Closing the Estate

Part 3 of Planning for the Inevitable

Within one month of the death, you should: 

Again this is based on my experiences and what I came across in dealing with 3 different estates. This is by no means a complete list. Ask for help from professionals; lawyers, realtors, financial advisors, etc…

• Open a bank account for the estate of the deceased

• You will need to create an EIN, this is free

• This should be done early on and all receipts and disbursements should be recorded in that bank account, in order to account properly for the assets of the deceased and the expenses of administration.

• Locate and/or obtain important paperwork for the settlement of their estate. Accounts with beneficiaries, TOD or POD, or joint can be dealt with immediately. Accounts without will need to go into Probate.

• Will

• Trusts

• Nuptial Agreements

• Securities, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc

• Bank statements, checkbooks, similar documents

• Pension-retirement benefits

• PreNeed Insurance - intended to cover the funeral expenses

• Mortgage, Reverse Mortgages paperwork

• Student Loans

• Loans

• Property Deeds

• If real estate is owned in more than one state, special proceedings, called "ancillary administrations," may be needed in each state.

• If there is real estate that is insured, the Executor should make sure that the insurance policies on the properties of the deceased are maintained.

• Titles to motor vehicles

• Leases

• Life Insurance

• Health Insurance

• Safe Deposit Agreements and keys

• Storage Unit

• Unpaid bills

• Taxes

• Collect paperwork for Current Year taxes

• Estimated taxes, if applicable

• RMD - Required Minimum Distribution, if applicable

• Gift Tax

• Charitable Contributions, if applicable

• Previous 7 years of filed taxes

• Notes receivable/Promissory Notes

• Child Support

• Alimony

• Local authorities if they paid council tax, had a parking permit, were issued with a blue badge for disabled parking, or received social services help, attended (adult) day care or similar.

• Marriage, birth and death certificates

• Divorce documentation

• Business Owner

• Any documentation of business ownership or business interest

• Computer records regarding books of a business or personal assets

• If the deceased controlled or was a principal person in a business, it may be necessary to check to see if there are Buy-Sell Agreements under which the interest of the deceased would be purchased by the business entity or other business owners.

• Discuss with lawyer

• Probate

• Notify their attorney regarding the probate of the estate or Consult with an attorney about probate

• If there is a Will, take the Will to the appropriate County or City office to have it accepted for probate.

• The will might already be on file so you can call and check

• Call before you go to see if you need an appointment and what documents you need to complete and provide

• If there is no Will and there are assets to probate, then the Court will appoint an administrator and the assets of the deceased will be distributed according to state law.

• As part of the probate process, all family members within a certain degree of kinship must be contacted, whether or not they receive assets from the Estate of the deceased.

• Make an inventory of household goods, personal belongings and the like, in order that they can be accounted for and properly distributed, after probate.

• After probate is complete distribute money and household goods

• File Claims

• Health Insurance

• Veteran- inquire about "joint and survivor" benefits that you may be entitled to through the VA. https://www.va.gov/  800-827-1000. 

• Contact the deceased’s employer. Inquire About Any 401(k),pension,or company benefits that the deceased may be entitled to

• File claims with life insurance companies.

• Check with existing credit card, bank, loan accounts

• Social Security Administration and any other government agencies or benefit programs that may be making payments to the deceased. https://www.ssa.gov/survivors/  1-800-772-1213

• Pension Plan

• Report / Notify Death 

• Landlord

• Medicare/Medicaid

• Registrar of Voters

• DMV to return any driving license, cancel car tax or return, transfer titles of all registered vehicles

• Passport Service, to return and cancel a passport.

• Notify Credit Bureau (prevent identity theft and fraud)

• The official way to notify the credit bureaus regarding your loved one's death is by sending a death notice via certified mail. Along with your written claim, be sure to include a certified copy of the death certificate, proof that you are the authorized agent to act on behalf of your loved one, and identifying information of the deceased, such as their full name, Social Security number, birthday, and date of death.

• Be sure to request a copy of your deceased loved one’s latest credit report. 

• TransUnion: (800) 888-4213

• Equifax: (888) 548-7878

• Experian: (888) 397-3742

• Deceased Do Not Contact Registration to remove the deceased's name from mailing lists and databases

• Clubs, trade unions, associations with seasonal membership for cancellation and refunds

• Social groups to which the deceased belonged

• Dentist

• Doctors

• Probation/Parole Officer

• Cancel 

• Prescriptions

• Newspaper delivery, if applicable

• TV/internet/Phone companies with which the deceased had subscriptions, if applicable

• Send acknowledgement cards for flowers, donations, food, kindness. Also remember to thank pallbearers.

