r/EstatePlanning

so I am dealing with my late uncle's estate in Richfield, Minnesota and it is incredibly overwhelming. He wasn't quite like the extreme people you see on reality TV, but he was definitely a low-key hoarder. the house is completely packed with old newspapers, broken furniture, boxes of random junk, and decades of clutter.

I am completely embarrassed by the state of it and honestly, the thought of spending my weekends filling up multiple dumpsters makes me want to cry.

can you actually sell a house with literal mountains of junk still inside? I noticed that local investors say they will buy houses exactly as they sit, meaning we can just take the family photos and leave the rest behind

does anyone have real experience with this? do they actually handle the cleanout themselves without charging you crazy fees later on?

Just retired and I have savings from the company in 401 K. Nevada. Mostly pre tax. I have always been told to put down my wife as the primary benefiaciary and our trust as contingent beneficiary. I just reviewed my retirement finances with my advisor, who said I should put my two children's names down as contingent beneficiary. I am a bit confused since they are named in the trust already. What is the difference?

My father is nearing end of life and wants to transfer his properties to me. They are in Arizona. They are all currently held in an LLC with him being the sole member. I believe the quickest and easiest thing would be to transfer the LLC to his personal name through a quit claim deed and then follow that up a day or so later with a beneficiary deed from him to me listing me as the beneficiary upon his death. Are there any cost basis/Tax issues with doing it this way? Since it is a one person LLC to begin with I don’t see any issues with moving it into his personal name and out of the LLC. That should not change the cost basis. These were purchased 10+ years ago.

My father has now had 2 incredibly close brushes with death, and prolonged hospilaitzions...

After the first of which... in November of last year... we, as a family, came to the realization that he had not prepared for 'the end', the way he told us he had...

When he recovered in late 2025, and he decided to have a 2nd round of high-risk procedures (early-to-mid 2026).. we made sure he had everything set through lawyers, a medical POA (my sister) and an executor of his estate (a somewhat new friend of my father's).

My wife and I moved into his home, once he was discharged from the 2nd set of surgeries... and, into my care.

We did everything in our power to care for him, around the clock, but i was forced to carry him back into the hospital (where he has stayed in the ICU for the past 2 weeks)...

Currently, things aren't looking good, and our costs have started to pile up. I was verbally told about savings bonds that existed, for my sister and I.... but had never seen proof of them...

Without breaking into his safe or anything, I recently found photocopies versions of pages of (30-year) EE bonds issued in 1983 and 1988. (Our birth years, respectively).

An interesting note: my older sisters' bonds have a by-line that includes my mother as a potentially payee of her bonds. Mine are written specifically to me, and only me.

I've looked them up on the Fed's website, and they register only as M (matured).

I asked the executor of the estate about these bonds, and he is insistent that they do not exist in any of the safes or notebooks he has special access to.

What should I be doing to find these things? Understanding that my father is incapacitated and things will likely be flying everywhere upon his eventual death?

... Is there a bank i could approach with proof of their existence? There are three separate issuing institutions on the ones I'm concerned about... Would i be putting my mother (ex-wife of my Father) at legal risk if she somehow pilfered these? Or, even my dad?

Trying to understand why these have been stagnant/lost since 2018. I'll appreciate any advice or feedback.

Thanks in advance.

My brother is 65 years old in Virginia and he will be getting a share of our parents’ property- probably a minimum of $200,000 but could be as much as $400,000. He has never been good with money. He is remarrried. His wife has I think 2 adult children and he has 2 adult children. One of his children will have to help the other one somewhat because of his disabilities. He is able to hold a job.

I don’t know if I will be successful but I want to persuade him to meet with a lawyer and get a will drawn. I also would like to open an account for him to manage these funds. He doesn’t have much in retirement, just some social security that will be coming in. He doesn’t own a house. I am afraid he will blow through it all, leave nothing for his wife and kids. Or if he dies beforehand, the wife gets it and his kids get nothing. I believe this is my one chance, he may possibly listen to me. What do you suggest having him set up? As a side note, he’s not that great accessing stuff online so if he were able to get a monthly withdrawal to live on, it would be a deterrent for him to just blow it all if it was sitting in his bank account.

