Bogleheads.org

>> Without a named beneficiary on the Taxable account, it would just be dispersed according to the percentages defined by the will

If there's no named beneficiary on the taxable account, the contents of the account flow to the estate.

Depending on the value of the estate, that $$ may or may not go to the individuals named in the will. The deceased may have debts that require payment; those debts would need to be addressed before any money is disbursed to individuals.

I'm sorry for your loss. To answer some of your questions: The PR/executor will need to present Vanguard with proof that s/he is the PR/executor and with a death certificate. Vanguard will then create an estate account, to which the money will be transferred. With no additional direction, the money will stay in the same funds, as at the time of your mother's death. The PR/executor directs what happens next based on (1) the needs of the estate (e.g., funeral expenses, inheritance taxes, if applicable, etc.) and (2) either the will or the relevant intestate success statute. But as a fiduciary, the PR/executor should also strongly consider putting all the money into something very safe and very boring in the meantime. Below are a couple of lin...

If I were you, my first step would be to look up the case online and to check the status. I'd then call the clerk's office in whatever county it is, and ask some questions. You can usually get a lot of helpful information from clerk's offices. They won't give you a referral to a local lawyer, but they can help you decipher the docket sheet and can often point you in the right direction for next steps.

Page 2 at the link below explains how to access ND estate filings online:

https://www.ndcourts.gov/Media/Default/ ... Estate.pdf

I have already contributed the maximum to a 401(K) and 457 this year, and I just started a new job. The new job offers a 401(A) (TSP).

Does anyone know whether I can also contribute to the 401(A) this year? If so, can you point me to an IRS source? The only source I've been able to find does not mention 401(A) plans.

Thanks!

So what? What does the phone number matter with granting access? They're not going to call to verify anything. I don't think the phone number is key to granting access. But I would like my financial records to be accurate and not have a defunct phone number associated with them. Again, I don't want to turn this into a rant about customer service, but my past experience dictates that these kinds of mistakes can be problematic. I'd like to fix it now, and not have to have him deal with it later. There are, as you probably found, Profile & account settings tied to you, as a person, that you see when you log in under My Accounts > Profile & Account Settings. In there, you'll see phone numbers associated with your personal accounts and ...

arcticpineapplecorp. wrote: ↑Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:57 pm

PoundCake wrote: ↑Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:43 pm Anyone have any ideas? I'm a little afraid to delete him and start over, lest that create new issues. TIA!

what's TIA other than a stroke?

Thanks In Advance....

Soon2BXProgrammer wrote: ↑Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:50 pm

PoundCake wrote: ↑Tue Jul 13, 2021 2:43 pm Anyone have any ideas? I'm a little afraid to delete him and start over, lest that create new issues. TIA!

If my wife deleted me, i would be pretty sad.

Ah, if only we had like buttons on Bogleheads....

I want to give my husband account permission/access to my Vanguard accounts. He is a Vanguard customer, and we have individual and joint accounts. For the past 5 years, I worked in a job where my employer gave me a cell phone (phone number Z). During that time, I did not use my personal cell phone (phone number A). As such, I changed the phone number associated with my Vanguard accounts, from A to Z. I recently left that job, turned in my work cell phone (phone number Z), and have returned to using my personal cell phone (phone number A). I have changed my phone number with Vanguard, so all my accounts reflect phone number A. This afternoon, I tried to give my husband account permission/access to my Vanguard accounts. I go to Profile and Ac...

Read sandramjet's first and last post at the link below.

If you want to know what can go wrong in situations where money and family are concerned, this one is a doozy. Although sandramjet's story does not involve an inheritance, one can extrapolate:

viewtopic.php?t=283691

2) As I mentioned in my previous posting, the Beneficiary IRA is managed by a financial advisor. I did not think to mention that it was an inherited IRA and after reading up on the rules on that I'm wondering if I can manage that myself or not. This account was created in March 2019. Can I manage this account on my own? Or if not, since it is full of high expense funds, at least I could switch them for lower expense ones? Yes, you can manage the IIRA yourself. Easy peasy. First, simplify the funds and get your $$ settled into something with low/er ERs. Second, take RMDs. I can't speak to Fidelity, but the RMD process couldn't be easier at Vanguard, and there's nothing for you to "manage." A previous poster described the automatic...

