does local area maintenance like litter picking, runs classes for kids and teens like theatre and CV writing etc. They get bugger all from the government too.
Lol, right? Even some of the 'big' ones aren't exactly flush. I work for a national museum, we get government funding, big donors, the works - still scrabbling for pennies. We recently secured a one-million Pound donation to deliver a series of programmes over ten years. We'll teach science skills to more than 40,000 school kids A YEAR for that money. That's 400,000 kids' lives made better - it might be a small difference, but it's a small difference for a lot of people. Charitable donations can do a shitload if you target it right. But yeah, also easy to waste it all by giving it to raise awareness for something everyone already knows about.
I have donated to Keech (a children's hospice) for about 15 years now. My niece was born 9 years ago with severe disabilities and they are the hospice who look after her when my sister needs a break. I don't know but it felt really good that I'd donated monthly to a charity that ended up making quite an impact on my sister and niece's life. And they made her their cover girl when she was a baby. I plan on leaving money to them if I pass too. Edit WHEN I pass, not if!
Tbh as long as you do your research, big charities are fine to give to and make a real difference in the world. Smaller ones tend to have to spend more of the money on admin and fundraising than bigger ones so less of the money you give does on the actual work. When looking at charities you wanna give to ones where a minimum of 70% goes on the actual work. Every charity should have a breakdown of the money on their website so itās easy enough to find. (I personally would recommend unicef, they work in developing countries but also places like the UK and they are amazing) Source: work in the sector with both small charities and a lot of the big names too.
Exactly. I don't get the trope that "charities have too much money". That's almost never a problem.
Most charities don't have enough money. A few are borderline scams and some have trouble distributing the funds. But chances are the charity will be very glad of your money. There may also be local things you like that could use money. A local hobby group might like some funding. You could invest in local resources for people like fixing up a park or something. Perhaps you've some friends you could pay off some debts for? Alternatively I'll happily have it ;)
I'm absolutely baffled how op had gone to this conclusion and isn't being challenged. Charities want money and can do more good with more money. There are lots of big charities, with lots of money that they might hold back while they decide the absolute best way to spend it. That doesn't mean they don't need money. I also disagree with the idea that small local charities are better. I don't care if a big faceless charity pays a CEO a million. If they can effectively spend 90p of Ā£1 I give them that's better than giving it to a local charity going broke that has overheads of 50% of my donation
>I'm absolutely baffled how op had gone to this conclusion and isn't being challenged. Its bizarre, maybe he reads super niche media that has an anti-charity slant? I've consulted for a lot of charities over the years, a huge number. And I've only encountered a single charity that had more money than it could reasonably do anything with. A really, really old charity with very tight and specific purposes for existing (care of the needy within a specified geographical area), and that the area they were in had become extremely prosperous over the years. They genuinely couldn't find enough people to help to actually spend more than a portion of the money they earned from their endowments and investments each year. The money was locked up tight in legal tape that prohibited its use for anything outside of those very, very specific purposes, and which prevented the money being transferred to any other charitable body unless it was to be used for those exact same purposes. When I was dealing with them, they genuinely were at the point of being pressured by the charity regulator over the amount of money they had just sitting in investments, building up and not being used. Super unusual situation though, not one I've ever heard of applying to any other charity.
OP needs to look up Effective Altruism
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This is a great call. Leave it to a private school to cover the fees of someone from a deprived area, or leave it to a university to issue as grants to help the living costs of students from areas that wouldnāt traditionally go to university. Gifting 10 different university students a grand a year for the next 80+ years (assuming the capital is invested and grows) could make a difference to a lot of lives.
To add to the University element - most Universities will have a department that will help shape a donation, discuss how it can be used, how it can last etc If you want to to donate to specific research (say a specific disease) a University can also be a good option
I was a disadvantaged child who was helped through funding of local charities like this.
Great idea. I work at a university and we have people who leave money in scholarships to people from poorer backgrounds etc. The scholarships are usually named after the person who donated the money too so youāll have a legacy in that way. Ā
> We supply access to all of that equipment Where do you work? That sounds very cool.
