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Which is a good reason to have a competent estate attorney who practices in your state of residence help you make these preparations OP. Through consultations with both of you, they can help you decide what you want/need, pros and cons of alternatives, run down your state's legal details, doublecheck with various financial institutions or the DMV, decode the fine print, etc. One stop shopping as it were. OR, you can piecemeal it yourself and hope you don't miss something important.
Last edited by Parnassia; 11-28-2022 at 02:33 PM..
You also want to be mindful of inheritance taxes if they apply in your state. For example, in PA there are taxes attached to the estate upon passing that the estate is responsible for and the percentage is based on familial degree, etc. My late MIL’s estate was responsible for a tax of a little over 4% as her sons were heirs and that number increase the further degrees of separation (no tax on spouse to spouse). It totaled out to around 13k and had to be paid within 9 months of her death by the estate. The monies were available To make that payment but we’re it not arrangements for payment would be needed through the courts and payable upon sale of her home and other assets.
You also want to be mindful of inheritance taxes if they apply in your state. For example, in PA there are taxes attached to the estate upon passing that the estate is responsible for and the percentage is based on familial degree, etc. My late MIL’s estate was responsible for a tax of a little over 4% as her sons were heirs and that number increase the further degrees of separation (no tax on spouse to spouse). It totaled out to around 13k and had to be paid within 9 months of her death by the estate. The monies were available To make that payment but we’re it not arrangements for payment would be needed through the courts and payable upon sale of her home and other assets.
Yes, thank you. I probably need a lawyer, but am trying to do this myself for several reasons. The basic reason is that we don't have that much money to pay a lawyer, it might be worth it so I'll see, but I also don't want whatever we own to go up in the air. By that I mean I don't know if my relatives would even care to look or go to the trouble to get anything in case of our deaths. And they are not worthy, frankly, of getting anything. There is only one relative who cares, and he has enough money of his own, doesn't need anything. I am looking to make out a revocable living trust. Also, I have already informed our very close and trustworthy friend that he may take whatever portion of the money in the bank willed to him concerning any money he may have to pay over his taxes at the time. Because he knows, and we trust him, that the money is basically going to a charity. We're doing the best we can, which is not very good anyway, but still it's the best we can do now.So now I'm looking into a revocable living trust.
First off your death can be the result of an accident, wrongful death , malpractice, etc . Suddenly the estate has money it never anticipated.
I can tell you first hand , as little as one missing word can stop things dead in their tracks .
My ex wife’s parents used a family attorney , not an estate attorney .. he took a canned-will off one of the websites and used it .
Well my ex wife went to refinance the house she inherited .
The title company asked to see the will .
They stopped the closing .
A simple word was missing ….the will read to my child beth I leave my house and possessions..it was missing the word ONLY ,as in only child .
she had to pay for the bank attorney, the title company and the coop attorney which she was going to pay off .
She had to get affidavits from family members that she was an only child .
She lost her interest rate too .
The other snafu was with my current wife .
Her first husband had passed away .
His parents had a will and trust ….
Well when the state was clearing some tax payments , the court realized that the will which was done by a family friend who was an attorney,but not an estate attorney and a canned will also wasused ,they noticed it was missing verbiage as to what happens if the son dies before the parents.
The court said even though some estranged step children were written out by name the documents are defective.
It started a legal battle that cost 100k to resolve.
When we went looking for an estate attorney I brought the two documents to see if he saw anything wrong .
He picked up on the fact the will didn’t say she was an only child or mention the others by name were to get nothing .
He also picked up on the missing predeceasing immediately.
YOU DONT KNOWTHE ISSUESIN YOUR DOCUMENTS UNTILYOU ARE GONE .
First off your death can be the result of an accident, wrongful death , malpractice, etc . Suddenly the estate has money it never anticipated.
I can tell you first hand , as little as one missing word can stop things dead in their tracks .
My ex wife’s parents used a family attorney , not an estate attorney .. he took a canned-will off one of the websites and used it .
Well my ex wife went to refinance the house she inherited .
The title company asked to see the will .
They stopped the closing .
A simple word was missing ….the will read to my child beth I leave my house and possessions..it was missing the word ONLY ,as in only child .
she had to pay for the bank attorney, the title company and the coop attorney which she was going to pay off .
She had to get affidavits from family members that she was an only child .
She lost her interest rate too .
The other snafu was with my current wife .
Her first husband had passed away .
His parents had a will and trust ….
Well when the state was clearing some tax payments , the court realized that the will which was done by a family friend who was an attorney,but not an estate attorney and a canned will also wasused ,they noticed it was missing verbiage as to what happens if the son dies before the parents.
The court said even though some estranged step children were written out by name the documents are defective.
It started a legal battle that cost 100k to resolve.
When we went looking for an estate attorney I brought the two documents to see if he saw anything wrong .
He picked up on the fact the will didn’t say she was an only child or mention the others by name were to get nothing .