Sausage, potato, and arugula "salad." Because it's very cold where I live.

https://smittenkitchen.com/2017/10/saus ... h-arugula/

oyster99 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 03, 2021 6:54 pm Why is a notarized copy of the will naming the executor, presented by the executor with valid ID, not considered legally sufficient for financial institutions?

Assume the deceased executed Will1 in 2000, nominating Adult Child1 to be the executor. Assume also that in 2015, the deceased executed Will2, renouncing Will1 and nominating Adult Child2 to be the executor. But Adult Child1 still had a copy of the notarized will.

One reason why it's important for Adult Child2 to have LT -- or to be appointed as the personal representative -- is to avoid confusion in these situations. Otherwise, per your suggestion, Adult Child1 could take over, contrary to the testator's intent.

trailrunz wrote: ↑Wed Feb 03, 2021 10:25 am

Where are you located?

Michigan.

Michigan is a large and diverse state. If you're in Oakland or Washtenaw, this isn't much at all. If you're in Gogebic or Iron, it's on the high end.

This isn't a direct response to your question, but I do want to echo your attorney's comments about the probate process in MI, and fees. I am a lawyer, but my practice is very far removed from estate law. But through personal experience, I can attest that probate in MI is very straight-forward and relatively easy. To the extent I had issues, it wasn't with probate. I also found the probate process to be very flexible, in that I proceeded without supervision (i.e., minimal court involvement and no judicial oversight) but was able to seek judicial guidance, as necessary. In speaking to friends who have handled MI wills, I don't think my experience was unique. For a sense of the fees, the inventory fee for a $10 million dollar estate is less t...

He will serve a minimum sentence of at least 5 years. He is single, and my dad has POA and takes care of his financial affairs. If you or your parents are consulting an estate attorney, I'd advise consulting a criminal attorney too, especially one who is familiar with the prison regulations in the jurisdiction where your brother is incarcerated. Prisoner accounts can be garnished for child support and medical fees, and the rules vary by jurisdiction. Many jurisdictions authorize prisoners to be charged for the cost of their incarceration (see, for example, the link below). And, while I appreciate that you say that your brother is not required to pay restitution, I'd want a a criminal attorney to check to make sure the restitution in his ca...

I would check in your state for details, but look up the prudent investor rule. As executor or PR, you have a responsibility to manage these assets with caution. The decedent may have been comfortable with a certain AA, or with being in funds with high ERs, etc. And while some of the decedent's money may someday be coming to you, that's not the point here. You are required to be prudent, and so I would follow Gill's advice. I understand the responsibilities of an executor/PR, but a beneficiary not being comfortable with the benefactor's AA is not a reason to liquidate everything to cash. I think convenience, as mentioned by @NoblesvilleIN is the more likely factor. As the executor of my father's estate I know what he's invested in, and can...

I would check in your state for details, but look up the prudent investor rule.

As executor or PR, you have a responsibility to manage these assets with caution. The decedent may have been comfortable with a certain AA, or with being in funds with high ERs, etc. And while some of the decedent's money may someday be coming to you, that's not the point here. You are required to be prudent, and so I would follow Gill's advice.

Assuming you did not attend law school in TN and don't already have connections there, here are a few ideas for you: 1. Contact your LS's career services offices and ask the staff to set you up with job postings from the TN schools. There will probably be a nominal fee, but the CS offices give grads reciprocity, just like some bars do. 2. Prepare several versions of your resume, and ask a friend to read them for edits and mistakes, etc. 3. Ask the alumni development office from your LS for a list of grads who are practicing in TN. (Some bar directories also allow you to search members by LS; I don't know if TN's does.) In non-COVID times, it used to be pretty normal for an attorney in your situation to reach out to other alums -- just to ch...

The specific questions are almost irrelevant. As with any projective test, it's the answers that are important, as well as the other person's willingness to engage in the conversation. And different answers will resonate differently with different listeners. E.g., "Do you envision us combining expenses after we get married?" -- No, because I don't want you to know how I spend my money. -- No, because I want to make sure things are neat and clean if we get divorced. -- No, I don't, but I also want to make sure we're both comfortable with that. -- No, because I make more than you and I don't think I should have to share my money. -- No, not if it means that we have to have these conversations all the time. -- Money again? You never ...