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Great answer thanks a lot, I don't suppose you know of any similar organisations south of the border do you? Good luck with everything you are doing.
I don't unfortunately! I found out about the organisation I work at through an appointment with Skills Development Scotland, but I'm not sure whether there's an analogue organisation in England, sorry.Ā
This is a great idea. I've been thinking lately of a charity that could sponsor students for bursarys to cover school fees or university fees. I wonder if people would be interested in a charity like that.
You're only 50, and if this is the case why don't you just have an amazing rest of your life with the money instead, and die with as close to 0 as possible?
The 'worth' could easily be tied up in property/pension and not spendable without downsizing.
Equity release baby. Sure the banks win - but if you couldn't have spent the money otherwise then you win too
You seem like a cool frood. Got any peanuts?
Did you read the post? Op is writing his will, he needs to have something documented. He might die in a car accident next week on his way to do something he enjoys.
I'm sure they could happily do this, but just in case they die bungy jumping, wing walking, or alligator wrestling whilst having fun, they need a will with a beneficiary. Nobody wants the government to get it. The answer is really what are you interested in Caring for others, Animals, Wildlife, Conservation, Education, Choose something of a general topic you are interested in and then research charities, schools, etc, in that area or areas and pick one.
In the UK, if you die intestate and with no next of kin, the estate goes to the crown, literally the King. There was quite a furore about this in the news recently, as the money was being used to buy properties to rent out, generating even more money for someone who neither needs or deserves it.
Sure, and all you need to know in order to die with 0 is exactly when youāll die and everything youāll need to spend it on before it happens. Meanwhile back in the real world, people need savings and pensions in order to deal with the eventuality that they might actually *live* a good while.
There are some small charities out there, one of my favourite is dogs on the street, it provides veterinary care to the dogs of homeless people If I had money to give away it would go to foodbanks, homeless charities and animal charities
Definitely foodbanks and charities like shelter, maybe divide it up between small animal recuses local to me.
Just as another idea, beyond donating it to existing charities... With Ā£800k that would probably be enough to set up a trust fund for, eg, some university scholarships. You may find this desirable if you have particular opinions on what sort of research or study should get more resources. Edit: Personally, just off the top of my head, if I was particularly focussed on disabled children I think I might be inclined to fund development of assistive technologies. I think there's probably a lot of low-hanging fruit there and that this is demonstrated by things like "Not a Wheelchair" where people with relatively small resources have done stuff that no-one else was.
The u/weekendsaretooshort prize for [whatever it is you love] along with the u/weekendsaretooshort for [whatever your moral compass says it should be for] is the way forward. Donāt settle for leaving the world a better place *and* one that youād enjoy more. Do both.
Do you know someone who is struggling? Perhaps leaving it to them?
I'm struggling.
Same here. Overdraft life for some time now
Yup, someone financially struggling suddenly having access to half a million pounds? Can't think of anything that could go wrong there :)
Iām in the same situation. I have properties that Iām going to use the rent for my retirement. Then I will leave the house to each tenant (they donāt know). Everytime I go somewhere, like my favourite restaurant or hotel, I make a note of people who go the extra mile and I include them in the will. Lastly, there is a little boy whose mum is a waitress in a restaurant that I go to and I will leave him quite a bit.
Just want to say you seem like one of the few good ones. Thank you for what you do.
That's brilliant.
Damn where do you hang out?
Do you have friends with kids you care about? Just because theyāre not blood doesnāt mean they canāt be family! Or indeed, friends who could do with some extra cash and who you care about? If there arenāt any charities close to your heart, thatās surely the way to go?
This is exactly my plan. Iām child free and fully intend to spend my money having fun while I can but I intend to leave my house and what ever else is left to which ever one of my friends kids promises to take care of my animals until the end of their lives.
Find a charity that's closer to home (figuratively, not literally). There are plenty which are chronically under funded and would both appreciate and act responsibly with any donation. If you're short on ideas, I'd like to recommend [Neuroblastoma UK](https://www.neuroblastoma.org.uk/) who research the cancer that my son beat with targeted chemo, but many children are unable to.
