You probably carefully considered the social consequences of serving as an executor before you accepted the position. The size of the estate and the relationship you had with the testator can influence your willingness to take on this substantial responsibility. Most...
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Potential reasons people don’t make estate plans
As you grow older, you likely become more and more aware of the need for an estate plan. Part of this is just the fact that you're Gathering more assets, and you're thinking about what's going to happen to those assets and how it's going to impact your family. What...
3 ways to protect your role as executor from challenges
Serving as executor is a demanding job, but it comes with certain benefits. You know that there will be adequate care taken while handling the estate of the deceased party. You can receive compensation from the estate for the services that you provide. Still, someone...
3 title issues that could delay or cancel a real estate transaction
The state maintains property ownership records at the county level to protect individual owners and hold people accountable for maintenance and tax purposes. The records maintained by the county show the legal description of a specific property and the chain of title...
Code violations could impact the sale of your property
With so many properties in New York, it’s not surprising that some of them are not up to code. The problem with that is that sellers and buyers may be caught off-guard when a property that they wanted to sell or buy is not up to code and needs repairs. There are all...
Does your estate plan address debts as you age?
Estate planning often includes thinking about your golden years carefully. If you have saved for much of your adult life for your retirement, you may have resources set aside to cover your cost of living expenses and no debt. Careful financial planning might mean that...
3 times your family may need to challenge an estate administrator
A person becomes the administrator of an estate in one of two ways. The deceased individual may have named them as their executor long ago when they drafted their estate plan. If they did not, then the probate courts may appoint someone to serve as the representative...
3 ways you can respond to a foreclosure notice
Homeownership instills people with a sense of financial security and pride. The thought of losing your home may make you feel vulnerable or panicky. Unfortunately, you only have to fall behind by a few weeks for your equity to be vulnerable. Depending on the terms of...
Does a New York estate with a house have to go through probate?
Someone's home might represent years of investment. Many people pay as much as a third of their income for their mortgage every month, making their home their biggest overall asset. Many people in New York want to pass their home or other real estate holdings on to...
How can a Chapter 7 bankruptcy help my family?
Chapter 7 bankruptcy is a form of bankruptcy that liquidates nonexempt assets to cover debts. During bankruptcy, any unsecured debts are paid down by liquidating those assets. When the money is gone, debts usually remain. Those debts are then discharged by the court. ...