Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781119543879) was previously published as Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781118412251). While this version features a new Dummies cover and design, the content is the same as the prior release and should not be considered a new or updated product.



Your plain-English guide to administering an estate and/or trust

As more and more of the population reach senior ages--including baby boomers, many of whom do not have wills--an increasing number of people are being thrust into the role of executor, administrator, personal representative of an estate, or trustee of a trust after the death of a loved one. This updated edition of Estate & Trust Administration For Dummies guides you through the confusing process of administering an estate and/or trust.

Settling an estate and administering a trust can be complicated, messy, and time-consuming for individuals named as executor or trustee, most of whom have no previous experience with such matters. Estate & Trust Administration For Dummies shows you how to make sound decisions for your unique circumstances.

* Guides you through the confusing process of administering an estate and/or trust

* Provides expert advice on unfamiliar estate and trust tax law

* Gives you a practical checklist to follow for all of your estate and trust administration questions and concerns

Whether you're looking for guidance on how to navigate the probate process and estate taxes, settle debts and bequests, fund a trust, comply with tax regulations, or anything in between, this hands-on, friendly guide takes away the mystery and provides detailed answers to all of your estate and trust administration questions.

Margaret Atkins Munro, EA, has more than 30 years' experience in trusts, estates, family tax, and small businesses. She lectures for the IRS annually at their volunteer tax preparer programs. Kathryn A. Murphy, Esq., is an attorney with more than 20 years' experience administering estates and trusts and preparing estate and gift tax returns.

Klappentext

• Navigate estate and trust processes with ease
• Find simple explanations to help comply with tax regulation
• Make sense of unfamiliar administration terms

Your plain-English guide to managing an estate

Administering an estate or a trust is a big responsibility. This practical, authoritative guide contains advice for handling estates and trusts, whether large or small, and will help you discover what powers you have as trustee, what duties you're expected to perform, and how to keep the necessary records. It also explains how to read and interpret documents, take care of a loved one's estate in the event he or she never created a will, and help the estate or trust avoid paying too much (or too little) in taxes.

Inside...

• Guidance on probate processes
• Advice on liquidating assets
• The duties of trustees
• Filing returns for a relative
• The pitfalls of administration
• Tips on finding expert help
• Ten taxes you may have to pay

Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2^nd Edition (9781119543879) was previously published as Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2^nd Edition (9781118412251). While this version features a new Dummies cover and design, the content is the same as the prior release and should not be considered a new or updated product.

Your plain-English guide to administering an estate and/or trust

As more and more of the population reach senior agesincluding baby boomers, many of whom do not have willsan increasing number of people are being thrust into the role of executor, administrator, personal representative of an estate, or trustee of a trust after the death of a loved one. This updated edition of Estate & Trust Administration For Dummies guides you through the confusing process of administering an estate and/or trust.

Settling an estate and administering a trust can be complicated, messy, and time-consuming for individuals named as executor or trustee, most of whom have no previous experience with such matters. Estate & Trust Administration For Dummies shows you how to make sound decisions for your unique circumstances.

• Guides you through the confusing process of administering an estate and/or trust
• Provides expert advice on unfamiliar estate and trust tax law
• Gives you a practical checklist to follow for all of your estate and trust administration questions and concerns

Whether you're looking for guidance on how to navigate the probate process and estate taxes, settle debts and bequests, fund a trust, comply with tax regulations, or anything in between, this hands-on, friendly guide takes away the mystery and provides detailed answers to all of your estate and trust administration questions.

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

What You're Not to Read 3

Foolish Assumptions 3

How This Book Is Organized 3

Part 1: Getting Started with Estate and Trust Administration 4

Part 2: Administering an Estate 4

Part 3: Operating a Revocable or Irrevocable Trust 4

Part 4: Paying the Taxes 4

Part 5: The Part of Tens 5

Icons Used in This Book 5

Beyond the Book 6

Where to Go from Here 6

Part 1: Getting Started with Estate and Trust Administration 7

Chapter 1: Operating in a Fiduciary World 9

Identifying the Players 10

Determining an estate's fiduciaries 10

Knowing who the trustees are 11

Lining up your team of advisors 13

Estate of Change: Delving into Estates 13

Altering the status quo 14

Probating an estate 14

Collecting the estate's assets 14

Paying expenses and making distributions 15

Tying up the estate's loose ends 15

Operating a Trust 15

Understanding your duties as trustee 16

Putting assets into trust 16

Putting the trust to work 16

Discovering the purpose of the trust 16

Compiling and organizing trust records 17

Bringing the trust to its conclusion 17

Paying Uncle Sam 17

Compiling the estate tax return 17

Figuring out the income taxes 18

Planning an income tax strategy 18

Whipping together Schedule K-1 18

Chapter 2: Exploring the Ins and Outs of Estates 19

Defining the Estate for Probate Administration Purposes 20

Will Power: Understanding How a Will (Or No Will) Affects an Estate 21

Dying testate 21

Dying intestate 22

Taking a Look at Who Can Inherit 23

Surviving spouse 23

Individuals omitted from the decedent's will (including intentional disinheritance) 25

The other players: Devisees and legatees 26

Heirs-at-law 26

Defining the Estate for Tax Purposes 27

Transfer taxes 27

Other taxes 30

Chapter 3: Identifying Different Types of Trusts 31

Differentiating for Income Taxes: Grantor versus Non-Grantor Trusts 32

Grantor trusts 32

Non-grantor trusts 33

Intentionally defective grantor trusts 33

Creating Trusts during Lifetime and after Death 34

Trusts created during lifetime 34

Trusts created under a last will 35

Grasping Revocable Trusts 35

Still breathing: Living trusts 36

Tackling Totten Trusts 37

Going incognito: Nominee trusts 38

Understanding Irrevocable Trusts 38

Ma…