Executor paying decedent's expenses out of own pocket

[rwam]

What is the name of your state? IL

Hi,
I am the executor of my father's estate. For the first month after he died, I paid his monthly utility bills, insurance and a $1500 tax bill. Total expenses came to $2300 by the time his estate checking account was setup. I suppose I could have ignored the bills, but I paid them. I kept track of every check I wrote on his behalf and kept receipts. Since I think we're still 6-7 months away from settling the estate, (and I find myself in a temporary cash crunch!), am I allowed to write myself a check NOW to reimburse myself for these expenses? Or do I need to wait until everything is disbursed? Or...worse...am I even eligible to recoup these expenses at all when everything is divided up?
Thanks,
Rob

 

[mdconnor]

Since no one else answered you get a layman's point of view. While it is best to keep the estate and executor accounts separate there is nothing wrong with the estate paying legitimate bills. Just because the check is to the executor does not make it illegal. I ran into this a couple of times and just kept it well documented.

 

[rwam]

Thanks, MD. That's what I figure, especially since I've been careful to keep good documentation and us 3 siblings all get along quite well, so it's very unlikely any of the heirs would protest.

 

[Dandy Don]

You can file a claim with the estate to get reimbursed for this. Ask a local attorney how to do it. Is there enough money in the estate to pay you back?

 

[rwam]

Thanks, Don. Yeah, more than enough cash and no creditors that have come forward since we filed the estate back in January. I'll ask my lawyer if he ever calls me back!