Wrapping up
Distribute remaining assets to beneficiaries
Once debts, taxes, and expenses are paid, what remains goes to the people named in the will (or to heirs by law if there's no will).
- When to do it
- After all claims have been resolved.
- Estimated time
- A few weeks once everything else is settled
What you’ll need
- Final accounting
- Receipts and releases from beneficiaries
- Court approval, in many states
Steps
- Prepare a final accounting showing every dollar in and out.
- Provide each beneficiary their share — by check, transfer, or in-kind asset transfer.
- Get a signed receipt and release from each beneficiary.
- File the final accounting with the court if required.
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Related tasks
- Close the estate with the courtThe court formally discharges you as executor when the final accounting is approved and all distributions are documented.
- Order certified copies of the death certificateYou'll need certified copies of the death certificate for nearly everything else — banks, insurers, the court, the Social Security Administration.
- Locate the will and any trust documentsFind the original will. Photocopies are not the same as originals, and the original is what gets filed with the court.