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Articles & Books From Kathryn A. Murphy
Article / Updated 10-06-2022
As of January 1, 2013, an additional 3.8 percent tax was added to investment income in estates and trusts, thanks to provisions in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. It's not an additional tax on every dollar, but only on the lesser of undistributed net investment income or any amount of adjusted gross income in excess of the highest tax bracket in any year.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-25-2022
As the fiduciary of an estate or trust, you have many duties, beginning immediately upon the decedent’s (deceased person’s) passing. You’re also guaranteed to become intimately familiar with a host of tax forms you may not have known existed.Tax forms to know as the fiduciary of an estate or trustWhen you’re administering an estate or trust, you may have to prepare a seemingly endless array of tax returns.
Article / Updated 07-06-2021
If you are serving as executor for a loved one's estate, you’ll need to consider all the stuff you find in the decedent’s residence (or residences). Everything the decedent owned outright on their date of death is now under your care as executor; you’re responsible for making sure that you account for this stuff and that it ends up where it’s supposed to.
Article / Updated 03-13-2020
When you’re administering an estate or trust, you may have to prepare a seemingly endless array of tax returns. The following table lists some of the most popular ones. Check with your accountant or attorney if you have any questions.
Federal Tax Form Number and Name
When It’s Required
When It’s Due
Form 1040
U.
Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781119543879) was previously published as Estate and Trust Administration For Dummies, 2nd Edition (9781118412251). While this version features a new Dummies cover and design, the content is the same as the prior release and should not be considered a new or updated product.
Step by Step / Updated 03-10-2017
When you’re asked to administer a trust or estate for a relative or friend (especially if that person didn’t have a will), this important responsibility can feel overwhelming during an already difficult time. Here are ten pitfalls that often trip up unwary administrators — and that you should avoid:Don't fail to terminate an existing real estate purchase and sale agreement.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you’re an executor, personal representative, or administrator of an estate, your job begins at the death of the person whose estate you’re administering. The following list contains tasks you need to take care of in the first days and weeks after the decedent’s death.
Determine the decedent’s wishes regarding arrangements such as funeral and burial.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
After death, the rules governing receipt of income in an estate and the payment of its expenses loosen up somewhat. It’s not as though the electric company can threaten the decedent with shutting off the power.
Because the standard sanction of “you don’t pay, we don’t provide” doesn’t carry any weight with an estate, you have an opportunity to place at least some of your income, deductions, and expenses in years, and on tax returns, where they’ll save the greatest amount of income tax across all affected returns.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
In many states, traditional probate proceedings can be supervised or unsupervised, and unsupervised can be formal or informal. Consult with an attorney experienced in probate matters in your state if there is any question as to what form your probate should take.
Unsupervised informal probate
Use unsupervised informal probate, or a similar proceeding in your state, if you don’t feel the need for any extra intervention or supervision by the court at the beginning of your estate administration.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
When searching for an attorney to help you with your estate or trust, you may be wondering, where’s the best place to look? Unfortunately, you can’t rub a magic lamp and ask for an attorney to appear, but you can do some investigative work on your own to uncover one that’s a good match for you. Check out the following resources when searching for an attorney:
Phone directory or search engine: Your first thought may be to rush to your phone directory and start flipping through the listings, or turn on your computer and begin a search.
