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What is Probate?

Author

Edward Jones - Chad Choate, AAMS

Posted on

Apr 15, 2022

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Florida - Sarasota, Bradenton & Charlotte Counties

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If you understand how probate works in your state, you can put estate strategies in place to potentially avoid probate. Your financial advisor can work with you, your attorney and your tax professional to determine what may work best for your situation.
What happens?
Generally, an attorney submits a last will and testament to the probate court, which starts the process to:

Notify beneficiaries and creditors. This is done to ensure that everyone who might have an interest in the estate knows about the court proceedings.
Formally appoint an executor or personal representative, who is usually named in the will.
Review and inventory assets and debts.
Continue management of property and pay any outstanding debts.
Prepare final tax returns and complete other record keeping.
Make final distributions to beneficiaries.

It's important to remember that every state and local municipality has different rules and processes for probate. Talk to your attorney to learn more about how probate may look where you live.
Are there any assets that don't need to go through probate?
Some types of property (sometimes called non-probate assets) pass automatically to specific beneficiaries without a courts involvement. For example, if you name beneficiaries on assets including transfer on death (TOD) accounts, 401(k)s, IRAs, insurance policies and annuities, they won't have to go through probate. In addition, assets that are titled in certain ways (like "joint with rights of survivorship") don't need to go through probate, since they pass directly to the other joint owner.
Are there disadvantages of probate?
The probate process is intended to help provide some oversight on how your estate is handled after your death. But with that oversight come some potential disadvantages, including:

Probate is public The court proceedings are public record, and in many cases, a notice to creditors is posted through a public medium, like the local newspaper.
Probate can be costly and time-consuming Depending on where you live, probate costs can range from 2% to 5% of the estate's value. And because it's a legal proceeding, state law determines how long this process may take anywhere from a few months to a year or more.

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Edward Jones - Chad Choate, AAMS

Financial Services 828 3rd Ave. W., Bradenton, Florida, 34205

Hello, I'm Chad Choate a dedicated financial advisor in Bradenton, FL, I began my career with Edward Jones in 2017. As a financial advisor, I want to find out what's important to you and help you build personalized strategies to achieve your goals. As a lifelong Manatee County resident, I graduated from the University of South Florida and was a teacher in Manatee County before joining Edward Jones. My driving force is to change people's lives in a positive way, and what better place than my home to do that. Whether you're planning for retirement, saving for college for children or grandchildren or just trying to protect the financial future of the ones you care for the most, we can work together to develop specific strategies to help you achieve your goals. We will also monitor your progress to help make sure you stay on track or determine if any adjustments need to be made. Throughout it all, we're dedicated to providing you with top-notch client service. But we're not alone. Thousands of people and advanced technology support from our office can help ensure you receive the most current and comprehensive guidance. In addition, we welcome the opportunity to work with your attorney, accountant and other trusted professionals to deliver a comprehensive strategy that leverages everyone's expertise. Working together, we can help you develop a complete, tailored strategy to help you achieve your financial goals. I currently volunteer with the Manatee Hurricane football Broadcast and Booster Club, serve on my church's trustees council and have previously served as a leader in Young Life. I am a member of the Manatee Chamber of Commerce and an alumnus of their Leadership Manatee program. I have been married to my childhood sweetheart, Ashley, for 15 years and we have a son, Wesley, and daughter, Camryn. We enjoy watching our children play their sports and traveling as a family.

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