• Collectors - find out worth of and distribute after probate

• Coins

• Stamps

• Dolls

• Toys

• Watch out for people who prey upon families of deceased

• There are people who look for death notices and make unfounded claims against the deceased. Some may also attempt to burglarize the home during the funeral service. Be cautious about such matters; have someone stay at the home during the funeral service and do not easily accept the claims of unknown individuals that lack documentation.

Social Security Administration

800-772-1213

800-325-0778 (TTY)

www.ssa.gov

Veteran Affairs

800-827-1000

https://www.va.gov/

Printable Checklists

1. Estate Planning

2. Acting Upon the Deceased Wishes

3. Closing the Estate

Part I  Planning for the Inevitable, Post

Part 2 Acting Upon the Deceased Wishes, Post

Part 3 Closing the Estate, Post

3rd Time is a Charm

We are currently residing in a hotel. We have moved 4 times in 5 days. Normally I would be thrilled to be exploring 4 different locations but 3 of these moves are all within the same place. You are wondering how I could have picked a place that required that many moves. The short answer, I didn’t. 

I was asked to provide housing options and researched many choices;  AirBnB, short term apartment rentals, motels, VRBO and hotels. I looked through all these options and came up with 2 choices that were economical, livable and safe for the 35 days we would be living there. They also included daily full breakfast, an indoor pool, hot tub, and sizeable suite so we could be comfortable. 

We were placed in neither of my choices and I am still a little bitter. All that research time has gone to waste and the place is not satisfactory. We moved in the rain on Wednesday. I was full of emotions as I closed down the house, packed away the last of the belongings, cleaned and moved items to storage and the new residence. I will not name it until we leave, fear of retaliation.

Mike met me around lunch time and we checked in. We asked about the construction happening and was told it was on the top floors. We were one floor below it. We asked if we could move rooms as we were there for 35 days and did not want to be near the construction. The location was full and we were told we could not move that day. They would keep us posted as to when we could move. I asked if they had a covered entrance to unload the vehicles and they smiled and said no. We hauled our possessions in the pouring rain and up to the floor below construction. When we exited the elevator you could hear the jack hammers doing their jobs, the pneumatic hammer beating heavily, loudly and repeatedly all the way to our room. I groaned. We unloaded and returned to the house to pick up the rest of the items to be moved. I finished packing, moving, cleaning, and said my goodbyes and left.

I sat in my car in the parking lot until I figured the drilling had stopped and I went up to the room. We decided to celebrate the closing of the house and go out to dinner. The restaurant we selected was one of the 1st places we tried when we arrived in 2019. We ordered our beers and our meals. The beers tasted like they had some cleaning solution in them. I asked for bottles instead which were provided and then she told us they were having issues with the keg lines and people had been complaining about the taste. I asked Mike why, why would they knowingly serve something they knew was tampered with.

After breakfast on Thursday I asked to move rooms. I was assured they would move us that day to the 1st or 2nd floor.  Around 1pm I checked in again and was given a great deal of run around by the manager on duty. He said the construction had stopped on the floor above us and would not be starting again for a month. No need to move. The construction, per the workers, had actually started that day on our floor. I was not going to stay there so they could move us or we would move to a new location. The person I previously spoke to overheard us and told him to move us to the available room on the 1st floor. We dragged all of our stuff to the 1st floor, thankfully Mike came home from work at lunchtime and helped me move. 

Friday morning before work Mike takes a shower and informs me there is no hot water. We checked the sinks and that water is scalding hot. I go back to the front desk and ask that the hot water be fixed in the shower. She told me there had been issues with the hot water in the shower in the past. Really, then why put someone in the room that is planning to be there for 33 days when it is not fixed. She said she would have maintenance look at it. They called and said they fixed it and asked me to check on it. Nope, still no hot water. They would call back. They never did.

