Probate tips/experience
Discussion
My Mum died over the Xmas break. A sad moment, end of an era and so on. But she was an old lady with dementia who had lived a full life, with the exception of the final decade or so. I am relieved that she popped off before the dementia completely claimed her personality tbh.
So, to probate. What is it, and how much does it cost? How long does it take? Can I do it myself or do I need a solicitor? Her affairs are not complicated. Any tips or experience welcome.
So, to probate. What is it, and how much does it cost? How long does it take? Can I do it myself or do I need a solicitor? Her affairs are not complicated. Any tips or experience welcome.
Hi ,
firstly sorry for Your loss , I lost My Mum back in May and was Executor for Her small estate.
We had already sold Her house to pay care home fees using the LPA which expired on the passing of the person covered.
I did the grant of probate online and it was very straight forward and was not costly ( sorry can’t remember exactly but ball park £150 ?). It says it can take 8 weeks and mine took nearly that long.
Check with the agencies that you have to deal with that they want a grant as some don’t if the sum is small.
Good luck
Geoff
firstly sorry for Your loss , I lost My Mum back in May and was Executor for Her small estate.
We had already sold Her house to pay care home fees using the LPA which expired on the passing of the person covered.
I did the grant of probate online and it was very straight forward and was not costly ( sorry can’t remember exactly but ball park £150 ?). It says it can take 8 weeks and mine took nearly that long.
Check with the agencies that you have to deal with that they want a grant as some don’t if the sum is small.
Good luck
Geoff
Geoff391 said:
Hi ,
firstly sorry for Your loss , I lost My Mum back in May and was Executor for Her small estate.
We had already sold Her house to pay care home fees using the LPA which expired on the passing of the person covered.
I did the grant of probate online and it was very straight forward and was not costly ( sorry can’t remember exactly but ball park £150 ?). It says it can take 8 weeks and mine took nearly that long.
Check with the agencies that you have to deal with that they want a grant as some don’t if the sum is small.
Good luck
Geoff
Tks Geoff. That sounds encouraging for DIY which I am up for if it's not too much faff. firstly sorry for Your loss , I lost My Mum back in May and was Executor for Her small estate.
We had already sold Her house to pay care home fees using the LPA which expired on the passing of the person covered.
I did the grant of probate online and it was very straight forward and was not costly ( sorry can’t remember exactly but ball park £150 ?). It says it can take 8 weeks and mine took nearly that long.
Check with the agencies that you have to deal with that they want a grant as some don’t if the sum is small.
Good luck
Geoff
My mum's estate includes a retirement flat which is currently let but will need to be sold I guess. No shares or other assets apart from some cash in National Savings and a few bits of decent jewellery.
Sis and I are sole beneficiaries and we are also trustees and executors.
As above I managed and I'm not brilliant at that sort of stuff.
Advice.
Don't delay
We actually only needed it for NS&I, no property to sell, simple will and an estate less then £250k.
Santander were very cooperative , I believe they only require probate over £50k, other banks may vary. With the exception of NS&I everything was a breeze.
Electronic versions of the death certificate were satisfactory for most agencies.
Advice.
Don't delay
We actually only needed it for NS&I, no property to sell, simple will and an estate less then £250k.
Santander were very cooperative , I believe they only require probate over £50k, other banks may vary. With the exception of NS&I everything was a breeze.
Electronic versions of the death certificate were satisfactory for most agencies.
Sorry to hear about your loss.
I have been an executor/administrator for family members etc maybe 6-7 times. Some have made wills, others have not. Having a will does make things easier because you can see all the directions of the deceased. You mention "probate" so that looks like there is a will.
From what you say, the assets are reasonably modest. To get probate you'll need all assets valued. Obviously, the largest items seems to be the value of the flat so you need a valuation for probate from an estate agent. Whenever I have been an executor I have always d/w any property disposition etc via an estate agent, including the eventual sale once probate has been obtained.
Getting probate is reasonably straightforward, once you have found and listed all assets, and had them all valued. This can be quite a task depending on the number of assets, what they are etc. From your post, it looks as if this will not be a difficult task. I have always been to a probate office to obtain the grant, after which you can set about the distribution of the estate assets.
Tips:
1. Be organised.
2. Record and keep everything because you will need to draw up a set of what looks in your case to be a simple set of accounts at the very end of the process
3. Don't rush anything, and don't be pushed into rushing anything either.
4. Set up a bank account to deal with all financial transactions; don't use your own. You may need to have an overdraft facility so you can pay all bills ahead of probate.
5. Seek advice if you feel out of your depth.
6. If there's any bequests to charities, don't contact them until the very last minute: if they know something is coming to them their financial people will pester you for completion every day in my experience.
Best of luck!
R.
I have been an executor/administrator for family members etc maybe 6-7 times. Some have made wills, others have not. Having a will does make things easier because you can see all the directions of the deceased. You mention "probate" so that looks like there is a will.
From what you say, the assets are reasonably modest. To get probate you'll need all assets valued. Obviously, the largest items seems to be the value of the flat so you need a valuation for probate from an estate agent. Whenever I have been an executor I have always d/w any property disposition etc via an estate agent, including the eventual sale once probate has been obtained.