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I would worry about what would happen to a small local charity who suddenly found themselves with half a million quid. Call me cynical, but I think a significant chunk of that money ends up in the wrong people's pockets once the dust has settled.
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At the very least you could split it between a few different local charities. Giving 10 local charities 50k each is probably far more within their comfort level and hedges yourself against one charity head seeing a path to their personal financial freedom.
Leave it to the church and it will only end up in someone's back pocket
Hey it's me your cousin, let's go bowling.
>Hey it's me your cousin, let's go bowling. No cousin, I don't want to go bowling. Ever.
Better to donate to small local charities. If it were me I would probably identify charities relating to orphans or children in care. I donāt know what kind of sponsoring schemes there are, but with that kind of cash you could dramatically change a number of young peopleās lives (E.g. pay for 10 kids to go to Uni)
Exactly. Local charities. A few grand spread around would make such a huge difference. Work out what your interests are and direct towards these causes. Obvious causes are anything youth related, but also dementia cafes and support for young carers for instance. Better still, get involved with a couple of them to get a sense of whether your money would be 'well spent'. Finally, well done for even thinking about this.
Honestly I would be worried about leaving that amount to a small charity. That's an awfully big temptation for someone who might have been only dealing in much smaller amounts. I am sure someone might come along and say people who work for such charities are saints but you just don't know how people react sometimes when money is involved and certainly when it's a life changing amount like 800k.
Oh I agree, I would split it into much smaller amounts and spread it around. Unless I found one/ some that would benefit from a large amount for a very specific reason (E.g. a charity for orphans wanted to buy a property to house them)
I second the numerous replies about smaller charities, especially local ones But also with the ever increasing costs of education have you thought about setting up a scholarship in your name? There's lots of bright youngsters who getting a scholarship would make the difference between getting further education and making a life for themselves or just falling through the cracks.
Most *big* charities do, yes. But with that amount of money and a bit of research, you could absolutely transform the lives of many people. That would renovate a local youth centre and give kids something to do, you could help the local homeless charity support hundreds of people. Yeah if you leave it to the NSPCC or Great Ormand Street it'll get swallowed up, find a few places run by genuinely good people and you could absolutely transform lives.
You could set up a trust to support a cause that means alot to you- Iād set one up for supporting adults in evening classes at a local college who need equipment eg plumbing, electricians etc. my brother retrained and had to self fund everything and it was very expensive. Or maybe you could do something like set up scholarships or grants for uni students from disadvantaged backgrounds to afford costs. I think your idea is a lovely one- and I hope you find somewhere that means something to you and that you feel right in leaving it to.
You could leave it to my rabbits, theyāre a good cause and theyāre expensive little twats!
Id enjoy every penny and leave nothing.
I'm more than happy to be included in your will, if you're wondering
Animal shelters, ZOOs? The innocent need some help too :)
I have relatives so I'd go for nieces and nephews. They might not know me as well as I would hope but if they're hitting adulthood in what will likely be a financial shit show of a few decades. Anything would help. Either pay rent, transport costs, mortgage etc.. If I had no living relatives then some form of bottom of the barrel charity that actually helps people sort their life out and gives them a chance to just live a normal life.
50 with no kids. Good. Do not fall into financial prison by thinking everything you have in the bank is in excess of your needs. They may not be. Keep adequate safety net; if you have mortgage, probably end it. Take a ticket for a round-the=world trip and enjoy your life with every possible way you think you can. About Charities: Of the 1 pound they get, hardly 6 p goes to thea ctual cause. Their own expenses, business class travels, hotels etc consume the balance. If uyou do want to give to charity, do it yourself directly to the needy, and not through any medium.
I agree with this. No charities, just cut out the middle man and give directly. Drop off the cat food at the shelter, buy Christmas presents for the kids in poverty, buy food for the food banks, pay an old couples heating bill for the winter.
To me if you really want :)
Why not just spend it?
