New York
My mother has recently passed away and my sister and I are the executrixes of the estate. I would like to know what we have to do. Her possessions were distributed before her death and the only things left to do is distribute her checking/savngs and an IRA account. She has $8,200 outstanding in credit card debt. Her 2008 taxes will need to be filed and there was a trust that will also need to have taxes paid on it. Other then that, there is nothing else. Total monies between the accounts totals approximately $170,000. The trust was left to my sister and I but my mother was able to use the interest to live on as long as she was alive. My mother and sister were the trustees on the account. Am I correct in assuming that on my mother's passing, the trust no longer exists? Can we just take that money in the account? If so, what do we need to prove to the banks to give us the money? Do we have to file probate if no one is contesting the will? What can we do to save time and money here?
My mother has recently passed away and my sister and I are the executrixes of the estate. I would like to know what we have to do. Her possessions were distributed before her death and the only things left to do is distribute her checking/savngs and an IRA account. She has $8,200 outstanding in credit card debt. Her 2008 taxes will need to be filed and there was a trust that will also need to have taxes paid on it. Other then that, there is nothing else. Total monies between the accounts totals approximately $170,000. The trust was left to my sister and I but my mother was able to use the interest to live on as long as she was alive. My mother and sister were the trustees on the account. Am I correct in assuming that on my mother's passing, the trust no longer exists? Can we just take that money in the account? If so, what do we need to prove to the banks to give us the money? Do we have to file probate if no one is contesting the will? What can we do to save time and money here?