Yes, you can. In North Carolina, handwritten wills (“holographic will” is the legal term for it) are valid and enforceable as long as three (3) people can verify the signature and handwriting of the Testator (the person writing and signing the will) after the death occurs. The main problem with handwritten wills is that there is almost always something left out because most people simply don’t know what needs to be included in a will to make sure everything is accounted for. Those gaps in the will are filled by the State’s law of intestacy (default rules for estates in the absence of a will or a provision within a will). For example, if your handwritten will sets out what you want to have happen with your house and bank account, but doesn’t speak to any other property, the state’s rules will apply for all of the unaccounted for property, which is likely not what you intended to happen in creating a will.
