How do you change a deed to the inheriter's name from the deceased's name?
Full Question:
Answer:
First the will is filed with the clerk of the appropriate court in the county where the deceased person lived, along with a petition to have the court approve the will and appoint the executor named in the will (or if none is available, an administrator) with an affidavit of a person who had signed the will as a witness. If the court determines the will is valid, the court then "admits" the will to probate. In Tennessee, anyone wanting to probate a will must file with the clerk a prepared petition and order for entry. After you have filed the will with the clerk, the will, the petition to probate, and the order will be reviewed by the Judge to determine if all documents are in order. The Judge will then approve the appointment of an executor and open the estate. The clerk will issue Letters testamentary which authorizes you (assuming you are the executor) to administer, with full power, all matters concerning the estate. A bond for the executor or personal representative (PR) is required unless excused in the will or waived. The PR must file within sixty (60) days a complete and accurate inventory of the probate estate to the clerk and verify by oath. The inventory shall include but not be limited to both real and personal property, such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, stocks and bonds, automobiles, insurance policies payable to the estate, household furnishings, jewelry, etc. The requirement for an inventory may be waived by the will or by the court. Within sixty (60) days after entering on the administration, the PR shall notify all beneficiaries by sending them a complete copy of the will. The PR shall also file, within the sixty (60) day period, an affidavit that the required copies have been mailed to the beneficiaries or distributes, or an explanation of efforts to identify and locate if not yet sent. The clerk will publish a notice to creditors in county newspaper for two (2) consecutive weeks. In addition, it shall be the duty of the PR to mail a copy of the published notice to all creditors of the decedent of whom the PR has actual knowledge or reasonably ascertained at such creditors' last known address. If for any reason an estate checking account is needed, the bank will require that the estate be assigned an Employee Identification Number (EIN) by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). You can apply by phone (toll free) 866-816-2065. Application forms are usually available in the County office or with your bank. Copies of all claims filed against the estate are forwarded to the PR. Any disputed claims shall be challenged by filing a written exception with the Clerk's office. If no jury is demanded, the Clerk shall, within ten (10)days after the filing of the exception to claim, fix a date for the hearing by the court. All bills owed by the estate should be paid unless contested, and if so, then by priority set forth in 30-2-317 of the Tennessee Code. Within fifteen (15) months from the date of qualification, the PR shall make an accounting with the clerk. After the first accounting and until the estate is full administered, the PR shall make further accounting annually from the date of the first accounting. The accounting shall state all receipts, disbursements, and distribution of principal and income for the accounting period and remaining assets held in the estate. The final accounting shall state that the PR has mailed notice of the requirement to file claims, pursuant to section 30-2-306(e), to the creditors of the deceased. Detailed accounting of solvent estates may be waived if so stated in the will or if all of the beneficiaries of the will file with the clerk waivers of such accounting. If all court accountings are waived, the PR shall file a statement with the clerk at any time after the period for creditors to file claims against the estate has expired (four months from the date of the first publication in the newspaper), to state substantially as follows: That the PR has properly administered the estate,
has paid or settled all claims which were lawfully presented,
has paid all expenses of administration,
has mailed notice to creditors to file claims,
has filed the final receipt and release from the TN Dept. of Revenue evidencing payment of all inheritance or estate taxes due from the estate,
has filed a release from the bureau of TennCare evidencing payment of all medical assistance benefits, premiums, or other such costs due from the estate under law if the decedent was fifty-five (55) years of age or older,
has distributed the estate according to the will and obtained and filed receipts for specific bequests and that the beneficiaries acknowledge that the property due to them has been properly distributed to them.
The filing of such statement along with the order to close the estate, shall relieve the PR from filing a detailed statement or accounting and the PR shall then be excused from any further duties as of the estate and be discharged from bond (if applicable).
According to section 30-4-101, a small estate means the estate of a