Getting probate is reasonably straightforward, once you have found and listed all assets, and had them all valued. This can be quite a task depending on the number of assets, what they are etc. From your post, it looks as if this will not be a difficult task. I have always been to a probate office to obtain the grant, after which you can set about the distribution of the estate assets.
Tips:
1. Be organised.
2. Record and keep everything because you will need to draw up a set of what looks in your case to be a simple set of accounts at the very end of the process
3. Don't rush anything, and don't be pushed into rushing anything either.
4. Set up a bank account to deal with all financial transactions; don't use your own. You may need to have an overdraft facility so you can pay all bills ahead of probate.
5. Seek advice if you feel out of your depth.
6. If there's any bequests to charities, don't contact them until the very last minute: if they know something is coming to them their financial people will pester you for completion every day in my experience.
Best of luck!
R.
We did something of a hybrid.
Brother & I did the closure of dad's many investments etc. Solicitor did the Probate application and final audit/approval of our accounts (sounds poncy, was xls) and someone else from the practice did the property conveyancing.
A bit of a faff, but because dad's interests were a bit sprawling, and certainly a shedload cheaper for us to do it - and tbh, we'd only have had to feed the solicitor the same info. so she could do it and charge for the privilege.
Brother & I did the closure of dad's many investments etc. Solicitor did the Probate application and final audit/approval of our accounts (sounds poncy, was xls) and someone else from the practice did the property conveyancing.
A bit of a faff, but because dad's interests were a bit sprawling, and certainly a shedload cheaper for us to do it - and tbh, we'd only have had to feed the solicitor the same info. so she could do it and charge for the privilege.
Yes You will need the original Will and copies of the death certificate and most places will return them once settled. The probate office keeps the Will so that any other interested parties ( if any ) can get access to it.
You could transfer the rental property to Your sister and Yourself but obviously will need solicitors advice for that .
You could transfer the rental property to Your sister and Yourself but obviously will need solicitors advice for that .
May be useful for you to read this through as it contains good general information and guidance:
https://www.gov.uk/probate-estate
R.
https://www.gov.uk/probate-estate
R.
Sorry to hear about your Mum. My MiL went the same way just before Xmas and we had the funeral between Xmas and NY.
You may not need Probate so check first. My wife has yet to inform the bank as we are waiting a significant refund of care home fees from the council and closing the account will put a barrier there which is frankly not needed. I'm under the impression the size of the estate will mean no probate required. (FiL still going so house goes straight to him along with the savings she had by will.
You may not need Probate so check first. My wife has yet to inform the bank as we are waiting a significant refund of care home fees from the council and closing the account will put a barrier there which is frankly not needed. I'm under the impression the size of the estate will mean no probate required. (FiL still going so house goes straight to him along with the savings she had by will.
For my Dad's estate, I gathered the information from the various financial organisations (Banks, ISA organisations, Venture Capital Trusts etc.) Had we been able to get away without using the IHT400 form, I would have done the probate myself.
In the event I was put onto a solicitor who did a fixed price £2500+VAT package which we went for.
Once they had filled out the forms with the information I had provided, they sent the forms back to me for checking. I reckon with hindsight I might have been able to do it all myself, but for the peace of mind it was £3K well spent.
If you are a logical, methodical, organised person, then do download all the forms and judge if you think you can do it. If not, then see if you can find a solicitor that will do a fixed price package.
PM me if you want to know who I used. I was very impressed by them after all the usual horror stories about the legal profession. In my case, it was them pushing me for action, never the other way round.
In the event I was put onto a solicitor who did a fixed price £2500+VAT package which we went for.
Once they had filled out the forms with the information I had provided, they sent the forms back to me for checking. I reckon with hindsight I might have been able to do it all myself, but for the peace of mind it was £3K well spent.
If you are a logical, methodical, organised person, then do download all the forms and judge if you think you can do it. If not, then see if you can find a solicitor that will do a fixed price package.
PM me if you want to know who I used. I was very impressed by them after all the usual horror stories about the legal profession. In my case, it was them pushing me for action, never the other way round.
Tks all for your v helpful replies. If I can get a solicitor to do it for a couple of grand I will prob go for that option. Couple of friends who said that it cost them ca 10k set me thinking about DIY as that is a fair chunk, but 2k or so I can live with for the sake of a simple life;)
My dad passed away in October, similar simple estate (sub IHT being the main thing), it’s really easy (bank, NS&I, property), online submission for probate (£280.50). The easiest bit is submission, the hard bit is collating all the figures (which you will have to do anyway even if you use a solicitor).
NS&I are bloody slow though!
Jim
NS&I are bloody slow though!
Jim
Consider if anyone will be objecting or questioning how you have done things and any decisions that have made
When my Uncle passed away, the executors (who were not immediate family) chose to put everything though a solicitor to avoid any dispute if any of the other beneficiaries (who were all immediate family) decided to start querying things. In the end there were no issues but it did put the executors minds at rest.
