Loss and the probate experience.
In September 2020 My mother Alice who was dealing with dementia pasted away. As the excitor of her estate I had to learn a lot about the process. From filling all the paperwork to clearing out the house to collecting all of her assets. It is a lot of work and I realized I needed help so I engaged the services of Trust and Will at the closing process. I wish I had listed to myself and went with them from the start. I filled all the paperwork in person. I attended all hearings in person. San Bernadino Court. I finalized the process three years later.
My Sister Carol was a great help though the process; however, she was recovering from various surgeries which nearly took her life.
So grateful she survived Mom because I could not convince her to sign her will and she too passed away December 2022.
I am her excitor and I went to Trust and Will for their expert experience in navigating the Los Angeles Probate system. Most of which is remote filling and Zoom court appearances.
I did most of the work myself in clearing out her house. I had to also renovate the home as it was in much need of repairs. You would not believe the amount of text and calls I received regarding the sale of the house. Cash offers are not always the way to go. Their goal is to get the property as cheaply as possible and most of the time the Heirs what to sell fast and don’t want to renovate.
I found a great Real estate Agency that helped a lot and supplied valuable information. They had a contractor that they used and I accepted a quote which seemed high given what they were going to do.
Given what needed to be done I asked for a quote from a contractor we use to fix things around my office. He was more expensive; however, I felt he was better qualified and I also received more value out of what he ended up renovating.
I have worked in the Construction industry since 1987 in the cost accounting side of things. The material cost have increased significantly. In the end we kept the profit in the estate because it sold for well above what the value at start and the sailing price. If the Estate has the funds to make repairs, I recommend exploring all options before accepting the first low offer.
One thing I noticed is that there are a lot of Relators that do not verify if the property is still owned by the estate before reaching out to the Excitor. I had someone contact me today and I sold the house in August 2023.
I hope this information is helpful.
Blessings,
Rev. Linda