Probate Checklist for Administrators, Executors, and Personal Representatives
(For the free printable probate checklist, click here.)
*This list is provided for convenience and informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. This site contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no additional charge to you.
PROBATE RESPONSIBILITIES OF PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES
After taking the time to mourn and grieve with friends and family, you should always meet with an attorney to determine how you should go about administering your loved one’s estate.
Each state and personal circumstances are different. Therefore, it is imperative that you meet with an attorney who can review the facts with you and recommend a clear path for your loved one’s estate administration.
Perhaps probate is the right or only course for you. If so, you will need an attorney’s assistance to file all necessary paperwork and meet court deadlines. However, the personal representative will have a fair amount of responsiblity as well.
The Personal Representative (or executor or administrator) is responsible for collecting, inventorying, accounting for, and ultimately distributing the assets of a probate estate.
The to-do list can get quite long, and you might be looking for a list of your responsiblities. I recommend that all of my personal representatives, with the assistance of counsel, complete all of the tasks listed here.
If you want a printable executor’s probate checklist, click here!
PROBATE CHECKLIST FOR PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES
Fiduciary Responsiblities
- Track all
- time
- mileage
- expenses
- receipts
- expenses
- payments or cancelled checks
TAXES: With the assistance of tax professionals calendar all tax returns including
- Decedent’s final tax return
- 706 if needed
- Alternate Valuation date if applicable
- Annual 1041s if applicable
Collect, locate, and protect all estate property.
- Change the locks on the house.
- Collect, store, and organize all of the important paperwork.
- Forward all mail to your address.
- Maintain insurance on all real and personal property including vehicles. If the residence will be vacant during administration, advise your insurance carrier. Some insurance policies are voidable if no one is living in the property.
- If you are unsure where the accounts are, your attorney will be able to send out general inquiry letters.
Beneficiaries
- Collect the names, addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers, ages, and relationships of all beneficiaries of the estate.
- Notify all beneficiaries of your appointment as personal representative.
Valuations
- Order appraisals on all real and personal property.
- Hold an auction or private sale of all property not specifically gifted by will, trust, or other devise.
- Consult an accounting firm or other business valuation company to value closely-held business interests now owned by the estate.
- This includes valuing all of the debts now owed by the estate.
Collecting and closing accounts
- Open an estate checking account with a unique estate EIN number and letters testamentary or court order.
- Order checks for the estate account.
- Maintain clear and concise written records of all transactions of any account.
- File for any life insurance claims payable to the estate.
- Collect any investment accounts payable to the estate.
- Close all personal checking, savings, and investment accounts payable to the estate.
- Inventory and clear all safety deposit boxes.
- Cash in and deposit all savings bonds or certificates of deposit.
Personal Representative’s Probate Inventory
- Make a list of every single asset that came into the estate.
- Real Property (real estate)
- Personal property and household effects
- Accounts
- Business interests
- Notes or accounts receivable
- Other
- Submit the inventory to the court and all beneficiaries
Creditors
- Notify all creditors of the death.
- Settle and negotiate all priority claims with court approval if necessary
- Settle and negotiate all debts with court approval if necessary
Accounting.
- Report your actions, the assets, the expenses, and the distributions to the court.
- Inventory
- Additional Receipts
- Expenses
- Future Expenses
- Distributions
Distributions
- Do not make ANY distributions without court approval or the approval of your attorney. This include prepayments, loans, offsets, advances, etc.
When authorized to make any distribution collect a receipt and duplicate check for every single distribution.
PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES AND PROBATE ADMINISTRATION
Probate can be a long and cumbersome process. You should always consult with your local counsel about your facts and circumstances.
However, feel free to use this checklist and free printable to help you organize your estate and probate administration.
To read more about what Probate is OR why you might want to avoid probate, check these out: