Death, no will

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? WV

Hi, a few questions, my sibs and I are lost.
Lost widowed mom very sudden. No will. 4 children. We get along great and have agreed to how to divide. Only a few assets. One being a car, which we've already agreed on who gets it. One bank account that happens to have a chunk of money because she sold her home prior to her passing. Only the car is in solely her name. Bank account is joint with a sibling, with full trust from the rest of us to divide equally. Because of illness, she'd went to live with one of us and had already given away her personal belongings which really didn't amount to much.
We really wish to keep it between us. No probate, lawyers, etc. Is that going to be possible since we all agree?
What are the tax implications and how should we handle them? It is my understanding that my sibling can simply "gift" our shares to us as long as they are under 13,000. (which they will be, not that much money) Also, about the estate tax and if it even applies to us since the bank account and the car are all she had. She has zero debts and we will be paying all medical bills prior to the split. Any advice? We are so distraught and we are close and we desperately want to deal with this privately.

first, realize that the bank account that was jointly held with your mother: it belongs to that sibling and they have no legal requirement to share it with anybody. Nice if they do but not legally required.

that money does not have to be used to pay her estates assets either. It is not part of your mothers estate.


to the tax situation; I can offer nothing there.

We are blessed to have her owning the money as far as I'm concerned. She would never in a million years hold money from the rest of us, as mom wouldn't have wanted that and has offered to show statements once the med bills were paid to show fairness. Of course, I don't need to see as that is not an issue.
I just want to know if we can keep the courts out of our business and if there is some estate tax? If that isn't part of her estate and we split up her furniture prior to her passing because of the sale of the house. That only leaves the car. My mother didn't believe in debt and had NONE. God bless her.
We can deal with this on our own. I guess I wanted to make sure that outsiders won't pry as long as we are agreeing and of course, none of us want any tax surprises down the road. So, any tax advice would be appreciated. Thanks so much.

Oh, and if anybody knew about the gift tax.

. Of course, I don't need to see as that is not an issue.

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that is heartwarming to hear. Most of the time the situation, at least presented here, is just the opposite. Just wanted to make the situation on that clear.

there are some folks here very knowledgeable about the tax situation. Hang on for their input.

There should be no problem with taxes. Split the money. The car might be a problem changing the title. Talk to your department of motor vehicles to see what they require.

Contact Social Security if she was receiving S.S. File a last federal Form 1040 if she had income.

So, it really does sound like we can do this on our own as long as we pay her bills. I checked the irs website and it said as long as it isnt more than 13,000 she can give it as gifts with no taxes. the dmv in this state just said that the oldest sibling needs to sign over the title to the sib taking it so that sounded pretty easy. I guess I am lucky to have such a great family. I know this could be a mess for some and my sis could really screw us if she wanted. haha. So, I guess we just need to file an income tax return for mom at tax season if she was receiving disability?(she was).
And, really no need for courts and probate? That almost seems too good to be true. My mom had 4 kids that thought she walked on water and this is such a hard time.
You guys are helpful.

Does WV have an inheritance tax?

I just read that there is no inheritance tax but there is a limited estate tax based on the federal estate tax. This is all so confusing. Is there really an estate since she basically gave my sis all the money by putting her on the account and her personal stuff is scattered with us all as she'd already given it to us. The only "estate" that i can come up with is the car. that was the only thing she owned by herself. we plan to pay final med bills but my mom believed in simple stuff and no debt. \
I guess I was understanding that once my sis paid off the med bills and made the split, that she was giving us a gift from her and not an inheritance???????

If she passed away in 2010, there is no estate tax - either federal or state.

Regarding gift tax, there is a Search link just above the forum name header. Type in Gift Tax and choose Show Posts. It has been explained many times here.

Yes, we just lost her. We've been so lost and scared and we just wanted to handle it privately.

I cannot tell you how greatful I am for the information given. It helps so much. Thank you.