He also picked up on the missing predeceasing immediately.
YOU DONT KNOWTHE ISSUESIN YOUR DOCUMENTS UNTILYOU ARE GONE .
then there are no do overs
I appreciate your reply. Thanks for mentioning an insurance policy. I do have one. (We have one.) I have to check with them, too. Oh boy preparing for death isn't so easy.
First off your death can be the result of an accident, wrongful death , malpractice, etc . Suddenly the estate has money it never anticipated.
I can tell you first hand , as little as one missing word can stop things dead in their tracks .
My ex wife’s parents used a family attorney , not an estate attorney .. he took a canned-will off one of the websites and used it .
Well my ex wife went to refinance the house she inherited .
The title company asked to see the will .
They stopped the closing .
A simple word was missing ….the will read to my child beth I leave my house and possessions..it was missing the word ONLY ,as in only child .
She had to get affidavits from family members that she was an only child .
The same exact thing happened to my late MIL when her mother passed. The will left out "only". She was an only child of an only-child father and mother with 2 siblings, and neither was married or had children. It was a complete cluster in trying to get NYS to accept what she had as evidence that she was indeed an only child and had only one living blood relative outside of her own children; a great aunt that was nearly 90 years old.
It's also worthwhile to note, that if anything at all changes in terms of residence, assets, etc. you should have your will amended, even if it's the same exact thing but filed with the new state. My MIL did not amend her will (despite us telling her for several years she should do so) from NY to PA. When she died and we filed the will, my husband (as executor) needed to pay a bond while PA confirmed the will was legal and valid in NYS. To the tune of nearly 5k.
Never mind the fact that not only was the will out of state, but it was also out of date. She had it drawn in 1991 when my husband was her only adult child. A large portion of the will was invalid as it dealt with bypassing her husband (alive at the time) and minor children's custody. She also had much more in assets 30 years later that should have had explicit instructions attached (IMO).
Yes, thank you. I probably need a lawyer, but am trying to do this myself for several reasons. The basic reason is that we don't have that much money to pay a lawyer, it might be worth it so I'll see, but I also don't want whatever we own to go up in the air. By that I mean I don't know if my relatives would even care to look or go to the trouble to get anything in case of our deaths. And they are not worthy, frankly, of getting anything. There is only one relative who cares, and he has enough money of his own, doesn't need anything. I am looking to make out a revocable living trust. Also, I have already informed our very close and trustworthy friend that he may take whatever portion of the money in the bank willed to him concerning any money he may have to pay over his taxes at the time. Because he knows, and we trust him, that the money is basically going to a charity. We're doing the best we can, which is not very good anyway, but still it's the best we can do now.So now I'm looking into a revocable living trust.
The lawyer doesn't necessarily need to do everything for you OP. They can help you set up a plan of action with a list of things YOU will go ahead and do and in what order they need to happen. One or two consultations with one could save you (or the person left behind after the other passes) so much grief later. Pros and cons of trust vs will for your specific situation, the documentation you'll need to have on hand for whomever has to settle final affairs, etc.
Last edited by Parnassia; 12-01-2022 at 01:26 PM..
The same exact thing happened to my late MIL when her mother passed. The will left out "only". She was an only child of an only-child father and mother with 2 siblings, and neither was married or had children. It was a complete cluster in trying to get NYS to accept what she had as evidence that she was indeed an only child and had only one living blood relative outside of her own children; a great aunt that was nearly 90 years old.
It's also worthwhile to note, that if anything at all changes in terms of residence, assets, etc. you should have your will amended, even if it's the same exact thing but filed with the new state. My MIL did not amend her will (despite us telling her for several years she should do so) from NY to PA. When she died and we filed the will, my husband (as executor) needed to pay a bond while PA confirmed the will was legal and valid in NYS. To the tune of nearly 5k.
Never mind the fact that not only was the will out of state, but it was also out of date. She had it drawn in 1991 when my husband was her only adult child. A large portion of the will was invalid as it dealt with bypassing her husband (alive at the time) and minor children's custody. She also had much more in assets 30 years later that should have had explicit instructions attached (IMO).
Most have no clue as to how bad things can get messed up after it is too late to revise them .
I will mention what the judge told us when they discovered the pre-deceasing verbiage missing .
“ it is clear what the intent was in the document , the step children mentioned were to get nothing .
But I can’t have the court re-write history or add the missing verbiage .
Those children will be notified by the court that their fathers will may be defective .
Although they are ruled out by name i may not be able to use that document so they may be entitled.”
What I want to emphasize is intent can mean nothing if there is a defect in a document
You also want to be mindful of inheritance taxes if they apply in your state. For example, in PA there are taxes attached to the estate upon passing that the estate is responsible for and the percentage is based on familial degree, etc.
Inheritance taxes are those paid by recipients on the amounts they inherit. 6 states have those, including PA.
Estate taxes are paid by the estate before amounts are distributed to heirs. 11 states have those.
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