Executor Questions

1 How do I get started in the executor role? 2 Should I accept the executor role? 3 Where can I get advice on performing the executor role? 4 Should I be compensated as an executor? If so, how much? 5 Should I initiate discussions with the will writer, if possible? 6 Should I request a copy of the will now? 7 How can I confirm that the will is valid? 8 How do I deal with potential amendments to the will? 9 What if the will writer's wishes are not all detailed in the will? 10 Should I encourage the will writer to put their wishes into writing? 11 Do I know how to contact all possible beneficiaries? 12 Will I need a bond as an executor? 13 How do I determine what assets exist and where they are held? 14 Should I inventory all personal property and estimated value? 15 What documents do I need to look for? 16 Did the will writer have an attorney? Financial planner? Accountant? If so, who? 17 Should I discuss funeral wishes with the will writer? 18 Does the will writer have a living will? 19 What should be considered when discussing organ donation? 20 What do I do after I have the will? 21 What do I do if there is no will? 22 How do I know if the will is legal? 23 How can I tell if the will I have is complete? What about amendments? 24 Do I have to understand the legal-speak in the will? 25 I don't understand trusts. What do I do? 26 What if I don't know how to reach beneficiaries? 27 Should I share the will with beneficiaries? 28 Should I share my planned executor process with beneficiaries? 29 Do I need an attorney in the executor role? If so, how do I find the right one? 30 Do I need a financial planner in the executor role? If so, how do I find the right one? 31 Do I need an accountant in the executor role? If so, how do I find the right one? 32 Where can I find the right grief counselor? 33 What should I consider when hiring a realtor? 34 How can I find out how much the deceased's home is worth? 35 How do I determine the value of antiques and jewelry in the estate? 36 How should I select a funeral home? 37 Should I choose burial or cremation? 38 If I choose a cremation, who do I hire to manage the process? 39 Can the funeral director help me get a death certificate? 40 How do I find clergy to perform the funeral ceremony? 41 What are the burial options? 42 What do I need to know about buying a grave site? 43 What are the specific requirements for planning a funeral? 44 What are the casket and urn options? 45 If the deceased served in the military, what are the possible military benefits? 46 What clothing and accessories should I choose for the deceased? 47 Should I ask well wishers to make charitable contributions in lieu of flowers? 48 Do I need to purchase flowers for the ceremony? 49 When and where should I share the service details? 50 How do I write the obituary? 51 How do I write the eulogy? 52 What personal items of the deceased should be displayed at the funeral? 53 How can I protect the deceased's home during the funeral? 54 Should I remove jewelry before the burial? 55 How do I choose the proper headstone/memorial? 56 How do I protect the deceased's empty home? 57 What emotions can I expect to feel while I'm grieving? 58 What type of funeral expenses should I expect? 59 What type of executor expenses should I expect? 60 Should I track the hours I spend performing the executor role? 61 What expenses related to maintaining the home of the deceased should I keep track of? 62 How and where do I get the death certificate? What information do I need to get it? 63 How many certified copies of the death certificate is enough? 64 If the estate is small, can I speed up the court process or avoid it altogether? 65 What do I do if there is no will and the estate is small? 66 What is probate court and how do I file the will there? 67 After I file the will, will I need to appear? If so, how do I prepare? 68 What kind of duties and deadlines will I have to meet for the probate court? 69 What aspects of probate will the estate attorney handle? 70 What is the first organization I should notify? 71 The deceased owes money. How do I notify creditors of the death? 72 People owe the deceased money. What's the best way to handle this? 73 Can I file on behalf of the estate for benefits on the deceased's insurance plans? 74 What steps need to be taken related to the deceased's pension plan(s)? 75 How and when should I notify a landlord? 76 The deceased has rentals properties. How should I manage this situation? 77 When should I notify credit card companies of the death? 78 What's the process for closing the deceased's bank account(s)? 79 How do I gain access to any safety deposit boxes? 80 What is the best approach to manage the mail for the deceased? 81 Should I notify Veterans Affairs if the deceased was a veteran? 82 The deceased was on welfare, do I need to notify them of the death? 83 Do I need to notify the Medicare office? 84 The deceased was on unemployment. How do I handle that? 85 What do I need to learn from the deceased's financial planner? 86 What should I look for when going through the deceased's tax returns? 87 How can I best organize financial assets? 88 How can I best let beneficiaries know what possessions are in the estate? 89 Do I need to create an inventory of non-probate assets - and what should I include in it? 90 Should I sell financial assets, and if so, when? 91 How can I ensure the safety of possessions in the estate? 92 How can I protect an empty home from theft? 93 What other methods can I use to find financial assets within the estate? 94 How do I find accounts with paperless statements? 95 Where else can I look to find relevant account statements? 96 What is the benefit, if any, of reviewing old mail in the house? 97 How can I get reimbursements on the deceased's health savings account? 98 How can I be fair to beneficiares when distributing non-financial assets? 99 How can I best determine the value of jewelry in the estate? 100 What is the best way to manage a timeshare? 101 Can I settle the estate from existing bank accounts or do I need to open accounts for the estate? 102 How do I keep the home functional to maintain value? 103 Should I continue to pay for landscaping or hire a landscaping service? 104 Which home-related services should I cancel immediately? 105 How do I cancel memberships held by the deceased? 106 How do I cancel existing subscriptions? 107 What bills should I pay? Should I wait for an updated, final bill? 108 How can I verify that new bills are valid? 109 How should I manage notices of electronic payments that come by email? 110 How do I manage tax filing responsibilities? 111 Do I need to file estate tax returns? What is the best way to do that? 112 How do I select the best possible appraiser? 113 What is the best way to determine interest in specific assets by beneficiaries? 114 What strategies will help me fairly divide personal property among beneficiaries? 115 What is the best way to allocate and distribute assets? 116 What do I do with clothing that no beneficiaries want? 117 What do I do with items that no beneficiaries want? 118 Sell the Real Estate 119 What do I need to consider when selling the deceased's real estate? 120 How do I hire the best possible realtor to sell the real estate? 121 Should I have the home appraised? How do I do this? 122 Should I keep a home furnished to maximize the sales price? 123 How do I determine asking price on the house and what I'm wiling to sell it for? 124 What can I do to make the house ready for sale? 125 Should I try to make repairs to the home or sell "as is?" 126 How can I build consensus with beneficiares during the sale of a home? 127 How do I determine the total value of an estate? 128 How can I fairly determine what each beneficiary should receive? 129 How should I adjust beneficiary payments based on personal property received? 130 What is the best approach to distribute assets to beneficiaries? 131 How do I close the estate officially? 132 What steps should I take to get my own estate in order? 133 What information do I need to keep related to my beneficiaries? 134 How will any trusts that I may have impact my will and estate? 135 What factors should I consider when picking someone to be my executor? 136 What should I discuss with the person I chose to be my executor? 137 Is it a good choice to give my executor a copy of my will right now? 138 Should I make a contact list of my family members? 139 What kind of record keeping will make it easier for my executor later? 140 What is the best way to inventory my financial assets? 141 What is the best way to inventory my non-financial assets? 142 What kind of documents should I make available to my executor and how should I organize them? 143 Is it a good idea to create a list of my passwords for online accounts? 144 Is there a benefit to keeping my personal and work email accounts separate? 145 Is there value to creating a list of professionals I rely on? 146 How can I start planning my own funeral? 147 What are Powers of Attorney and how do they apply to me? 148 What are the things I should consider related to being an organ donor?