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Opening an Estate Bank Account: A Guide for NZ Executors
Read guide: Opening an Estate Bank Account: A Guide for NZ ExecutorsThe executor had finally received probate. For weeks, estate money had been scattered across restricted bank accounts, an investment provider, a property manager and several…
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Probate or Letters of Administration?
Read guide: Probate or Letters of Administration?The family knew there was money in the estate. What they did not know was who had authority to touch it. The deceased had signed…
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Paying the Estate’s Bills in the Right Order
Read guide: Paying the Estate’s Bills in the Right OrderThe executor opened the deceased’s mail and found three demands waiting. The first was a funeral invoice. The second was a credit-card statement. The third…
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The Executor’s Digital Estate Checklist
Read guide: The Executor’s Digital Estate ChecklistThe executor found the house keys in the kitchen drawer. The bank statements were filed neatly. The insurance documents were labelled, the will was stored…
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Balancing the Estate Books
Read guide: Balancing the Estate BooksThe executor thought the estate accounts would be simple. There had been a house, two bank accounts and three beneficiaries. The house sold for more…
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When the Family Trust Owns the Assets
Read guide: When the Family Trust Owns the AssetsThe executor thought the estate contained a house, a rental property and several investment accounts. The deceased had managed all of them, paid the bills…
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When the Estate Keeps Earning Money
Read guide: When the Estate Keeps Earning MoneyThe executor expected the estate to sit quietly while probate was completed. Instead, rent continued arriving from the deceased’s investment property. A company paid a…
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Keeping Difficult Beneficiaries From Derailing an Estate
Read guide: Keeping Difficult Beneficiaries From Derailing an EstateThe executor’s phone rang at 7.12 on a Sunday morning. A beneficiary wanted to know why the house had not sold. By lunchtime, another had…
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Dividing the Things Money Cannot Measure
Read guide: Dividing the Things Money Cannot MeasureThe house sale produced no argument. There was an independent valuation, a marketing campaign and a settlement statement showing exactly where the money went. The…
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