The probate process can be costly and time-consuming. It isn’t something anyone wants to deal with, however, most people will have to deal with it at one point or another. Learn more about what to expect during the probate process in our latest post!
If you are forced to deal with the probate process, you might find yourself spending money and getting more involved with everything than you planned. While you might expect to receive money, the opposite can, in fact, be true. In some cases, the probate process can be expensive and time-consuming. In our latest post, we will discuss 4 costs to expect during the probate process in Greater Los Angeles so that you will be able to best prepare yourself!
Outstanding Debts
When someone passes away, the executor of their estate will need to find and pay all of the deceased’s outstanding debts. In most states, the executor of the estate is required to publish a notice of death in the local newspaper, alerting any creditors not known to the courts or to the executor. These creditors will have a limited amount of time to file a claim against the estate for amounts they are owed. It is only after all debts have been paid that the executor of the estate is free to distribute assets left behind by the departed.
Court Fees
If an inheritance has to go through the probate courts, there are going to be some costs. The executor has to validate the will, submit a petition, and ask the courts to review all assets, debts, and taxes owed. There will often be a number of hearings to discuss the validity of the will, do hear any objections, and to make sure assets are distributed as they should be. As such, the court will charge a number of fees while facilitating this process. These fees vary case by case and state by state. If you are dealing with a larger estate, you can expect these costs to be much higher than if you were dealing with a smaller one.
Taxes
Even after death, you can’t avoid the taxman. The executor of the estate must file any pay income taxes for the year of the decedent’s death. They must also check to see if any estate taxes need to be paid. If so, these taxes are typically due within nine months of the deceased’s passing. The property taxes for any real estate owned will need to be kept up to date in order to avoid foreclosure of the property.
Attorney Fees
The cost of a probate attorney can run up to 5% of an estate’s value. While you may not always need an attorney to represent you, in many cases, it makes the process go much more smoothly. When you hire an attorney, you can be assured that all debts, creditors, and beneficiaries will be properly taken care of.
Avoiding Probate
In order to avoid probate, an individual can either set up a trust, own property in joint tenancy with the right of survivorship or set up beneficiaries when creating the assets. This is particularly true with stocks and bank accounts. By avoiding probate in Greater Los Angeles, you will be able to avoid a number of the costs people often face.
When a property is in probate, it can be tied up for months. In addition to the costs above, if a property is in question, the executor of the estate will need to pay the taxes, insurance, and mortgage on the property to keep it from going into foreclosure.
Selling A Home In Probate
Homesmith Group is always committed to saving the Estate time so it minimizes its fees and expenses. We can buy the home, pay all cash, buy the property in as-is condition, and close the sale in less than 14 days or whenever is convenient for the heirs.
We hope you understand that, with the California Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA), heirs can sell the property and do not have to wait for a completion of probate. The IAEA was enacted in 1987 and it can grant the personal representative of a decedent’s estate authority to take action on behalf of the estate without having to obtain prior court approval to do so.
If the property is going to be sold and the personal representative has been awarded “full authority,” there is no reason to go through the entire court confirmation process, run up extra attorney and miscellaneous fees, and pay real estate commissions, etc.
California Probate Attorney Summarizes Probate Process
For a quick summary to help with the understanding of how to sell a probate house in California, watch the following video featuring Paul Horn, Probate Attorney and State Bar Certified Specialist, of the Paul Horn Law Group based in Cerritos, Calif. Paul explains the key elements of the process. He can be reached directly at www.PaulHornLawFirm.com with any questions.
For more information on Inherited Houses and the Probate Process in California, contact Homesmith Group and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours to see how we can help!