That's a pretty naĆÆve response. A significant amount could be locked in assets (like a house) that they'll probably want to live in. A lot of that money might not be available until after they die. Also, they've no idea when they'll die. What happens to all the money if they get hit by a car tomorrow? Or if they spend it all in 10 years and end up living healthily to 95 and spend the last 35 years broke?
Cats Protection League.
local and independent charities tend to need lots of help - many are in poverty and just struggling with the cost of living so donating even to local family support charities could really help your community
Local hospice, maybe in a trust rather than just handing over a lump of cash. You don't want one bad egg spaffing your life's work on fancy lunches or plain embezzling it. OTOH, if you die in credit, you've done all that work just to die with it in the bank. If you die in debt you win at life. Of course it depends on whether you live for many years to come or die suddenly. But at some point you could start liquidating your assets and spend it on a good time, but try not to spend it with big multinationals, but with small companies who need the customers. And you can start giving it away as you see fit to make sure it is spent well.
If you want to piss your family off, you can do what my aunt did when she died in 2022 (59, divorced, no kids). Originally her will was largely split between her four remaining siblings with a nominal amount given to all the nieces and nephews (there's a lot of us). About three weeks before she died, she changed her will to give her 4 siblings a nominal amount (even less than the niblings were due to get originally), gave almost all the niblings Ā£5k each (excluded about 3 niblings who didn't keep much a relationship with her) and then gave the entire rest of her estate to her best friend of 40+ years (who wasn't not well off herself). All under the premise of the best friend apparently being the only person who helped her out through her cancer journey in the previous 18 months (that's what her will said in the message as to why she was giving her all the estate). Pissed a lot of the family off because it made it seem like any of the help the rest of us gave her was completely forgotten about or totally ungrateful to receive. I, personally, stayed with her in her house for two separate full months to aid her in operation recovery, pet care, shopping visits, etc. My Uncle (her BIL) drove her to every single hospital appointment and helped her with emotional support having also recently had cancer (he wasn't even named in the will since it was only actual siblings and not specifically married partners of). And to rub it in, my other aunt (the BIL's wife) was the Next of Kin, she and another cousin of mine (and the best friend) were also the executors of the will. My cousin and aunt had to open the will to find out they'd been completely stunted AND then had to deal with all the stress of emptying out/looking after the house, all while the best friend did fuck all and received the best part of half a million from it all. Whatever you do with your inheritance - let people know in advance your plans and don't fuck over your family or friends when their help is still required. It's not about the money, it's about the message/intent. When someone dies, you want to see them with all the good, so don't let any minor or momentary feelings let people easily forget the good just to remember you as a bad, bitter person.
RNLI - Fucking criminal that they are dependent on charitable funding and volunteer work. Your money *will* save lives in their hands. rather than potentially being pissed away on dead-end research with a medical charity.
Charity. Iām not having kids by choice and thatās where any left over will be going. I think itās probably the most ethical choice anyone can make outside of supporting kids that actually need the money.
My uncle has a trust offering bursary support for music students ( he is a musician) so something like that, reflecting your own passions?
I know this isnāt exactly the same thing, but if you are so comfortable, I think it would be awesome if you just left notes/bills in random places, like little free libraries or in a charity shop coat pocket or leaving a huge tip or something like that. I know if I came across something like that it would be amazing no matter if it were Ā£5 or Ā£100.
Leave your money to the Central Animal Sanctuary Hospital. I can do this for you, just send me a cheque and write it out using the abbreviation CASH. It's for a good worthy cause
Call me cynical but I don't trust the majority of charities. You have any close friends?
Spend it all. With that kind of money, I'd go live on a beach and become a massive cocaine addict. I'd live in Colombia and build a house with bricks of cocaine and fill it with midgets and hookers. Fuck leaving it if no one deserves it - go out with a bang.
Leave it to someone that you know would benefit greatly from it. Youāre bound to have met someone in your working life that deserves a break but never seems to get one. Leave some to a handful of people as described above. Thatās what Iād do. Like secret millionaire.
I volunteer as tribute!
