Dad, 91, has never asked me to plan for his estate before. To me that's his responsibility. He had gone to see his banker wanting to find a way that I can pay the bills and mortgage while I'm settling his estate.
Best thing I come up with is to make his checking acct (that all his bills and mortgage are autopaid from) and his savings, joint accounts with my name on them. He says that doesn't work because when Mom passed he had to wait to access her accts that he says were joint. We are in Texas. But I googled it and every article says that with a Joint acct when one person passes the other person retains full and sole ownership of the acct. This would solve the issue.
I have lived at home for 3 years and helped take care of them, Mom passing in April. His wish is that when he passes I'd be able to stay here until the estate is settled without spending my own money, I can't afford to be here on my own to be honest.
So do I understand this properly?
Thanks
I had no trouble accessing any accounts after he passed 7.5 years later. And I was able to settle the estate. You will have to do Probate and can use his monies. I was told to continue to pay the mortgage but at Probate I learned I was not supposed to by the Judge. She said that there was no money mentioned in the will and both Dad's accounts became mine, legally, the day he passed. The Judge said that I was not responsible to pay Pop's mortgage.
I don't know who you should speak with but 2 lawyers told me that I had to pay the mortgage so I did. Until Probate, which was a year later, when the Judge asked me why I did it. Everything got messed up because of me paying - the bank holding the mortgage didn't file a lien with the estate because payments weren't in arrears. Crazy.
Does Dad have a Will in place, if not and he can make informed decisions, then get one done. This will make Probate a lot easier. If he dies with no will, then the state controls the situation.
Our neighbors were in foreclosure 2 yrs before the bank evicted them. So, if Dad passes and you can't pay mortgage and taxes it will be a while before your evicted. I just heard of a couple who continued to pay taxes but not their mortgage knowing it would take the bank a couple of years before they evicted them.
Probate should not take that long if a will is in place. You will just need to show that all debts have been satisfied. Follow Dads wishes. If you can't afford the house, then sell it. Then Probate can be closed.
Yes, you are correct. No what your dad is telling you isn't true.
When you have a joint account, when one passes the other is automatically sole owner.
Im going through this right now.
If you dont have your name on his account as “joint”, the account with his name only will go into probate for the estate. Unless, he puts you as beneficiary. Then you will have access to the account but you will have to take down the death certificate after he has passed, to the bank, fill out paperwork etc.
A joint account is also guarenteed that the money cant be considered part of “estate funds”. This means that you will ONLY be able to pay bills for the estate with it, any money left over goes to the estate in probate.
With a joint account or you as beneficiary, you can do what you want with the money and the court cant stop you. If the bank account goes into the estate, you have to keep records and be accountable for everything you spend from that bank account.
Also, my advise to you, have your dad appoint you as administrator or exeutor of his estate, now. Otherwise, you have to be court appointed after he passes. Which can take a lot of time. The judge can deny you. Then you have to get a lawyer to fight for you. Do it now. It will save you a MASSIVE headache later on.
Be aware!
Everything needs to be on paper! After they are gone there is no more “he said” My dad said a lot of things before he passed but nothing was ever put on paper, so there was no way to “prove” to the court anything he told me before he passed away.
On small accounts, there is little risk by putting your name on a parent's bank account as joint owner, but if you are sued or divorced, that money may be at risk, unless and until you can prove that money originated from your father and not you.
he has designated his bank accts as POD with my name as beneficiary. His banker says that when I show them the DCert they will close his accts and mail me a check. The issue I see now is that I will be still living in his home getting it ready for sale and looking for my own place. Since all his bills inc mortgage are auto taken from his checking acct and they close that acct....I would be scrambling to setup a new acct and changing the bills to pull from that acct and hoping the check comes before the bills. I would really need them to keep that acct open and really need them to move his other accts into that acct.
Another thought is that if he is still alive and has money in the original joint accounts with his deceased wife, you could obtain a Power of Attorney so you would have access to the accounts in case he can't do it himself. POA stops on death and that is when you need to show you are the Executrix of the Will and must open an estate account to pay all bills. I would suggest calling an elder attorney as to the best situation where you live to avoid problems.
