In 1999 I made out a will leaving the house,etc. to my wife and some money to my daughter.Now that my wife is gone,I intend to leave everything to my daughter.But I haven't updated my will.I don't even know if it's necessary because I think,correct me if I'm wrong,but doesn't a person's assets automatically go to the next of kin? In 1999 We had a house in Mission Viejo,a community in southern California.I had a friend there and I named him our estate executor.Now that I'm living in the bay area,my communications with him have just about stopped.For example,when I had an Arthroscopy done on my right knee on March 9th of this year,I told him beforehand about my operation.After the operation not once did he email me or pick up the phone and ask me how I was doing. So I've decided to name someone else my executor.But whom?I don't really know anybody here well enough to name them executor.Can I name an attorney the executor?
If your daughter is an adult it would seem a given to name her as executor. It is incredibly important that your will is current. I have seen a lot of situations where a will hadn't been updated and it can cause all kinds of problems.
Generally speaking (though I'm sure there are some variations from state to state), anyone over the age of 18 who is competent and does not have a felony conviction is considered qualified to be the executor of an estate.
To be honest I haven't even discussed this with my daughter.I didn't even know I could name my daughter the executor,but I will now.There's no one I trust more. Thanks Caroline and Wino.
Laws about inheritance vary from state to state and they aren't always what you think. See a lawyer and name your dau executrix. There may be some other things in the will that need updating as well. Definitely talk to your dau about it and let her know what you would want done if you were incapacitated as well.
dabronx: whatever you do, don't let the gov't take half. They screw us all our lives and than when we die, they can take half. Not over my dead body.
I had a friend,an older woman who died earlier this year on her birthday no less.She was 96.Her daughter knew we were friends and she was nice enough to call me and tell me that her mother had died on Jan.4th her birthday.She said she would be planning a memorial for her mother sometime in March.Well a few weeks ago she notified me that she planned to have a memorial on March 23rd,Sunday at a nearby park but inside a building in the park.I've been under the assumption that her mother was buried in a cemetery but after talking to her daughter,she told me that Helen her mother had willed her body to UCSF Dept.of Medical Research.At first I was stunned to hear this news.That means she didn't have a funeral as I had assumed she did and having no funeral no priest officiated at her funeral.So I assume once her body is carved up by potential 1st year medical doctor students,her remains will be cremated and scattered with the remains of others' in a field.I'm not sure whether a priest will officiate.But I hope and pray that her spirit will now be with the Christ our Savior.
This is a good time for you to talk about a revocable trust.health initiatives andpower of attorney with your daughter and your attorney. You do not want your daughter to have to deal with probate court!
If your daughter is not named specifically as your sole beneficiary your property could end up in probate before it gets to her and that's not a fun process. I went through this with some family in California -- though it's been about 20 years. Not sure if the laws have changed since then. She will eventually end up with your property, but not before the courts get involved. Is there a reason you could not name your daughter executor? I don't know if your executor has to be someone different than your beneficiary. In our case it is because our children are minor and we need someone to manage their money until they are old enough to do so for themselves.
I do have an attorney and I do have a trust naming my daughter sole beneficiary.As a matter of fact I also have a fiduciary who is the trustee of my estate.I was going to name my daughter trustee but she's very busy at her job plus there's a lot of paperwork involved in dispensing someone's estate.Most likely after a year my estate will be settled.I have a plot in a Catholic cemetery in Lake Forest,Ca.where my wife and her parents are buried.I'll be buried next to my wife.My parents are buried at Woodlawn cemetery in Bronx,N.Y.