ETA. Apologies, just seen your second post. Looks like this won't be an issue for you any way
When my Uncle passed away, the executors (who were not immediate family) chose to put everything though a solicitor to avoid any dispute if any of the other beneficiaries (who were all immediate family) decided to start querying things. In the end there were no issues but it did put the executors minds at rest.
ETA. Apologies, just seen your second post. Looks like this won't be an issue for you any way
I and my wife did the probate ourselves online for her father last year. Simple estate and all within IHT limits (probate registry informs HMRC if a simple estate), but important to value stuff sensibly. Small bank accounts will probably let an executor take control with a copy of a death cert, just the big stuff and property will need to see grant of probate. However things were made much easier as the in laws both have/had power of attorny.
As others have said - do it yourself if affairs are straightforward
One bit of advice though - fill in all the paperwork and deliver it by hand (with receipt) to the nearest Probate Registry office. It will get processed much much faster. If possible take it to a main office, such as Birmingham and not one of the satellite offices. It's worth the journey and time ...
Sorry for your loss - I'm expecting similar with remaining parent sometime soon :-(
Arf
One bit of advice though - fill in all the paperwork and deliver it by hand (with receipt) to the nearest Probate Registry office. It will get processed much much faster. If possible take it to a main office, such as Birmingham and not one of the satellite offices. It's worth the journey and time ...
Sorry for your loss - I'm expecting similar with remaining parent sometime soon :-(
Arf
When I went through this for my parents’ estate I found contacting the banks etc Breavement service rather than the branch very helpful. They’ve dealt with it all before. A lot of banks will not require probate to release funds up to a certain value £10K, £15K not uncommon. Made dealing with expenses a lot easier.
NS&I were a nightmare, but that was during the pandemic.
The main thing to remember is its value on the date of death, eg share price that day for investments. Not when probate is applied for.
NS&I were a nightmare, but that was during the pandemic.
The main thing to remember is its value on the date of death, eg share price that day for investments. Not when probate is applied for.
Edited by Mr Dendrite on Friday 6th October 14:47
Mr E said:
Thread revival/bump
I’m going through this. Death cert received today
I understand that we need to value the estate before applying for probate.
Will various financial institutions give executors details of savings/accounts without probate? If not, how does one value the estate?
They will .. if there are multiple accounts they will just give you a single figure. I found it best to make f2f appointments - Natwest were fine, as were share dealing places that my dad had accounts with along with old life insurance stuff too.I’m going through this. Death cert received today
I understand that we need to value the estate before applying for probate.
Will various financial institutions give executors details of savings/accounts without probate? If not, how does one value the estate?
LV even found an old life insurance policy for my dad's mum ... who passed away in 1951 that had never been claimed .. They paid it to me (around 1k) .. !!!
My mother died last year and I've spent the past 18 months as the main executor for the estate under the will. First thing I would do in your position is check if there is a will and who are named the executors under it.
Assuming there is a will, the executors are then responsible for getting probate etc; not the beneficiaries under the estate. They work for free (lucky me) but costs they incur such as legal fees, valuers fees will be paid out of the estate.
My best bit of advice to you, if you are an executor, is get a probate lawyer to sort it out for you. Fair enough you might decide to do it yourself, but if you are administering an estate of any reasonable size, the 10-15k the estate ends up paying is money totally well spent. Then all you have to do is find a valuer to go through your mother's house (f
king miserable experience that is, regardless of what you/your mum will have thought at the time it will mostly be worthless - the valuer valued everything in whole house at less than £1500 and I ended up paying a charity to clear the place out.) Then you have to get probate - that means paying the IHT. Executors are personally liable for it. If you are lucky, you might find that the deceased is sat on a large enough pile of cash to cover the liability, and your lawyer can write to the banks to get that cash released (which they will only do in advance of probate being granted to pay IHT or funeral expenses). Otherwise, you have to take out a loan!!!! Then, once you (the executor) gets probate, you have to sell the house. That has taken over a year in my case but we finally completed 2 weeks ago.
Long and the short of it: find the will. Work out who the executors are. Get probate lawyers.
Assuming there is a will, the executors are then responsible for getting probate etc; not the beneficiaries under the estate. They work for free (lucky me) but costs they incur such as legal fees, valuers fees will be paid out of the estate.
My best bit of advice to you, if you are an executor, is get a probate lawyer to sort it out for you. Fair enough you might decide to do it yourself, but if you are administering an estate of any reasonable size, the 10-15k the estate ends up paying is money totally well spent. Then all you have to do is find a valuer to go through your mother's house (f
king miserable experience that is, regardless of what you/your mum will have thought at the time it will mostly be worthless - the valuer valued everything in whole house at less than £1500 and I ended up paying a charity to clear the place out.) Then you have to get probate - that means paying the IHT. Executors are personally liable for it. If you are lucky, you might find that the deceased is sat on a large enough pile of cash to cover the liability, and your lawyer can write to the banks to get that cash released (which they will only do in advance of probate being granted to pay IHT or funeral expenses). Otherwise, you have to take out a loan!!!! Then, once you (the executor) gets probate, you have to sell the house. That has taken over a year in my case but we finally completed 2 weeks ago. Long and the short of it: find the will. Work out who the executors are. Get probate lawyers.
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