I would recommend accelerating your contributions. Here's my story, which explains that recommendation: I used to work in academia. When the effects of the recession started to ripple out, I accelerated my 403(B) contributions in anticipation of having my job cut. I was a little worried that I might miss out on some of my employer's match, but then the match was eliminated -- along with many other benefits. We then had a RIF, again linked to the impact of the recession. I survived that, but I later decided to take a different, non-academic job. Since starting this different job, I've continued the acceleration of my retirement contributions (401(K) and 457), because I like the security of doing this. Also, with my current employer, I don't ...

So what type of loom should I consider and what projects are good for a beginner? Where on the internet can I find information/products? I won’t say money is no object, but I’d rather spend on good equipment that will work well rather than something cheap that will just frustrate me. It really depends on three things: how much space you have for a loom, what you want to weave, and how much money you want to spend. Without coronavirus, I would recommend connecting with a local guild and asking to borrow a loom, or spending a few hours with another weaver. I'd also recommend finding a local (or relatively local) fiber store and looking at their looms. But since those steps are not possible now, I would instead recommend looking at looms onli...

So what type of loom should I consider and what projects are good for a beginner? Where on the internet can I find information/products? I won’t say money is no object, but I’d rather spend on good equipment that will work well rather than something cheap that will just frustrate me. It really depends on three things: how much space you have for a loom, what you want to weave, and how much money you want to spend. Without coronavirus, I would recommend connecting with a local guild and asking to borrow a loom, or spending a few hours with another weaver. I'd also recommend finding a local (or relatively local) fiber store and looking at their looms. But since those steps are not possible now, I would instead recommend looking at looms onli...

FiveK wrote: ↑Sun Mar 29, 2020 9:42 pm Sorry for your loss.

Vanguard's website isn't the clearest in this regard. One has to use separate methods to designate beneficiaries for IRA vs. taxable accounts. And Vanguard does not allow beneficiaries on joint accounts. E.g., see Is this a Vanguard quirk? [Adding beneficiaries to account] - Bogleheads.org for more on that last point.

This comment gave me pause, so I checked my account. I'm looking at my joint taxable account and the list of beneficiaries right now. But I also see several bogleheads posts indicating that Vanguard doesn't allow beneficiaries for joint accounts. I have no intent to highjack the thread (sorry, OP!), but can anyone help me understand this?

I don't think this has been mentioned yet. PA has a hefty inheritance tax. From the Dep't of Revenue website (link below):

The rates for Pennsylvania inheritance tax are as follows:

0 percent on transfers to a surviving spouse or to a parent from a child aged 21 or younger;
4.5 percent on transfers to direct descendants and lineal heirs;
12 percent on transfers to siblings; and
15 percent on transfers to other heirs, except charitable organizations, exempt institutions and government entities exempt from tax.

https://www.revenue.pa.gov/GeneralTaxIn ... fault.aspx

Per the Department of Labor's FMLA FAQ page (link below): (Q) Does an employee have to take leave all at once or can it be taken periodically or to reduce the employee’s schedule? When it is medically necessary, employees may take FMLA leave intermittently – taking leave in separate blocks of time for a single qualifying reason – or on a reduced leave schedule – reducing the employee’s usual weekly or daily work schedule. When leave is needed for planned medical treatment, the employee must make a reasonable effort to schedule treatment so as not to unduly disrupt the employer’s operation. Leave to care for or bond with a newborn child or for a newly placed adopted or foster child may only be taken intermittently with the employer’s approva...

A minor detail, we live in a country where there's NO joint accounts, so when/if we combine finances one person is putting all their money into the other person's account. I'm one of those "we put everything in one pot" people, but the information quoted above would be a deal-breaker for me. I'm very comfortable with the way I do things because I am a legally recognized owner of our shared accounts. I want that protection, but I would also want it for my spouse. I also know that there would be, for me, a psychological effect to not having a recognized interest in our shared accounts. Shortly after my spouse and I married, we moved to a new state. He moved first and set things up, and I followed a few months later. That meant that...

Since you mention that this is a cottage in MI, I'd recommend taking a look at "Saving the Family Cottage." I know a handful of families who claim to have been saved by this book -- written by Michigan lawyers. The issues surrounding second- and third-generation ownership of the family cottage isn't unique to Michigan families, but it certainly is a big issue here.