Saturday, we ask again to have the hot water in the shower fixed or to be moved. The maintenance man checks in on us around 1. He said he would check to see what the water room temperature was set to and increase it. I told him the sinks were plenty hot and that they checked the temperature yesterday. He said he would have our room changed. He said that this room had issues with the shower. I asked him why they put us in a room with no hot water when we were here for so long. He said he did not know but he would get us moved. He came back and told us they had a room available that day on the 4th floor. We said no because of the construction. He agreed that moving to the 4th floor did not make sense. Nothing else was available today. He assured us they would move us Sunday morning.

Sunday, we went down again to check to see what time we could move. She asked us why and we explained everything, again. She said no one left her any instructions about the move. She would see what she could do. Noon time she calls and has a new room for us on the 2nd floor. We collect the keys and inspect the room. We checked the water temp in the shower and sinks, we flushed the toilet, we opened the windows, and checked that we could control the thermostat. I opened the fridge, freezer, microwave and everything else I could think of to check. All looked good. We dragged all of our stuff to the 3rd room on the second floor. 

Fingers are crossed that this is the last move for this stay. Did I mention that this place I did not select is also charging $2000 more than the places I selected. Just saying.  I am letting go of my bitterness now….now….ok maybe now. Ok. Maybe not.

Unexpected Charge

Self admittedly I have not done much in VA since we arrived. We did go into lockdown shortly after we arrived and to be honest it felt good to isolate and just relax at home. We arrived in Virginia in October of 2019. We as well as, I assume, every other new homeowner focused on getting the house up to our standards. We were not working yet so we had all the time we wanted to clean, organize, unpack and decorate. 

The kitchen floor took 40 hours with 2 people, using backbreaking elbow grease and countless products to get the linoleum floor clean. The bathrooms took just as long as we found out the grout was white and not black. November came and the house was cleaned and mostly decorated. December brought the cold, flu, or COVID-19 to Mike and I and we were down and out for a week. Remember that COVID-19 was not announced in the US until much later. We were hearing about it from our friends in China, so we ensured we had plenty of paper products, nonperishable foods and even bought a freezer for meats and veggies. We settled in for the long haul.

I digress, sorry, not the point of this post. 

I did not go out socially until recently. I can count on 1 hand how many times I went to a restaurant in the last 3 years. I worked, I came home, I repeated those 2 activities as most people did for years. When I did order out food, once a month, it was to get Chinese food which we have not done in months.

So, Mary invited us out last night to celebrate the sale of the house and to catch up. We had a few drinks and some appetizers and then received the bill. Mike looked the bill over and it was all correct. He provided his credit card, and the waitress returned it for his signature. When he went to add the tip and sign the bill it was not for the original amount of the check. It was higher than the bill. He checked to see if gratuity had been applied already but it had not.

The bottom of the merchant copy had a message that explained the difference. It states that it is a NCA. Have you heard about this? Have you seen this on your bill? You will not have seen it if you are from Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Oklahoma or Colorado (before June 2002) because it is prohibited or limited to pass along surcharges in those states.1

“A 3% Non Cash Adjustment (NCA) will be added to all sales at this location. Discounts will be applied for Cash Payments.”2 This was not posted in the restaurant or on the original bill, if it was in the menu, it was not obvious, but it was on the receipt you sign after you pay.

Basically, they are passing along the processing fee they are charged by the credit card companies to you. Great for their business but not for customers. This also means if you do not pay your credit card bill in full each month you are paying late fees on that money.

As of Jan 2013, merchants can pass along their processing fees to their customers. This option of a surcharge has been around for a decade, and this is the first I have heard of it at a restaurant. I have come across it before I have negotiated service but never after. Gas stations would advertise the cash price vs credit card price so you could decide before you purchased. When I pay my utility bill online it clearly states there is an additional charge if using a credit card. A pizza place asked if I wanted to receive a cash discount when I picked up my order, of course I did. I saved 3% on my dinner! The same amount the business did not have to pay to a credit card processing fee.

Do merchants want us to use cash or credit cards? According to SpendMeNot.com 19% of transactions are paid in cash and 80% of those are under $25.00.3 If they are going to charge me to use a credit card then I am going to pay in cash.

I honestly do not mind that the merchant wants to pass along the surcharge to their customer what I do mind it is not being given the chance to make that decision before I purchase.

So, merchants be honest and up front with notifying your customers about a 3% or 4% (depending on state) surcharge for credit cards. It is required that you post the disclosure where the customer can see it at the entrance and at the terminal. Also, please post if there is a cash discount, minimum credit card spending amount, alternate payment fees or convenience fees.

