What steps are required to list my spouse’s inherited property co-owned with a relative? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, list your spouse’s fractional, undivided interest in the co-owned real estate on the Inventory (AOC‑E‑505) and value it at fair market value as of the date of death. Describe the tract clearly (address…
How does tenancy by the entirety affect passing my marital home outside probate? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, a home owned by spouses as tenants by the entirety passes to the surviving spouse automatically at death and does not go through probate. You typically do not list it on the estate’s Inventory.…
What happens if the clerk requires adding inherited real property proceeds to the estate inventory? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, if the Clerk of Superior Court directs you to include inherited real estate sale proceeds, you must inventory and account for any sale funds that came into your hands as personal representative.…
How do I document and adjust early distributions among heirs after the accounting change? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, treat all real estate sale proceeds as estate receipts and report them in your next account with the Clerk of Superior Court. Early payments to heirs are interim distributions—show them on the account…
How do I inventory and value personal items I’ve kept versus those in storage for the estate report? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, list all tangible personal property that came into your hands (or someone’s hands for you) on the Inventory due within three months of qualification, valued at fair market value…
What small estate affidavit or collection process can I use to collect my parent’s and uncle’s shares? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, you cannot pay a deceased heir directly. You must distribute each share to the personal representative (PR) or to a “collector by affidavit” for that deceased heir’s estate. If a…
How can I submit a final accounting for a small unclaimed sum received from my grandmother’s estate? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, you reopen the estate, report the after-discovered asset, and file a final account that shows receipt and distribution to the proper recipients. Because your parent and uncle (the original heirs)…
Will I have to keep the reopened estate open until the court approves the distribution or can I close it sooner? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, a reopened estate generally must stay open until the Clerk of Superior Court audits and approves your final account, which usually requires that distributions are completed…
Can I recover my funeral, nursing facility, travel, and legal expenses from the small estate distribution? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, you may pay approved estate administration costs (including reasonable attorney’s fees) before distributing assets. Funeral expenses are payable up to statutory caps, and a separate cap applies to a gravestone or…
How do I challenge asset transfers made under a power of attorney as a breach of fiduciary duty? – North Carolina Short Answer In North Carolina, you typically open the estate and have a court‑appointed personal representative bring claims in Superior Court against the agent under a power of attorney for breach of fiduciary duty…
