Do's and Don'ts for an Executor of an Estate

Being nominated as an executor for an estate is a responsibility that can be complex and time-consuming. Oftentimes, the executor appointed is an individual who has little to no experience with estate administration. Lack of experience and familiarity in the niche subject of estate administration can lead to a number of problems including debts not being paid on time, tax issues, and beneficiaries not receiving as much as they would have had you correctly and efficiently administered the estate.

While there are many things to learn with estate administration, there are a few fundamental Do’s and Don'ts that can serve first-time executors who are feeling as though they are in over their heads. If you follow the basic rules below, it will go a long way in ensuring that an estate is administered successfully:

DO stay organized and keep diligent notes: One of the most important skills for an executor to have is the ability to stay organized. Oftentimes, a decedent will have a number of accounts at several different financial institutions. A decedent’s creditors may come out of the woodwork and demand that a debt be paid by the estate. All of these assets and debts coupled with real and personal property that a decedent may have owned can create confusion for an inexperienced executor. If an executor fails to maintain organization and track all records in an accounting, information can be lost in the shuffle and assets may be at risk. Having a clear idea of all accounts, real property, personal property, and debts will allow you to continually distribute assets correctly and efficiently.

DON’T keep beneficiaries out of the loop: Consistent communication and transparency with the decedent’s beneficiaries is an integral part of the duties of an executor. The beneficiaries are the people who will ultimately receive the assets of the Estate. This requires a tremendous amount of cooperation between the executor and the beneficiaries. A beneficiary should always be up to date on the status of any open item, whether it be the sale of property, assets held in accounts, etc. While this may seem obvious, it is sometimes difficult to successfully communicate with a number of different beneficiaries. This is especially the case if the beneficiaries are at odds with one another or do not communicate well on a regular basis. A relatively simple solution is to schedule a bi-weekly or monthly meeting to keep the beneficiaries up to date on open matters facing the estate.

DO act in the best interest of the Decedent: A great rule of thumb to abide by when you run into any issue in your duties as an executor is to act in the best interest of the Decedent. Had he or she be living, would the Decedent want you to make a specific decision with regards to their assets? As executor, the decedent personally entrusted you to distribute his or her belongings after they pass. Keeping that in mind, it is important to do what you believe they would have thought is best when managing and distributing their assets.

DON’T delay opening an Estate Account: An estate account is a bank account in the estate’s name. Once an estate account is open, you can begin transferring funds from the bank accounts held in the Decedent's name to the newly established estate account. Opening an Estate account early in the process is important as it allows you to have all of the decedent’s funds in one place. The sooner that you can have all of a Decedent’s funds in a central estate account, the sooner debts can be paid off and distributions can be made.

DO retain an Attorney and Financial Planning expert with Estate Planning experience: Administering an estate can be an extremely time-consuming and complex matter. Depending on the complexity of an estate, being an executor can be a position that takes as much time as your day job. To ease this burden and to ensure the best for carrying out the Decedent's wishes, you will want to retain an Estate Planning or Probate Attorney to assist you with the facilitation of the Decedent’s assets. This is especially important when you are unfamiliar with the process; but even if you have administration experience, it is always smart to have an expert alongside you to ensure that you are doing the best for the Decedent and the Estate.

If you have any questions about preparing an estate plan, please feel free to contact Glick and Trostin, LLC at 312-346-8258.

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