Will writing & estate planning in Wroughton
Home visits across Wroughton, Overtown, Elcombe, Salthrop and Chiseldon — on the edge of the Marlborough Downs, and no trouble to reach.
Call 01793 228068Mon–Fri 9am–7pm · Sat by appointment · Home visits across Wiltshire
A village practice, at your kitchen table
Wroughton sits on the shoulder of the downs, and a lot of the people we see here have lived in the village for decades — in the older cottages off the High Street, the post-war housing around Ellendune, or one of the properties along Overtown and Salthrop where a paddock, a barn or a stretch of land came with the house.
Land is what makes Wroughton estates different from a standard suburban one. A field let for grazing, a paddock the horses have not used for years, a barn with lapsed planning permission or a strip of ground bought from a neighbour thirty years ago all need to be identified and dealt with in a will. Some of it is unregistered. Some of it is worth far more than the family assumes because of its development hope value, and some is worth far less than they hope. Either way it should not be a surprise to the executors.
Where land is genuinely farmed, agricultural property relief may apply, but the conditions are strict and a paddock rented out for a pony will not qualify. We would rather tell you that at the outset than have your family find out from HMRC.
Planning ahead in a village
Wroughton has an older age profile than Swindon as a whole, and a good deal of our work here is lasting powers of attorney rather than wills. In a village, the practical difficulties of losing capacity arrive early: someone has to pay the bills, deal with the pension, arrange help at home and, in time, decide whether staying in a house up a hill with steps to the front door is still realistic. Attorneys can do all of that. Relatives without an LPA cannot, whatever the bank tells them on the phone.
We also see a lot of families where one adult child lives locally and the others have moved away. That is worth thinking about when appointing executors and attorneys — appointing all three children jointly sounds fair and works badly, because every single decision then needs three signatures, sometimes from different time zones. Appointing them jointly and severally, or appointing the local one with the others as replacements, usually works better.
We come to you, evenings included, and the first conversation is free whether or not anything comes of it.
What we can help with in Wroughton
Wills
A clear, legally valid will that says exactly what you mean.
from £150
Trusts
Protect the family home and provide for the next generation.
from £400
Lasting Powers of Attorney
Property & financial affairs and health & welfare, registered for you.
from £150
Estate Planning
Everything pulled together into one clear, co-ordinated plan.
quoted after a free review
Executors
Make sure the people you appoint know what they are taking on.
Executor Pack £200
We also cover
Nearby villages include Overtown, Elcombe, Salthrop, Chiseldon, Broad Hinton, Barbury — all within our normal visiting area.
Talk to someone in Wroughton
The first conversation is free, and there is no obligation to go any further.