Solicitor fees for probate

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Dsignr25

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My mother passed away recently after a short illness. I'm one of 5 siblings but only I've lived in the family home with her for a number of years. My mother left a will and nominated my 2 oldest oldest sisters as executors. I'm the main beneficiary, as I will inherit the house. The remainder of my mothers estate is a small sum in the credit union which will be shared between all siblings.

The executors employed a solicitor (where my mum stored her will) to oversee probate. Aterwards, I was told by the executor that the house needs to be valued and it was on me to pay for that as well as the 2% (of the estate) solicitors fees out of my own pocket. I've seen the will and the wording goes along the lines of "...my just debts, funeral and testamentary expenses are to be paid from the proceeds of my credit union account and where theres a shortfall, the same just debts, funeral and testimentary expenses are to be paid by [my name]....". The solicitor sent me a letter to notify me of this and stated that "you will note that it falls on you to pay the just debts, funeral and testamentary expenses....which amount to 2% of the estate....etc".

From my research, should these fees not be paid for from the estate itself? Surely it doesnt fall to me to personally pay for anything unless there's insufficient funds in the credit union account. However, my sister is adament that this what I have to do. Hopefully my interpretation of the letter is incorrect and the solicitor means that I am responsible but I'll be reimbursed assuming my mothers savings cover it? I intend to continue living in the house and not sell it.
 
The will nominated your sisters as joint executors.
They employed the solicitor to carry out the actual work. This is allowed but costs money.
This will have to be paid by the estate.
As part of the process the solicitor will need to catalogue the estate and value the items for revenue purposes.
so the following is correct.
the house needs to be valued
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Then you said.

I've seen the will
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he wording goes
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my just debts, funeral and testamentary expenses are to be paid from the proceeds of my credit union account and where theres a shortfall, the same just debts, funeral and testimentary expenses are to be paid by [my name]
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From what you have posted it would appear that you are only liable for any costs which are not covered by the money in the credit union.


However it would appear based on what you have posted that the siblings wish you, as the main beneficiary, to cover the entire probate costs.

They may feel that the value of the credit union is small and means they will effectively get SFA while having to cover the costs.

But based on what you have posted you can tell them no.

This will preserve the loins share of the estate for you.
 
Just been through probate myself for my Mam. House valuation was covered by the estate. Cost was not major to be honest.

What is different here is that we were selling the house, you were not so it is possible that the cash in hand will not cover all of the solicitors bills so someone will have to stump up.
 
Hmm, it is odd that the solicitor said “you will note that it falls on you to pay the just debts, funeral and testamentary expenses....which amount to 2% of the estate....etc”. He can read the will as well as you.

So I wonder if he has a statement of the credit union account and the balance is €0? Just write back and ask about the clause and the money in the account at date of death, that should be helpful.

As executors your sisters should be doing the house valuation, it is their role as executor, and the costs should be borne by the estate. The solicitor normally gathers up all the bills, so you can get it valued and send the paid invoice in to the solicitor so he can pay all the bills after probate
 
It seems to me that the estate has not enough to cover the probate cost and the house valuation so you are liable for these down the line. Is the house worth a lot of money ? 2% of 200k is doable but 2% of 1000k is large enough.
 
elcato said:
It seems to me that the estate has not enough to cover the probate cost and the house valuation so you are liable for these down the line. Is the house worth a lot of money ? 2% of 200k is doable but 2% of 1000k is large enough.
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The house is probably worth about 200k - 250k at a guess as it needs a fair bit of work. I have no problem paying up if that's what's required (or even to keep relations good) but was trying to understand why my sister stressed that it was my debt and shut out any further discussion when I mentioned the account or the wording in the will.
 
Probably they don’t understand, but if you have the wording of the will right, then the solicitor will follow what the will says, so just give the receipts to him/her.
 
Dsignr25 said:
but was trying to understand why my sister stressed that it was my debt and shut out any further discussion when I mentioned the account or the wording in the will.
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You said there is a small sum in the credit union to pay for debts, with you only being liable for any shortfall. A few years ago I paid €5,000 for a typical funeral in Dublin, the hotel afterwards was a further €2,500, add on to that the probate fee, the solicitors legal fee for probate and the solicitors legal fee for conveyancing, that all adds up to a lot more than a small sum. As others have speculated, the most likely reason for these debts being yours is there is not enough in the credit union.

Maybe your other executor sister, or the solicitor who wrote to you might give you some answers.
 
How much is the small sum in the CU? It could already be gone on the funeral if small enough.
 
Monbretia said:
How much is the small sum in the CU? It could already be gone on the funeral if small enough.
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I don't know for certain as the account is locked down for GDPR but the most recent paperwork I found has a little over 10k in it.

The death benefit is definitely due also.
 
Sue Ellen said:
The estate may also get the Death Benefit insurance from the Credit Union if the insurance was in place.
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Is death benefit where applicable just added on to the account balance ? If yes and the account holder had filled out a nomination form the funds (up to €23,000) would go to the person named on the nomination form and only amounts above the limit (if any) will form part of the estate.
Or is the death benefit specifically for death expenses regardless of any nominated person ?
 
Usually the cost of winding up an estate comes out of the deceased's funds. Reading between the lines, if this happens, there will be little or nothing left for your siblings, who will pay all the bills from their small inheritance, while you get a house.

A bit of diplomacy may be required for the good of your future relationship with your siblings.

I'd also question the 2% solicitor fee. Why do they get a percentage of value of assets? Why not a fixed fee?
 
Des Pondent said:
Is death benefit where applicable just added on to the account balance ? If yes and the account holder had filled out a nomination form the funds (up to €23,000) would go to the person named on the nomination form and only amounts above the limit (if any) will form part of the estate.
Or is the death benefit specifically for death expenses regardless of any nominated person ?
Click to expand...


Best to check that type of stuff with the credit union itself as sometimes these things can differ from one to another.
 
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