I live in Illinois, Brother in Arizona, Dad lives in Florida with property in Florida and Indiana.

Not sure if this is the right place for this Q or if someplace else is. But here we go.

My dad has been very proactive in planning his estate. He set up a trust, brother and I will co-inherit and we all regularly discuss all the accounts, amounts and what to do when he passes. The plan works for all, we’ve been aligned. Neither property holds any sentimental significance to my brother and I. We don’t live near either place and have no intention of visiting once dad passes.

Dad lives in FL in his 2nd wife’s home. His FL furnished condo is basic and only used by family when visiting him. IN property has all the antiques and personal ephemera that comes from living 80 years. He spends about 4 months in IN. It’s a large 3 story home with steep stairs and where all our effort will go when he passes. Dad dismissed suggestions to sell before but he was in good health.

None of us expected dad’s loss of mobility to make IN a dangerous place for him to be. Brother, 2nd wife and I don’t think he’ll be able to do another summer there. Dad can be stubborn and prideful but also can be reasoned with. He doesn’t want to be a burden but also doesn’t want to do the work of cleaning it all out. “Just take what you want and have an estate sale when I’m gone.”

Dad brushed off selling IN before but I think could be open to it at this point except for 2 blockers. 1. What he wanted us to take (me specifically since it’s the antique furniture.) 2. Capital gains tax from the sale if proceeds don’t go into another home.

I currently do not live in a place to fit the furniture. I’ve been house hunting and this is a factor in my search. But it’s a sellers market, won’t cool off anytime soon, and I’ve not found anything yet.

My questions: If dad sold IN could we (he and I) buy a place in IL together where I live? It’d still have to be financed which I would pay the mortgage and property taxes. How would that work from a federal and state income tax perspective for me, him and for the estate? His property is owned by the trust now. Would that be considered a gift that I’d get taxed on now? Does it not get taxed because the sale of one property went into the next? Can a trust and a person co-own a property? What percentage of ownership would be ideal and how does that get documented? Can that transfer to me with no issues after death? For fairness to my brother, I would of course subtract the amount contributed to the purchase from my half of the estate after dad passes. Is there anything else we should think of for fairness for my brother?

Any other ideas?

To be clear, if he wanted to just sell and give the money to others, that’d be fine with me. I’m not trying to get extra from the estate. I just know the antiques and mementos are what’s going to stop my dad from being willing to sell. I already rent one storage unit and couldn’t pay to move the stuff up and store it for years. So I’m trying to find a solution that will get him away from a home that he physically can’t manage anymore and could actually kill him (or worse, in his eyes, steals the quality of his life for his last years and would cause him to be a burden to everyone he loves).

I borrowed a large sum of money from my grandmother many years ago. We had our family attorney write up a Promissory Note regarding the terms of repayment and an additional document transferring assignment of the Promissory Note to my grandmother's three sons(my two uncles and my father) upon the death of my grandmother. She passed last year and I have been paying my father and uncles ever since. The amount I was initially paying my grandmother per month is now split among those three every month. ($1000 monthly, they each get $333.33 per month).

One of my uncles is going to have surgery later this month and it carries some risk that he may die. If he does, what happens to his portion remaining in the Promissory Note? Can my uncle designate in his will that his portion is to go to his two children($167.67 per month each)? Or are my father and other uncle entitled to having that amount added to their current payment instead, bring them up to $500 per month each? Nobody is mentioned in the Promissory Note outside of myself, my wife, my grandmother, my father, and my two uncles.

I've never missed a payment and am in no danger of that happening for the 5 years remaining in the loan term, I'm just trying to get a grasp on what to expect if my uncle does pass. I know I should probably contact our attorney, but wanted to see if I could get some thoughts on this before spending money on the consultation. Thanks!

