When people pass away, they leave behind assets, property, and possessions that can have sentimental and real value for surviving family members and loved ones. Everything that an individual owns upon their death is known as their estate. According to Estate…
Estate administration is the process of managing and distributing a person’s property (the “estate”) after death. If the person had a will, the will goes through probate, which is the process by which the deceased person’s property is passed to…
For a variety of reasons, people sometimes want some or all of their assets to pass directly to specific individuals upon their deaths, outside of probate. One way to accomplish this is to set up a “payable on death” (POD) account for money in a bank account or a “transfer on death” (TOD) account if funds are in a brokerage account.
When you die, your debts do not expire with you. Most debt still needs to be paid off, if possible, although who is responsible for paying the debt depends on the type of debt, and some assets are protected from being used to satisfy a debt.
The irony is that using a boilerplate will form not only frustrated Ms. Aldrich’s testamentary intent, but ultimately cost her estate far, far more than a simple consultation with an estate planning or elder law attorney would have.
Once a loved one passes, several tasks come to hand for the family. The majority of these tasks involve expenses and they quickly add up. First and foremost is the task of laying your loved one to rest. The average cost of a funeral is between $8,000 – $12,000. Perhaps the loved one set up a pre-paid funeral arrangement or had a life insurance policy that could cover these expenses and outstanding debts. Probate is the process to collect assets, pay bills and issue distribution to the beneficiaries. Please enjoy this article provided to us from Elder Law Answers on paying debt from an Estate.
Probate occurs when…
Probate will be required when the Decedent leaves assets over $100,000 to be collected that does not name a beneficiary, a joint tenant or co-owner. Probate begins any time following death and will last for a minimum of six months. Probate can extend for many years based on the parties and the issues involved.
While you read this you may think you don’t have an “estate” but if you have any combination of bank accounts, investments, real estate, business interests, life insurance policies, personal property, jewelry and collections of any sort, you will want to protect these things that really do matter. The cost of long term care without a plan could cost you and your loved ones. Simply put, a will isn’t enough!
Planning ahead for your own death is a difficult step to take because no one wants to believe it can happen to them; but it will happen. By giving some careful thought to your goals for your beneficiaries, you will be confident that you are really protecting what matters. An estate plan may include some or all of the following: Last Will & Testament, Revocable or Irrevocable Trust, Powers of Attorney, Joint Tenancy designation, and Beneficiary designation.