I am currently working with a couple who both lost parents last year. The differences between the couple’s two parents are striking.
For the first one the family knows where all of the assets are and the documents are current. But there are special circumstances involved, so there were more people were keeping their eyes on everything. I will be involved in preparing the final return and then the Trust return. No Estate return will be needed.
I believe the Trust will stay open for years based upon the special circumstances.
The second parent’s situation is a bit more tricky. The parent did not have a listing of all of the assets and where they were held. The parent liked CD’s and shopped for rates.
So the family needs to contact all of the banks in the area to find out if they held money for the deceased.
This seems like it would be a simple task in the age of computers. But like at WinTrust Banks the different charters do not have access to the other charters information. So the search will continue for awhile.
Based on my initial reading of the documents, I will be involved with a final return, and Estate return and a Trust return.
The documents were not as recent and so the assets did not flow from the decedent to the Trust directly. So an Estate need to be created.
So I encourage all to have our wills, trusts and all estate documents reviewed. Have someone know where all of your assets are held. Make a list and keep it in a safety deposit box. Make it easy for your family and heirs to quickly and easily close everything. This will be a trying time for them, no matter what the circumstances.