One of the benefits – and dangers – of being young is that we don’t often think about dying. Living in the moment is awesome and yes, #YOLO, but, not to be a Debbie Downer, at some point or another the inevitable will happen…

This may not be for many decades, but shit happens, so it’s a good to get your stuff sorted for when the time comes.

You may say: I don’t own anything and don’t have kids, so why do I need a will?

Even if you’ve not yet bought a house or started a family, there are still plenty of good reasons to have a will. To help you decide if you need a will, answer these questions:

• Do you have KiwiSaver?
• Do you have life insurance?
• Do you have a partner, but are not married?
• Do you have pets?
• Do you have prized possession with a lot of sentimental value?
• Do you love your friends and family?

If you’ve answered YES to any of these questions – you need a will! Here’s why:

KiwiSaver or life insurance?

Anyone who’s worked for few years, and have not yet bought a house, could actually have quite a bit of funds built up in their KiwiSaver accounts. KiwiSaver combined with a life insurance pay out could add up to quite a substantial estate. Having a will means you can decide where these funds go.

A partner, but not married?

New Zealand law favours a spouse or civil union or de facto partner over family when dividing an estate. But if you’re not married or in a civil union, your partner will first need to prove their de facto status or your family will automatically get what was yours. This may not be too much of a hassle if your family and partner are on good terms, but it could turn ugly. If your partner and family have to quibble over who gets what, that would create even more avoidable pain and stress for all concerned.

Pets or prized possessions?

Without a Will, you have no say over what happens to any of your stuff after you die. You may have wanted your cat to go to someone special or promised your Lana Del Rey vinyl collection to your best friend. Unless you recorded your wishes, these wishes will not necessary be filled. Again, without a will the state will automatically favour your spouse or family, so you could be leaving your friends and family to fight it out over who gets what.

Love your friends and family?

It should be clear by now that not having a will could leave your family and friends with a mess trying to sort out what they think you may have wanted. Just think how much that would suck for them on top of having to deal with your untimely departure from this world.

Spare them this unnecessary pain and get a will!