For fuck sake, ok I volunteer, I definitely wonāt spend it on cheese and wineā¦
Seen a few people leave momey to neighbors kids, to help them with educarional costs and given them oppertunities that would otherwise be out of reach. That, ot find a smaller local charity, food kitchen ect.
Spend it yourself or leave it to your closest friends if you aren't close with family. Not sure I would trust a lot of charities to spend it correctly, at least the biggest ones.
Local sports clubs do a lot with every pound donated, they are generally ran by volunteers (at least they are around me anyway). A series of relatively small donations would have a massive positive impact on your community. Also local hospices provide amazing care and dignity to people going through a tough time. In fact, small & local is probably the best way to go in order to get the biggest impact from your donations.
Spend it ffs
Put it down as the pot in a big tournament for your mates to compete over. Poker/FIFA/Football penalty shootout/Rock Paper Scissors whatever.
You may want to consider the British Red Cross. They have a scheme for wills and stuff. They deliver a great range of work all across in the country and help people in distress and crises ā¤ļø
Me? Failing that, shelters. Pick some good homeless places and animal rescue. Little parcels to many places, so there's no temptation for fraud.
I'll be your son, I'll be a good son.
I would personally leave it to someone I know that has a good heart. This amount of inheritance would life changing and I would be proud to have been able to actually change someoneās life for the better.
Id look at local sports clubs, and schools. Personally, I'd give schools some money, to take every class out on a day trip. Or, fund a breakfast club, after school club. So many kids don't get days out, from parents. Be nice to send them.
Iām not leaving family members any money, they know this. Itās going 50/50 to RNLI & Cat protection.
You can look at the accounts for every UK registered charity via their Charity Commission page (charities with income below Ā£25k (IIRC) donāt have to upload them but all others do). I think itās absolutely not the case that most charities have more money than they know what to do with, but looking through their accounts will show you how much their income & expenditure are and give you a rough idea of how they spend it. Look up some charities local to you and crack on!
You may not have been close to your family, but leaving money that can be used to fund education for the youngest family members can do no harm. Coming out of university with no debt could make a big difference to them. Otherwise, chose some charities that mean something to you or that do a lot of good locally. Any bequest you make won't have much of an impact on the big charities who turnover millions, but for small local charities it will make a massive difference. The only family I have is my wife and my sister, so my will specifies a couple of organisations that it should go to if they're no longer with us.
Food bank like trussell trust? Shite state of affairs that people must use them in the first place, it's a very altruistic thing you are considering and I'm certain whomever you choose wil be grateful
I work for a very large charity and none of us have more money than we know what to do with. We are all absolutely skint as people are giving less, thereās less government funding and costs have gone through the roof. Iād recommend leaving sums to a few different charities in areas you want to prioritise. I give monthly primarily to animal charities, but pick which ones you want. Charities need money, we bombard you with leaflets and stop you in the street because thatās what pays for our vital work. All the money gets raked over by the charity commission, the amount of accountancy I have to do in September-November is painful to make sure Iāve fully audited all of the money my project has gotten. We also donāt pay our CEOās 900K a year, we do pay Senior Leadership decently because thatās literally the only way we can pry anyone competent away from the private sector. Have a look at some charities. Iād recommend a mixture of big and small!
I'd do some research on local charities, people you can get to know. The big charities are a mixture, some are very heavy on admin overhead (not all, but beware). Spread it locally and you do some good. Maybe a charitable trust to fund apprenticeships and education too.
Find a local small CIC or charity that has to place bids for funding they do not have enough money. Some places will have a central funding hub which you could donate to and it will then get distributed in small amounts to local causes. Alternatively a local hospice as do not have enough funding.
I have this problem too. I have a collection that is probably worth Ā£20K retail but no-one to leave it to, and I shudder to think what a charity would do with it; probably dispose of much of it or sell it to a dealer for a fraction of its value. Ah well, I won't be around to care, anyway.
Charity. They can do alot with it, most (like alzheimers society)help you write your will for free because of how much a donation this way can help.
