First week
Secure the home and personal property
Lock up. Change locks if needed. Forward mail. The estate is responsible for what's in the home from now on.
- When to do it
- First week.
- Estimated time
- 1–2 days, plus ongoing upkeep
What you’ll need
- Keys, alarm codes, garage codes
- Mail forwarding form (USPS)
- Inventory notebook or photos
Steps
- Walk through and photograph the home before anything is moved.
- Make sure HVAC, water, and electricity stay on. A frozen pipe in an empty house is an avoidable disaster.
- Forward mail to yourself so you don't miss a bill, dividend, or notice.
- Cancel routine deliveries (newspapers, recurring grocery, etc.) once it's safe to do so.
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Related tasks
- 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.
- Notify the Social Security AdministrationIf the decedent was receiving Social Security, the funeral home usually reports the death. Confirm — and stop benefits to avoid clawbacks.