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The Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax is levied on the net estate value at the date of death, meaning the fair market value of the estate’s assets less the expenses of the estate administration and existing debts.

The Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax is levied on the net estate value, meaning the fair market value of the estate’s assets less expenses and debts.

If repairing the house for sale is reasonable, and the expenses paid are reasonable, they will be deducted from the sale proceeds when calculating the net estate.

Beneficiaries of Bucks County estates will often approach us asking our help in keeping an eye on the estate’s executor. This is often the result of the executor not sharing information about the estate with the beneficiary, the executor’s unreasonable delays, or when the executor’s behavior has raised the beneficiary’s concern.

When we are asked about what steps a beneficiary can take to keep an eye on the executor, I will outline various options, such as:

Question: My mother’s Burlington County Will directs me to distribute money directly to my brother, who is mentally ill and has a spouse who will squander the funds. What recourse do I have?

As the executor of a Burlington County will, he has a duty to follow through with the terms of the will. Should the brother not wish to cooperate, he has a legal right to have his Burlington County Probate Attorney petition the Surrogates Court to force the executor to turn over to him his inheritance.

Question: I am the executor of my mother’s estate in Gloucester County, New Jersey. How do I know when it’s safe to distribute the assets of an estate?

As the executor of an estate, that person is a fiduciary, and owes a duty to the beneficiaries. The executor also is the representative responsible to satisfy all valid estate debts prior to making distributions. Creditors include any taxes due, such as the mother’s final income tax return and the New Jersey Estate Tax return.

If an executor sells his mother’s Chester County home, does he have to pay the Pennsylvania probate tax before dividing up the sale proceeds with his siblings?

First, let’s clarify a few things. In Pennsylvania, the “probate tax” is the Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax. Because the estate is being divided up between the mother’s children, that rate is 4.5% on the date of death value of her entire taxable estate. The taxable estate includes the house.

Question: How do I reopen a closed estate in Atlantic County? My brother served as executor of my father’s estate and in the will I was named as the successor executor. My brother has since died, and I have discovered more assets.

First, understand that an estate is never “closed”. Estates run out of things to do and the file might be moved from the Atlantic County Surrogate’s Office long-term storage area, but once someone is named as executor, they continue to be the executor.
That being said, if the successor executor has discovered more assets that belong to the father and, if the original executor were still alive, it would be a simple matter to get updated paperwork from the Atlantic County Surrogate to prove he is still the executor.

Today, people utilize the Internet and social media more than ever before, raising new issues for estate administration. Many people receive bank, credit card, and utility statements electronically, and practically everyone has a Facebook account. Electronic mail and Facebook may hold important information for a personal representative seeking to administer an estate.¹ Obtaining access to that information, however, is a brand new area in probate law.

In some cases, the personal representative may know the password to the decedent’s email, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. In these cases, accessing bills and statements as they come in is relatively easy. But is a personal representative² authorized to access these accounts? In situations where the personal representative does not know the password, how can they obtain it?

A common question we receive from potential clients is, “What happens to my things if I die without a Will?” This is usually followed by the question, “If I die without a Will, doesn’t everything just pass to my wife/husband?” or by the question, “Does the State get all my things if I die without a Will?”

A common question we receive from potential clients is, “What happens to my things if I die without a Will?” This is usually followed by the question, “If I die without a Will, doesn’t everything just pass to my wife/husband?” or by the question, “Does the Commonwealth get all my things if I die without a Will?”