Hi everyone, I am living in California and I am confuse about my parents estate. My mom she want to make a living trust so we dont go through probate but I dont really understand how it work exactly. She own a house in San Francisco and some saving account, nothing too big. She is asking me should she do trust or just a simple will, and I dont know difference good enough to help her decide. Someone in family said trust is expensive to set up but save money later, other person said will is enough for small estate like this. I dont want to give her wrong information so I come here to ask people who know more. Anyone from California who went through this with parents, what you choose and why? Also is it true you still need a will even if you have trust? Please explain like simple as you can, English is not my first language so sorry if question sound confuse. Thank you for any help, and yes I know this is not legal advice, we already planning to see a real lawyer soon, just want to understand basic first before we go.

My husband died in 2022 from Lewy body dementia and Covid after a year in a nursing home. I notified credit card companies and student loan servicer, but I never did the thing where I posted the notice to creditors in the newspaper. I am now trying to get my affairs in order, and I’m super worried about this. Is this a problem? Our house is paid in full and all I have, no savings or stocks or stuff like that. I am on North Carolina.

How does it work if you will it to a charity that probably won't use it for business (ie animal rescue etc)... Do they just sell it and pocket the proceeds? Is there a chance they could move someone into it, how would that work? Are there nuanced stipulations to be made? State is Florida

Hello everyone,
Location: my Location is Texas

My grandfather passed away recently and I’m in his trust along with an aunt and 2 uncles, I know some of the trust involves property that him and my grandmother used for cattle and hay. my issue is idk if I should myself get a probate lawyer to look over the trust, do I have to sign papers if I don’t know what’s happening? Is cattle usually involved in a trust like this or not? Google 🙄 told me,lol, that if it’s land that makes money off of farming or ranching that, that matters? I’m in Montague County specifically, if anyone has suggestions on a persons that serves the area as it’s very rural so not many options here.

Thank y’all for your time.

I went to an estate planning workshop a few days ago. Unfortunately the venue had poor acoustics and I had a hard time hearing the presentation.

I knew going in it would basically be a sales presentation, but thought it might be helpful to get some ideas and see if there were any aspects I should consider.

If we already have recent wills, POA, healthcare POA, and living wills, is there anything estate planning can offer that I haven't covered?

I'm retired but my wife still works, for maybe 4 more years. Our retirement accounts are at Fidelity and I manage them (for better or for worse), and I think we're positioned well for retirement.

We live in NC. I heard that wills don't skip probate but that trusts do. Is that something worthwhile that spending money for estate planning would be worthwhile?

What don't I know that I don't know? (The list may be long). 😜

What is the estate taxation status for some who say puts US situs assets like a Wyoming LLC into a Wyoming Irrevocable Trust, and appointing a Domestic trustee.

I want to know estate tax consequences in below two scenarios:

1. grantor is. Foreigner

2. foreign grantor becomes a US resident after settlement in foreseeable future.

-United Kingdom

This is in the US and in Maryland.

My parents recently went to a lawyer to prepare for my father’s inevitable upcoming need for a nursing home. They wanted to protect as much money as they can from Medicaids 5 year look back. The lawyer they went to set them up multiple trusts and ensured them the “At a minimum, 50% of your assets are protected even if you need a nursing home tomorrow. If you wait longer, say a year or so, then it can be closer to 60% or 70%.”

Well, it turns out my dad is headed there sooner rather than later and his physical therapist and occupational therapist said he can’t take care of himself and he is not safe at home.

Can someone explain like I’m five how this kind of protection works?

We also don’t know when the 50% of assets actually kicks in - like how will they know they are now qualified for Medicaid if on paper they still have money but based on the trust and what the lawyer said they are qualified for Medicaid.

At the core of it, I’m afraid my parents were hoodwinked because I’m not finding any answers online for how this arrangement works. But I know what I heard from the lawyers.

Thanks in advance.