Dad has a good banker that he has been with for many years and he trusts him. I like the guy myself. When the time comes they will honor the law or there will be legal action. Everything is pretty cut and dried so i dont expect any problems. But if needed I'm not shy about getting an atty and aggressively seeking justice.
What e have been doing is setting up all his assets to pass without the need for probate. All his bank account have been designated POD, so that when he passes they will revert to me. The house will be set up to do the same. I've found two different ways to do this in Texas but want/need to get legal advice first as i've read that if you dont set it up perfectly you have alot of trouble. The car will have my name on the title also and the last thing which I have no clue is household possessions. Is the furniture etc included in the house or are they separate. making a list of questions for the attorney.
do not wait
I contacted one and thanks heavens I did in my state you can have a quick pro quid deed that if he had gone on Medicaid I would not have lost half of the house
sadly he died unexpectedly, but we did have a will in place
does your dad have a will for you you to inherit the house also to leave you any IRA or any other money
it won’t be cheap but I would have lost half of 300K and his money from his IRA
you need expert help to answer your questions
only an ELDER LAW ATTORNEY can answer your questions as a friend found a regular attorney can not know the answers
yes, looking for someone to talk to and making a list of my questions. His financial affairs are relatively simple and he is debt free except for the mortgage on the house. Praying he doesnt have any medical emergencies. But we will get through whatever comes.
youcshould not be responsible for your dads
butxaga n see an elder law attorney about having a joint account
ifcyou have your money 💰 neither can you be responsible for his bills?????
Yes my money is separate in all cases. I believe the most anyone could do is make a claim on his estate. Thankfully he is in pretty good health and as far as I know his only debt is the refinance on the house which will be paid upon its sale.
Mom before she passed this year had told me she thought dad had secret card accts along with other things. I found out that she was suffering from dementia. I havent sen any signs of dad and c cards so I think we're ok. But believe me I keep an eye out for him. I hope it never comes to a point where we have to sit down and have that talk.
We did the POA yesterday, he is also concerned that if he should become incapacitated that I will be stuck not being able to handle his affairs. I know this is a very difficult and troubling time for him, but I will see his wishes done.
Yes, the joint account would pass directly to you after his death regardless of what the will said.
The joint account is an agreement between him, you and the bank and overrides the will
This is likely the issue. Some children are trustworthy, but many use this opportunity to steal an inheritance from a sibling.
Your dad is likely worried about this. In my work with families, I see this often and indeed this type of theft is on the rise.
You can however have an account with signing rights that will allow you to pay the bills, but will not make you a joint owner of the account.
The problem with this is that an unscrupulous person can still steal money with only signing privileges.
Talk to an elder care attorney.
Still, your father will have to trust you to even give you POA
Thank you.
Make sure he has a will.
Also, consult an attorney!
His several bank accounts have been made 'POD' to my name. That way they will be cashed out to me and the bank mails me a check.
The deed on the house, and there is a mortgage that he refinanced, will either have my name added to it as JTWROS so that dads half interest passes to me or there is something Texas does that allows him to name me as beneficiary so that it passes to me when he goes.
His vehicle he wants to have my name on the Title also.
My last question I guess is does the deed to the house cover the possessions in the house also or do we need to find a way to cover these separately.
I plan on talking with an estate attorney shortly and make sure we have everything covered. What Dad wants is to make it as easy as possible. I will be setting up a separate acct for the proceeds from the estate and when all the taxes and everything are done will split whats left with my brother.
Again thank you to everyone who has or will answer.
You need to have your name on the account. POD will not protect your autopay bills. Did he tell you how long it took to mail that check?
Get dad to put you on the accounts, all of them. This will make you a joint account holder and when he passes you will be protected from unpaid bills.
I was on my dads account until he made some really bad decisions and I didn't want to be liable for his actions, nothing like your situation but all done this year, so the information is fairly new, May 2018.
If you can get your dad to write his wishes out and get it notarized it will help you with your brother. All is fine until it's not. The death and inheritance issues are mind boggling, be open and transparent with your brother after dad passes, hopefully he will not feel cheated. If he contests the will, you go to probate, it's the law.
Hopefully this is a situation you will not have to deal with for years.
Do not let it be "and" it is exactly what it sounds like.