Probate and Wills: Questions, Lessons Learned (pay, taxes, debts, deposit)

[selhars]

There are so many things to know about these issues What are your experiences with probate, registering wills, etc?

My questions would be:
WILLS:
-- WHEN in the timing of a person's passing is the will registered? Immediately after death? After the funeral? When the executor 'can get to it?"
-- Does that HAVE to be done before the executor can do anything with distributing what's in the will, honoring wishes, settling the estate, etc?
-- I'd personally hesitate to do it right away because the county register of wills wants the original and I hate giving originals to anybody, esp. a gov office. Suppose someone at the state office wants an original too and I've given mine to the county, THEN what?
Who and how many people or offices might want original documents, of a document you're only supposed to have ONE of?

PROBATE: (other threads have given some good info, too)
I've always heard it's a pain in the *ss, but doesn't that depend? It may NOT be worth hiring a lawyer, right.

For example PA, has a small estates simple probate process for estates under $25,000. No one ever mentions this. A couple of forms, that's it, (At least that's how it seems. Forms can be simple of complicated) But all you hear about is the horror of probate, let a lawyer do it.

You can get SOME help from workers in the register of wills and estate revenue departments. I mean, they won't give you LEGAL advice, but they can help with general knowledge about the forms, what they're for etc.

My mom won't have anything in her name ALONE, but a car and personal belongings, and an IRA with beneficiaries. She's still healthy, but the more research I do -- and depending on what a lawyer wants to charge for a SIMPLE estate -- I MAY try to do probate myself. (And let her regular CPA do any tax stuff, but I MIGHT do that too.)

IF I'm WRONG SOMEONE PLEASE CORRECT ME:
As for joint accounts one caveat is that even on a joint account w/ survivorship -- in Pennsylvania, the state will still want the survivor to pay inheritance taxes on half that money OR MORE.
2 examples:

-- if your name is on the account -- but YOU didn't put any money into it The state can argue that's not a 50/50 account, HALF the money in it wasn't yours so you should pay inheritance taxes on any money in the account YOU didn't put into it.

-- One woman said she put her mom's name on her account as joint, but just for convenience -- the MOM dies. And the state wants the woman to pay taxes on half of her OWN money, now. (Or I guess, she has to prove SHE is the one who made all the deposits, IF she can get anyone to listen that)

-- So my question would be IF you know death is coming, and many times we don't I understand that, and you're on a joint account with joint ownership, can't you just move the money out, close the account before then and avoid that particular tax issue, or move 99 percent of it out?

My thinking is if a 95-year-old person dies with no -- or not much -- money in their name, then is someone really going to proactively ASK when was the last time the person had an account, when was the last withdrawal and for how much? I really don't think there'd be a red flag. Especially if I've been paying all the bills anyway. I'm thinking when you fill out forms after death, most office workers take at face value what's put on the forms to get their job done.

What are your experiences with probate, registering wills, etc?

[dsnellen]

Spend a couple of hours with an estate planning attorney. It will be worth the cost.

[taurus430]

My Dad passed and I'm Executor and beneficiary with my Brother. He left a house which is on the market now, and a joint account with me. I moved all the remaining money from the joint acct into a new acct under my name. Since he had no acct under his name, I paid bills from my acct with his money, but whatever is left, I will divide it between my Brother and me. The problem now is some checks are coming in "estate of" and I never opened an estate acct as I didn't think I needed one. A few checks came in payable to Dad so I deposited them in the joint acct which is still open then transferred the money. My Letters Testamentary had a note to use it for transferring assets from Dad to me as Executor so I want to do it as simple as possible. My brother knows everything I'm doing as far as deposits and debts paid. Any feedback as to direction would be helpful. I may have to open an estate acct now as I just received a new refund payable to "the estate of".