I just became executor of my father's estate and need to decide where to open an Estate Account. I am in Alabama and he lived in Virginia and the only banks I've found that are in both places are:

• PNC
• Chase
• Wells Fargo

I've of course found negative reviews and threads about all of them for Estate Accounts (and I generally avoid Wells Fargo), but are any of them better than the rest for this?

Thanks!

So I've been operating my own single member LLC for the last 6 years or so. Turns out that without an adequate operating agreement relating to my trust, all this can go to probate upon my demise, despite me thinking that the trust was supposed to cover all that.

As it turns out, it is the membership interest within the LLC that is passed on rather than any of the assets themselves contained within it; and unless your trust is named explicitly as the member of record, you are basically leaving your family with a legal headache.

Are there others who are caught off guard by this one? Was the operating agreement issue raised up front by your estate planning attorney, or were you made aware of it through some other route?

Not legal advice, just sharing what I learned the hard way. Curious how others handled it.

Location: London, England and US. My sister lives in the UK, I live in the US. Our father passed away two weeks ago in France, where he lived. Our stepmother and stepsister have NOT sent us a copy of the will, and instead have demanded that we sign away rights to his (few) possessions so they can sell them and keep the money. I said no, nothing is being signed until I see the will.
My sister has asked for a copy of the will, and so far they have stalled. We have his death certificate so we may be able to find a copy of his will. My question is, I need a lawyer who understands French law that I or my sister can talk to. We intend on getting his will and we need someone to show it to who knows the law. Thanks for reading.

I am a citizen of US, resident of New Mexico. I am married to a Sri Lankan and we have tried for 6 years to obtain her immigrant visa without success. In response I am selling my NM estate and relocating to our home in Sri Lanka, I will however maintain a US address. As a result my financial investments would almost double to $800K In a prelude to establishing a revocable trust for structured income for self, and provide for her as well as my birth son and family, I am trying to learn a bit more. I understand if I leave her as one beneficiary to my US investment accounts she would be obligated to pay estate tax on any amounts distributed over $60,000. I believe that is an all time limit? Would her obligations be reduced if I asked the attorney to switch the structured income to her name upon my death?

In Tennessee but the questions are pretty generic. Currently 45, assets around $5m, two children, 9 and 11. A trust is being drafted but I'm having a hard time deciding what the verbiage should be, in the unfortunate case that my wife and I died before the children were adults. This initial trust has to be bank managed and make sure our children don't end up doing nothing with their lives or spending every penny at age 21.

My thoughts are

• Maintenance until 25
• At 25 some percentage each year distributed
• At 35 some greater percentage each year distributed
• At 45 some greater percentage each year distributed

The problem I have with this is I don't know what size the trust will end up being. 1% of 1 million dollars is too little, imo.

My estate attorney has recommended two approaches

• Divided up by 10, paid out that 10% from 25 to 35. Or 5% over 20 years.
• or
• Pay out at 25, 35, and all of the rest at 45.

I feel like both of these could give access to too much money, too early in life. What are other people in this situation doing? Keep in mind that we don't know how our children will turn out. If we are alive and they are 30, this trust may look totally different!

Would these values need to adjust with inflation? Putting a fixed value like $50k is a totally different amount in 10 years.

Other things in the trust, in case people have comments

• Single pool of money until the first child reaches 25. Health and maintenance can come out of this pool.
• Split pool once the first child hits 25, this is when payouts would start.
• 529s are already split
• Pre-tax accounts will split on death, one pool for each child.
  • In Tennessee these can be held until the child is 21
  • At 21 they will be paid out over 10 years, has to be paid directly to the beneficiary
  • Trust payouts will be reduced by this amount each year

Thanks for any tips!

I don't know if this is just a small-town bank being a pain in the ass or what.... but there's about $40K in CDs left to 8 named beneficiaries (the grandkid generation). 6 have completed and submitted the necessary paperwork - two have not, after what feels like endless nagging.

This process has been dragging on for about 8 months now, and those that have completed their part are getting frustrated - they understandably want the money they were told about.

Is there anything else that can be done, or I can do as an executor?