How Do I Find Estate Attorney and Tax Advisor (for estate questions)?

[Midpack]

I’m settling my sisters estate and while I think I have a decent handle on it all, there are a few questions. I’m more concerned about the tax angles than estate attorney questions.

I’m OK with asking the estate attorney who wrote up our Trust some questions, but he doesn’t give tax advice. And unfortunately the estate is in TX, and I’m in NC, so he knows Federal but couches his answers in state caveats.

While my sister put her Vanguard accounts and her house in her Trust, she didn’t include her checking account. I attempted to handle that with the county probate court in TX, but they insist I use a probate attorney. So I get to spend $2500 in attorney fees to recover an $8000 checking account balance. I’ve also talked to her bank and they’re demanding a court order too.

But I also have some tax questions, handling an inherited IRA I’d like to pass on to charity without taking a taxable distribution mostly, but also Form 1041 questions, Form 709, Form 56, etc. All the local tax advisers I find seem to be experts on filing annual 1040 returns, and not much else. I don’t want to engage one of them to flounder around with my tax issues. So how do I find a tax advisor who knows estate tax questions?

 

[braumeister]

You might start with the Find a Lawyer part of this place:
National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys Home

 

[Kings over Queens]

National or Local CPA association? If that doesn't work, when in doubt the local Chamber of Commerce is a great resource for professionals of all sorts. The Executive Director is a great person to ask for an introduction.

 

[MarieIG]

Call a local (to the location of the probate) bar association and specify the type of lawyer you want. Ask for multiple recommendations.

 

[OldShooter]

Referrals, referrals, referrals. Ask your current attorney, your tax guy, your broker(s), your insurance agent, doctor, dentist, ... Do some phone interviews, which may also result in additional referrals, ... Narrow it down to a couple of in-person interviews. (Getting the right people is not easy or fast.)

 

[JBTX]

I’m settling my sisters estate and while I think I have a decent handle on it all, there are a few questions. I’m more concerned about the tax angles than estate attorney questions.

I’m OK with asking the estate attorney who wrote up our Trust some questions, but he doesn’t give tax advice. And unfortunately the estate is in TX, and I’m in NC, so he knows Federal but couches his answers in state caveats.

While my sister put her Vanguard accounts and her house in her Trust, she didn’t include her checking account. I attempted to handle that with the county probate court in TX, but they insist I use a probate attorney. So I get to spend $2500 in attorney fees to recover an $8000 checking account balance. I’ve also talked to her bank and they’re demanding a court order too.

But I also have some tax questions, handling an inherited IRA I’d like to pass on to charity without taking a taxable distribution mostly, but also Form 1041 questions, Form 709, Form 56, etc. All the local tax advisers I find seem to be experts on filing annual 1040 returns, and not much else. I don’t want to engage one of them to flounder around with my tax issues. So how do I find a tax advisor who knows estate tax questions?

State Bar of Texas | Find A Lawyer | Jerry B. Jackson

www.texasbar.com

This guy was our prior estate planner. He is also a tax attorney.

We switched to somebody else for estate planning that had a stronger background with IRAs in trusts. I do my own taxes.

Texas has no state income taxes. My understanding of probate in TX is it is pretty straightforward, but unless everything passes outside of probate, you will need to probate and the attorney fees will be mostly the same unless a complex estate - and will probably run several thousand dollars.

You could also ask your questions on Bogleheads - perhaps a TX estate planner will answer. I know poster “Eric” is a TX estate planner

Disclaimer trusts — am I missing something? - Bogleheads.org

 

[COcheesehead]

If you use Fidelity, talk to them to start. They gave me a complimentary session with their corporate planner. I took all his advice to a local attorney to do the paperwork. Total cost of everything was $800.

 

[nwsteve]

If you use Fidelity, talk to them to start. They gave me a complimentary session with their corporate planner. I took all his advice to a local attorney to do the paperwork. Total cost of everything was $800.

