My clients know that they can call me in the event of a loved one's death, and that I'll guide them through everything that needs to be done, but most people don't have any plan in place at all, let alone an advisor to turn to for guidance. It occurred to me that it might be helpful to readers if I compile a list of things that need to be done when a loved one dies. Here is the list:
1. Notify doctor, coroner, and/or police officer (depends on whether death occurs at home or hospital).
2. Determine whether decedent wished to donate tissues and organs. (Look in estate planning materials.) If there are no wishes stated, it will usually be up to next-of-kin.
3. Contact family and friends. Hopefully, the deceased has compiled a list of people to notify in his or her estate plan.
4. Funeral arrangements. If they're not prepaid, they can be paid from the estate of the deceased. This is also something that the deceased may have expressed wishes about in his or her estate plan. Determine whether the deceased will have military or police officer honors.
5. Prepare obituary. Again, the deceased may have helped you with this in his or her estate plan.
6. Locate estate planning documents and asset information. Hopefully, the deceased has communicated his or her plan with you prior to death, and hopefully, the documents aren't in a super secret safety deposit box. Having an attorney to turn to at this point is invaluable.
7. Arrange care for surviving family and pets. Guardians for minor children must petition the court to have guardianship approved.
8. Secure real and personal property and make an inventory of all personal property.
9. DO NOT immediately accept benefits (retirement, annuities, investments). Contact your Estate Planning Attorney and inquire about the use of disclaimers. There may be tax savings in doing so.
10. Use a team of advisors (attorney, CPA, financial advisor). There will be many legal, financial, and tax issues that come up and it's best to have the advice of professionals in those fields.
11. Contact an Estate Planning Attorney as soon as possible. If there is a Will, it may need to be filed with the Probate Court by a certain date, and the Federal Estate Tax return is due 9 months after the date of death. You may have a state tax return as well; the existence and rules vary state to state. You also only have 9 months to decide on the use of disclaimers to save on estate taxes. Without a Will in place, probate may need to be opened depending on the size of the estate. If there is a Trust in place, there will probably be a lot of paperwork that needs to be completed, and this is best handled by an attorney. Also, many states require that estates notify creditors publicly, and the estate must remain open during the statutory time period, so it's a good idea to contact an attorney early on so that the clock can begin.
12. Obtain the death certificate. It's best to get several copies, because many of the institutions you'll be dealing with will need a copy.
13. Create inventory of assets (real property, valuable personal property, bank accounts, stocks, retirement accounts, life insurance, etc.). If the deceased has done thorough planning, a spreadsheet of these assets should be with his or her estate planning materials.
14. Compile list of creditors.
15. Notification for benefits and insurance. Provide employee benefits, insurance, Social Security, and Medicare offices with: Decedent's name, Social Security number, date of death, whether death was due to illness or accident, your name and address.
16. Other notification: Veteran's benefits, club and credit memberships, disability insurers, utility companies, homeowners, landlord, anyone providing home maintenance.
17. Contact IRS for new Tax ID number for estate or trust.
18. If the decedent was a business owner,there are obviously additional items to consider. One is whether the decedent had a Buy-Sell Agreement or other type of business succession plan.
Many of these things can be handled by your attorney. Sometimes it's worth it to let someone else handle the tedious stuff, so that you can be with your family and grieve. (Credit to Peggy Hoyt & Randy Bryan of Hoyt & Bryan, LLC in Oviedo, Florida. I used much of what they shared in a seminar of theirs that I listened to.)
Here is a list of extra steps to take to be really careful to protect the deceased's identity from being stolen:
1. Request the deceased's credit reports from the three credit bureaus.
2. Request that the credit bureaus suppress the deceased's credit file.
3. Send a copy of the death certificate to all creditors.
4. Immediately notify Social Security of the deceased's death.
4. Cancel all of the deceased's ID cards.
5. Safeguard documents that have the deceased's Social Security number.
6. Avoid giving too many details in the death announcement (like mother's maiden name, etc.).
(Credit to Aleksandra Todorova, WSJ.)
I know it seems like a lot of stuff to do after one dies and it is; however, you can make it easy for your family by placing most of the information in one location. My clients are provided an estate planning binder where most, if not all, required information upon death can be located. Obviously, it's best to have an advisor that you can turn to at the time of a loved one's death. It's a vulnerable time for grieving loved ones to be entering into such an important relationship. One of the best things you can do for your family is to do a thorough estate plan now, while it's easy and you're in good health. Look at the list and think about how you can make each of these items easy on your family. Having an attorney for them to turn to is a big one, but there are other things you can do as well. Have a spreadsheet of your assets in your estate planning binder. Have Memorial instructions. Have a list of people that should be notified of your death. These are just a few examples of how you can make things easier for your loved ones.
To your family's health & prosperity,
P.S. Oregon readers: If you want to make things as easy as possible for your family, call my office today to set up your Family Treasures Information Session (free for blog readers, a $750.00 value!). It's a no-obligation meeting where you will learn exactly what your family's situation looks like and how you can plan to avoid any unwanted consequences of your current plan (or lack of plan). Call (503) 235-5150.
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