Consumers should also know that if the merchant passes the processing fee on to you it is for credit cards only not debit cards. Save yourself some money and use cash, debit cards or pay attention to surcharges before you accept service. 

1 Passing On Credit Card Fees To Customers Guide (paymentdepot.com)

2 This is from the bottom of our receipt. I am choosing not to include the restaurant name.

3 21+ Cash vs Credit Card Spending Statistics to Know in 2021 (spendmenot.com)

So Long, Farewell

So long, farewell

There's a joyous sort of ringing from the clock in the hall

And the bells in the steeple too

And in the living room

An absurd little bird is popping out to say, "Cuckoo"

(Cuckoo, cuckoo, cuckoo)

Excitedly, we tell you

(Cuckoo)

It is time for us to say, "Good bye" 

to VA

(Cuckoo, cuckoo)

So long, farewell, have a blessed day

(I’m thrilled to leave, explore and move away)

Hooray, gothan dag, hasta luego, ciao

(Adieu, adieu to Ed and Tom and Mary)

Adeus, namaste, au revoir, auf wiedersehen

(I can’t wait to leave and taste a new pale ale)

G’Day, slán, ma’a salama, good bye

(I forge and climb and sing a, "Goodbye, goodbye")

I'm glad to go, I cannot tell a lie

I flit, I float, I fleetly flee, I fly

The season has changed and so must I

So long farewell, auf wiedersehen, good bye

Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye

These are not the original words as you might be able to tell, I tweaked them a little to say my goodbyes. 

The Sound of Music is one of my favorite musicals with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers. It was turned into a Broadway production in 1959 (The Sound of Music - Wikipedia). The Sound of Music was adapted as a 1965 film musical starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer available at the theater. The movie was first aired on TV on Sunday, February 29, 1976. (Five things to know about ‘The Sound of Music’ on TV - Newsday)

Do I remember seeing it when I was 5 years old? I want to say yes, I really want to say yes. As a child I remember watching TV only on Sunday nights, mostly Disney but special viewings of movies like this one too. My dad would make popcorn! 

This was an event for me, dad did not do many things with us but Sunday was ours. He would pull out the West Bend 6 Quart Electric Dome Popcorn Popper, I would add the oil, he, the kernels, he would turn it on.

West Bend 6 Qt Electric Dome Popcorn Popper

The metal spinner would spin and the oil would smooth out, covering the base and lifting the Orville Redenbacher popcorn kernels as it spun so they did not stick and burn. Steam would rise around the holes in the top outside of the plastic round lid. The smell causing my mouth to water. The popping, OH the popping of each kernel as I waited in anticipation.

Plastic Wooden Bowls

Mom was melting butter on the stove and a sibling, sorry I was too self absorbed in the popping to know which one, was getting out the popcorn dishes. Dad would unplug the popper and flip it over so the popped kernels would be in the top of the yellow dome. Mom would pour the butter over it as dad salted and stirred. I would eat the ones that jumped out of the lid as they mixed. The bowls would be filled, we would take our places in the living room, and the magic of TV would begin.

The cuckoo clock hanging on the living room wall would chime the hour, the Sound of Music was about to begin, and I would remember my cousin Maureen and her adventures in Germany. She brought the clock back with her when she taught at a DOD school and she presented it as a gift to my parents. I still hear the cuckoo, cuckoo to this day. I had it hanging on my dining room wall until this week.

I remember being carried to bed but do not remember the ending of the musical. It would be years later that I watched it in its entirety but I remember. I remember the love on a Sunday night. I remember the love of a family with numerous kids, just like mine. I remember learning and loving to sing, Do, Re, Mi. I remember the lyrics to “So Long, Farewell” and I have sung them in my life so many times, for so many different reasons. It is a song of farewell to the end of a night, to the end of an adventure, to the end of a life. 

I bid fare thee well to Virginia, to the friends I have made here, to the family I say, “see ya soon” to, to the house that kept me warm and busy, and to a stage of my life that I needed yet am now happy to let go. Let the next adventure begin how and when it is ready and I will enjoy each path, each twist and turn on the unrevealed journey yet to unfold.

Time to start a new adventure!

Anyone looking for a house in VA?!

Our house is for sale!

It has served us well, but a new adventure awaits. Don't know what that is yet, but the future will unfold in its own sweet time.

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