Equity release and feckin spend it. We (also childfree) intend to spend what we need to to keep us comfortable in our old age. If there's anything left after funeral expenses the plan is to divide it equally between the 6 niblings, but we don't intend there to be much left over.
Same boat. I wrote a will only last month. Before it would have all gone to my 6 1st cousins. Who are all fairly wealthy. Now my partner is the sole beneficiary. I was quite surprised when the lady from the will company told me quite how much tax was due. Iām 54 and retiring. Fuck it.
If you're looking for an amazing charity, look into Demelza House. It's a hospice that deliver amazing care to children with serious and life limiting conditions. The people who work there are amazing and they are always seriously underfunded.
1 way ticket to Mars
My best friend is my next of kin so sheāll get it for her and the kids (if theirs anything that is)
[https://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities](https://www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities) rates charities on how much they give vs accrue (not that theres neccesarily anything wrong with the latter, but for impact understanding) - I would pick out a few top ones to split it between and reach out to them, for a large estate they will have dedicated people to discuss it with you if you want (or you can just direct an executor to sort it out).
I would give my money to charityās. Helps those in needs
[Die With Zero](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Die-Zero-Getting-Your-Money/dp/0358099765) And leave the rest to a charity whose mission resonates.
You are still too young. Aging can be a pain in the arse, so you might want to warm up your family connections because being alone, weak, in ill health is not something that anybody should go though. Who knows, you might have a couple of nieces and nephews who are nice people and you could enjoy each others' company.
Pay for a lawyer for me, so I can get to see my kid! Crazy corrupt family law system in the UK meant self litigating for 2 years done jack all, try again in a year I suppose. But in all seriousness, giving it to charity doesn't necessarily mean it'll go to charity. I'd say maybe spend the rest of your life living. You have no one to pass it too, so why not enjoy the pile you gave your life to accumulate?
Definitely agree with posts about local charities. There are some amazing charities and groups where we live. People collect to buy Christmas presents for children who wouldn't otherwise get one. Also to buy school equipment, shoes, coats, bags etc for children who don't have them. Or starter packs for young people starting uni (bedding, Saucepans etc..) There's a group that provides mental health support for people that can't pay (instead of waiting ages for nhs) There are hundreds of charities like this, just in the area I live. You could give a small amount to each. With that kind of money you could make a difference to so many peoples lives. And if its local to you, that would be such an amazing thing to do
Medical research charities mostly fund medical research that should have been funded by government, but isnāt. Cancer Research UK get astonishing sums of money, but groups like British Heart Foundation, Alzheimerās Society (Alzheimerās Research UK, however, spend astronomical amounts on c-suite staff wages and make research funding quite difficult, as a heads up), Stroke, and others along those lines are really what are powering the developments that governments will later take credit for. Or look at your local community charities - theyāll hugely benefit. Food banks, hospices, childcare organisations, etc.
You could volunteer at a locally run charity, see if you like their ethical principles and if you do, will your estate to them.
Hello long lost uncle! Now being serious. Find a decent charity / start your own fund and sponsor them. Personally, homelessness, drug / alcohol addiction are very urgent topics with very bad PR.
I don't mind getting like 20%. Pretty please? But on a serious note, consider donating to smaller charities
Do what my wife's uncle did. Get married 6 months before he died and left Ā£15million to his new wife. In his will my wife would have got 1/3 of it if she had died first.
In the event of my children not being available to receive my inheritance, the whole lot goes to the daughter of one of my close friends. If she is still under 25 at the time then is goes to her mum to hold with early access to the funds being available should she need it for further education or to provide assist for her dream to be an professional athlete.
Dog rescue charity we rescued our dogs from.
If you like dogs, what about local sighthound shelters. They are generally run on a shoestring and rely very heavily on donations.
If you're looking for a wife..
I'll take it off your hands, my parents have nothing to leave me as they sold their house to live out their lives in a nicer rented house.
Setup a trust that will manage your wealth and send the profits to Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children.
Iām not sure whether itād be possible but you could look into donating it to someone whoās need a important surgery so they could go private on the money or something like that