Thinking about your will can be a daunting idea. Aside from facing your own mortality, it can also be an overwhelming experience.
Jenny Xia Spradling, co-founder and co-CEO of FreeWill couldn’t agree more.
“Historically, there have been a lot of barriers in putting together a will. It can be scary, complicated, and expensive,” she explained. It’s why she and her co-founder and co-CEO Patrick Schmitt had an idea at Stanford University in 2017 to create a will that makes it simple and free.
FreeWill is a social enterprise that combines estate planning and philanthropy by helping charities raise money through bequests and other large non-cash asset pools (including donations from stocks and IRAs) as part of their offering. Over 1 million people have used the FreeWill platform and the growing need is critical for people of all ages.
A recent Gallup poll found that only slightly less than half of all U.S. adults, 46% have a will. While those 65 and older are more likely to have a will, only three-quarters said that they have one. That’s a lot of money and assets for a local probate court to decide how to distribute your property.
Today, thirty-five percent of all Americans are over 50 and that number will continue to grow exponentially, especially as the first Millennials turn 50 in six years.
FreeWill’s goal is to make the process as simple as possible with an intuitive process to get to a completed will for an individual or couple.
“We help you with your will, revocable trusts, and health care directives and allow the user to give charitably as part of their estate planning,” said Xia Spradling.
FreeWill’s revenue comes from 1500 nonprofits that subscribe to the platform, along with some selected financial institutions. They serve nonprofits to help them raise planned gifts via bequests in wills. FreeWill reports that the average bequest made through its platform is $48,000.
With a generational transfer of wealth of $84 trillion over the next decades, charities are hoping that they will benefit from this historical moment, which is why they have partnered with FreeWill.
According to Xia Spradling, if an individual has more complicated needs, they will inform and educate along the way, in some instances referring an individual to a financial advisor or lawyer. The tools on the platform are simple to use and the average time to complete a will is 30-40 minutes.
With the FreeWill solution, there shouldn’t be any excuse to not focus on how you would like your assets to be directed. It also allows you to be philanthropic with the charities and causes that are important to you. Taking care of those that you care about is important, as is what you would like to support as your charitable legacy.
FreeWill can help you on both fronts.
