Posted: 2/22/2009 10:01:08 AM EDT
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My wife of 37 years passed away this Thursday from complications of heart surgery.
And I've got a few questions about what do do.. Things will be pretty simple and she left a valid will. Her estate is worth around $1.5 million. All was let to me including the life insurance policies. The memorial service won't be for a week or so as she is being embalmed, but we have a handle on this. When our son was killed in an auto crash four years ago, I was able to do 90% of the legal procedures myself. It was time consuming and sometimes frustrating, but it was pretty easy. I'd like to do the same here. Any advice/input would be greatly appreciated! |
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I'm sorry to hear about your wife. Prayers sent for you and your family.
Here's some info: The Travis County probate court website has some excellent resources, even for those outside of that area. Link Pro se guidelines FAQ for uncontested, with a will Please understand that I am not your lawyer, and this is not legal advice. |
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Sorry for your loss.
My mother-in-law passed away last summer. She had a ton of debt and left money to about 12 different people which equaled more than she actually had. Most of the folks were not family, including $5k to a guy to take care of her dogs, which no one has ever met nor came to her funeral, so who knows what was going on there. The executor's wife (not family) has been to jail twice for felony embezzlement and the whole thing is a disaster. It got so bad they were trying to figure out what happened to the laundry detergent after most of the property had been divided. She was bi-polar, married and divorced 3x's, committed to mental institutions a couple of times, go figure. Feel fortunate you won't have to go through all that, but also start thinking about how you want your estate handled when the time comes. |
| I am very sorry for your loss. My wife of 33 years died almost 4 years ago. As long as everything was in both names, or you were named beneficary on things, there should be no problem at all. Acording to my attorney, I didn't have to go through any probate. You need to speak to an attorney, and have the will and other paperwork checked. Hopefully things will go easy for you. |
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I would suggest you contact an attorney for some advise.
Did she have a Will? If not, then it is intestacy and you'll have to follow Texas Probate Statutes for that. I would try to get the paperwork started this year. I cannot recall when Bush's estate tax deduction will sunset but it's coming soon and I'm pretty sure Obama will not renew it. That means when it sunsets the Estate deduction is back to $1 million and you certainly don't want to pay 55% again. Find out what her assets are and which assets are community property. Once you have that list then it becomes easier to settle the estate. This is not a professional legal advise, merely the opinion of a law student. Good luck. God Bless |
| From fairly recent experience (we just closed on the sale of my dad's old home this week), I can say there is small estate and not small estate in Texas. In the "small estate" part of the law, it is hard to go astray if you can follow simple instruction, but it sounds like you are outside of that range. Even though there is a will in this case, I suggest you listen to the advice of the other in having at least an initial consultation with a lawyer. |