Disclaimer: I don't know the authors or have any vested interest here. If recommending this (or any) book is verboten, then my apologies to the admins, and please remove my post.

I dealt with Vanguard's life events/transition team after my mother's death. I am a long-time Vanguard customer, as was my mother, and I have an advisor there. There were some critical fumbles by this team, and I've posted about these fumbles elsewhere. But relevant to the original post, the events/transition team is separate and distinct from the personal advisors -- or they were in 2016/2017. They are different departments and they don't interact or speak to one another. I have no idea if that's just the way Vanguard is structured or there is some legal reason for the separation, but that's how it is. I didn't find it helpful, and I feel for the OP's mother. While I was able to get my advisor involved on a limited basis after the events/t...

Go digital: scan the photos or have them scanned. I did this with my family photos and was then able to share them with everyone. It wasn't cheap, but now I don't worry about something happening to them (leaking roof, house fire, accidentally throwing out some of the photos, etc.).

My sibs and I inherited an IRA from our mother, held at Vanguard. We were each pretty punctual, but we didn't submit our paperwork at the same time. Vanguard had no issues with splitting the IRA as the paperwork came in. They royally screwed up the division and that was a small nightmare to correct, but there was no requirement that all the paperwork be submitted before the split could occur. How did they mess it up? Usually, all the holdings will be split proportionately according to the beneficiary %s, so everyone gets a share of each holding. There might be very small rounding issues in some cases resulting in a small difference in the value going to each inherited IRA. You'd think it'd be easy, right? Alas, no. They set up my account f...

My sibs and I inherited an IRA from our mother, held at Vanguard. We were each pretty punctual, but we didn't submit our paperwork at the same time. Vanguard had no issues with splitting the IRA as the paperwork came in. They royally screwed up the division and that was a small nightmare to correct, but there was no requirement that all the paperwork be submitted before the split could occur.

A good law school education is invaluable to you—as long as you’re not paying for it. I went to USC Law in the mid-‘90s. Back then, when the brontosaurs still roamed the earth, a year of LS cost $20,000. I got a partial scholarship, then was appointed a legal writing instructor as 2L and 3L, which took care of the rest of it. Once I got a big firm job, promptly paid off what little debt remained. I went on and had a good career at a solid law firm, not haunted by law school debt. Now they charge $60,000 per year. That changes the math doesn’t it. I wouldn’t discourage those determined, but unless you’ve got parents or others paying, or you have some reason to believe that you have a clear path to guaranteed employment sufficiently remunera...

Barring emotion, "financial sense" would have told me to instruct them to send the check as early as possible each year. Do whatever suits you. I'm not here to judge. I thought that, for non-spouse beneficiaries, the RMD was calculated based on the value of the IRA on December 31. If so, doesn't that suggest that it's better to delay the RMD until later in the year? I have alerts on my calendars to take mine every December 1, which provides some cushion for error and other nasty problems (I.e., me dying). December 31 of the prior year . Your 2018 RMD is based on the value of the account on 12/31/2017, as I wrote in the post immediately before yours (I also linked to the IRS pub and the table most will use to calculate their RMD)....

Barring emotion, "financial sense" would have told me to instruct them to send the check as early as possible each year. Do whatever suits you. I'm not here to judge.

I thought that, for non-spouse beneficiaries, the RMD was calculated based on the value of the IRA on December 31. If so, doesn't that suggest that it's better to delay the RMD until later in the year? I have alerts on my calendars to take mine every December 1, which provides some cushion for error and other nasty problems (I.e., me dying).

bsteiner wrote: ↑Thu Jul 26, 2018 12:02 pm

PoundCake wrote: ↑Thu Jul 26, 2018 11:31 am There have been several comments here about probate processes being closely watched by the courts, ....

That varies considerably from state to state.

The original poster might start by asking the lawyer who contacted her.

I completely agree. I just don't want people to be under the misimpression that probate always equates to oversight.

There have been several comments here about probate processes being closely watched by the courts, but many jurisdictions also permit unsupervised probate. With unsupervised probate, the executor/PR simply needs to file/submit certain documents according to the probate code -- e.g., a list of interested parties, proof of notice to creditors, the inventory, etc. -- but the executor/PR is otherwise left alone to administer the estate. The only thing keeping the executor/PR honest is his or her conscience and the other beneficiaries. I was the PR for my mother's estate and handled it with unsupervised probate. As it took a while to set things up and get money flowing into the estate to pay her bills, I paid most of the bills for the first seve...

