Regardless of the outcome the federal and state elections, Probate Court Costs in North Carolina can be up to $6,000.00 per person or $12,000.00 per couple. Administrative costs, much of that including attorney’s fees, will still average 5% to 7% of your assets that move through Probate Court. The average time to move through Probate Court will still be 18 to 24 months. That being the time from when the Will is put into the Court system and the Court says the Personal Representative can close the Probate and pay out the inheritance money.
The things that are moving through the Probate Court are public record, so that predators and creditors can watch your assets slowly grind through the Probate Court system at great cost and expense to you and your loved ones.
There are a number of Estate Planning techniques that can be used to avoid the expense, delay, and publicity of Probate Court. These include Living Trusts where all of your assets are titled in the Trust. This includes your real estate, bank accounts, investment accounts, and other assets that have a title. Assets that are retirement accounts will move differently than your taxed accounts which should be titled in your Revocable Living Trust.
There are other Estate Planning techniques that can be used to avoid the expense, delay, and publicity of Probate Court, and we are happy to discuss those in detail with you.
At the Law Firm of Steven Andrew Jackson, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, we have helped hundreds of families protect themselves and their loved ones, avoid Estate Taxes and Probate Costs, and keep their Estate Plans current with the law through The Customized Protective Estate Planning Solution™.