2 Reasons To Hire A Probate Lawyer
One of the most useful resources at your disposal if you are the executor of a loved one's will is to hire a probate lawyer, mostly because they can help you avoid many of the financial pitfalls that can occur during the probate process. Listed below are two reasons to hire a probate lawyer.
Property Appraisal
One of the most important reasons to hire a probate lawyer is that he or she can arrange to have appraisals performed on all of the property and investments in the deceased person's estate to determine the value of the estate at the time of the person's death. This is vital as it is necessary in order to determine the extent of any tax liability.
This process can help you avoid any fines or penalties from the government if they believe that the taxes that you paid are not reflective of current market values and perform an assessment of the property on their own. In that situation, the penalties can easily end up taking a good chunk out of the assets that were meant to be distributed to the beneficiaries of the estate.
However, having an up-to-date appraisal performed around the time of the person's death can also help save quite a lot of money. For example, if any real estate that is part of the estate has depreciated in value due to changes in the real estate market since the property was purchased, then the tax liability will also have decreased.
Resolve Disputes
Another important reason to hire a probate lawyer is to help you resolve any disputes between the beneficiaries of the estate. Unfortunately, it is quite common for beneficiaries of a will to believe that they deserve more than they were willed and decide to contest the will. While contesting and overturning a will is often an unsuccessful venture, the legal fees and sometimes lengthy court battles can easily end up draining the estate of money that was intended for the beneficiaries.
However, a probate lawyer can work with you to help find compromises between the beneficiaries to help avoid costly disputes. This can include shared access to a disputed piece of vacation property or shared ownership of a business that was included in the will.
Contact a probate lawyer, like one from Wilson Deege Despotovich Riemenschneider & Rittgers, today in order to discuss the many ways in which he or she can help you effectively execute a will. This type of lawyer can help by arranging to have the property in the estate appraised while also helping you to resolve disputes between the estate's beneficiaries.
Share