My experience with Vanguard and inherited assets was pretty rotten; the posts are on this thread:

viewtopic.php?t=245736

By contrast, and as you can see from the posts above mine (on the current thread), many people have had good experiences. If you read the customer service posts on bogleheads over time, I think it might be most accurate to say that the customer service at Vanguard can be inconsistent. Perhaps the best thing you can do for your beneficiaries is leave them an accurate outline of your assets. Without that -- and I think this would likely be true in dealing with any bank or investment firm -- the process is just that much more difficult.

As someone who taught law for many years, I encourage you to try to familiarize yourself as much as possible with the type of work you anticipate doing after graduation. If you think you may want a job as in-house counsel, contact your prospective school's career services office, and ask for the names of alumni who work in that area. Call these attorneys and ask if you can shadow them for a day or two (or more). Ideally, you should try to shadow several attorneys. Find out what they do. In addition, recognize that plans change. I've known students talk about wanting to be sports agents, only to later realize that such work involves a combination of contracts and babysitting -- neither of which they find remotely interesting. I've known stud...

This also has a whiff of elder abuse, financial-style. When the dust settles, I would also contact the AG's office in the state where your parents live, or check the website for more information. If these issues aren't handled by the AG, the AG's office should be able to point you in the right direction.

Three pieces of advice, having watched my in-laws blow up and been through my own family's experience (which, overall, was not bad).... First, be as transparent as possible. Unless a beneficiary has been through this before, he or she won't know about the timelines, or any of the processes associated with handling an estate. So tell them. With my siblings -- the people I care most about -- I was very open: I emailed them regularly with updates, and gave them access to the master spreadsheet I used for the estate. I doubt they fully appreciated all the work I put into that crazy spreadsheet, but I know they appreciated that it was there for them to examine. For the other beneficiaries (extended family, friends, charities), I sent a few email...

If you are a PA resident, I would ask about PA (state) inheritance taxes, as PA is one of the relatively few states that have this tax. The rates vary from 1-15%:

http://www.revenue.pa.gov/GeneralTaxInf ... fault.aspx

Note that the PA Department of Revenue FAQ indicates that the "inheritance tax is also imposed on a variety on non-probate assets." For more, see:

https://revenue-pa.custhelp.com/app/ans ... /related/1

I was surprised that one poster above was upset when his Vanguard rep said he would be his advocate within Vanguard. Vanguard is a big company, with many separate offices/divisions for regular account transactions, transferring funds from other institutions, managing IRAs, setting accounts up as trusts, and "transitions", which I think is their name for the office that assists with funds transfers after deaths. I always appreciate the help I get from our representative, who knows people in the other offices and always gets me to the right person to assist me when a special need comes along. That poster was me, and the reference was to something my flagship rep told me at the end of a multi-month estate debacle where Vanguard made...

I think you'll find many posts on this forum addressing this issue. Some people have experienced problems, some not. I've used Vanguard for ~20 years and never had a problem until I had to settle my mother's estate. Then, the problems began. ... and to balance out your experience, I've been with VG for almost 30 years. Last year I had to settle my mother's estate and transferring her VG account to me and my sibling (not a VG customer) was smooth as glass with nary a glitch and was done in 1 week. For her account, did she just set the beneficiaries and VG just rolled over her accounts to you and your sibling's? All 3 siblings were identified as beneficiaries on this IRA, and so one would think it would be easy to divide into thirds. It wasn...

I think you'll find many posts on this forum addressing this issue. Some people have experienced problems, some not. I've used Vanguard for ~20 years and never had a problem until I had to settle my mother's estate. Then, the problems began. Vanguard reps made patently incorrect statements and sometimes contradictory statements. They sent incorrect forms, multiple times. Vanguard screwed up the division of one account, an error that took some time to sort out. It was also an error that was caught because my sibling and I communicate a lot. If we didn't communicate -- as often happens when a parent dies -- the error never would have come to light, and we siblings would have received vastly different amounts of money. In terms of estate issue...