We did the same thing and got great input from the Fido Estate guy. We are using a Living Trust and the Fido expert reviewed our Trust completely and provided suggestions we shared with our local attorney doing our update. He shared that the biggest estate error he consistently sees is a surviving spouse fails to file the federal form to transfers any remaining fed exemption balance to the surviving spouse--there is a time limit(12 months after death, IIIRC) but often overlooked. Attorney added a proviso in LT recitation to make a point of filing the form.
Just a heads up, the complimentary estate review for us took several weeks after being previously scheduled a month in advanced. I believe you also need to be a Private Client and possibly part of wealth management services--your Fido rep will know.

 

[COcheesehead]

We did the same thing and got great input from the Fido Estate guy. We are using a Living Trust and the Fido expert reviewed our Trust completely and provided suggestions we shared with our local attorney doing our update. He shared that the biggest estate error he consistently sees is a surviving spouse fails to file the federal form to transfers any remaining fed exemption balance to the surviving spouse--there is a time limit(12 months after death, IIIRC) but often overlooked. Attorney added a proviso in LT recitation to make a point of filing the form.
Just a heads up, the complimentary estate review for us took several weeks after being previously scheduled a month in advanced. I believe you also need to be a Private Client and possibly part of wealth management services--your Fido rep will know.

I am an Active Trader VIP level and they gave it to me no charge.

 

[SecondCor521]

While my sister put her Vanguard accounts and her house in her Trust, she didn’t include her checking account. I attempted to handle that with the county probate court in TX, but they insist I use a probate attorney. So I get to spend $2500 in attorney fees to recover an $8000 checking account balance. I’ve also talked to her bank and they’re demanding a court order too.

Most states have several levels off probate. It sounds like you're referring to formal probate, which is the most costly and time consuming level. There are other levels below that which are faster and cheaper and simpler if her estate qualifies.

If she didn't have a will, you can look into a small estate affidavit (SEA). If she had a will, there's also something called a "muniment of title" which I'm not familiar with but. Both of these are probably cheaper than $2500 and faster and easier too.

But I also have some tax questions, handling an inherited IRA I’d like to pass on to charity without taking a taxable distribution mostly,

Depending on how her will was written and/or how the IRA beneficiaries were listed, you could look into a disclaimer. Disclaimers must be done before accepting the asset, and within 9 months of her passing. There are other disclaimer rules.

but also Form 1041 questions, Form 709, Form 56, etc. All the local tax advisers I find seem to be experts on filing annual 1040 returns, and not much else. I don’t want to engage one of them to flounder around with my tax issues. So how do I find a tax advisor who knows estate tax questions?

Are you sure the 1041 and the 709 even required in her case? From what you've said that would be surprising to me.

The Form 56 doesn't look hard.

If the forms are required and her estate is relatively simple, I'd suggest taking a crack at them yourself.

If you don't want to do that, I'd call a well respected and large CPA firm in any metro area in Texas and ask to work with a partner or a senior staff member - they should be familiar. Any Texas estate planning attorney can also probably give you a referral.

Preparation of a 1041 and a 709 could easily be $2K in fees (which may be deductible on those same forms by the way).

 

[KarenF]

I’m settling my sisters estate and while I think I have a decent handle on it all, there are a few questions. I’m more concerned about the tax angles than estate attorney questions.

I’m OK with asking the estate attorney who wrote up our Trust some questions, but he doesn’t give tax advice. And unfortunately the estate is in TX, and I’m in NC, so he knows Federal but couches his answers in state caveats.

While my sister put her Vanguard accounts and her house in her Trust, she didn’t include her checking account. I attempted to handle that with the county probate court in TX, but they insist I use a probate attorney. So I get to spend $2500 in attorney fees to recover an $8000 checking account balance. I’ve also talked to her bank and they’re demanding a court order too.

But I also have some tax questions, handling an inherited IRA I’d like to pass on to charity without taking a taxable distribution mostly, but also Form 1041 questions, Form 709, Form 56, etc. All the local tax advisers I find seem to be experts on filing annual 1040 returns, and not much else. I don’t want to engage one of them to flounder around with my tax issues. So how do I find a tax advisor who knows estate tax questions?

She didn’t have a POD beneficiary on her checking account? Too bad. We have everything either in the trust or it has beneficiaries. The only exception is cars, which can be handled under the small estate provision in Georgia. Is there any amount that qualifies as a small estate and does not have to go through probate in Texas? Worth checking into (no pun intended).