5 Reasons to Hire a Professional Executor
Estate planning requires many important decisions, like how you want your assets distributed or who will become guardians for your children or your family pets. One of the most important decisions you will make is naming your executor.
Whether choosing an executor or acting as an executor, many people are unaware of the scope, responsibility and time commitment required for this role. Settling an estate generally takes up to eighteen months and often longer depending on its complexity. There can be up to 300 individual tasks to perform, such as arranging a funeral, setting up bank accounts in the name of the estate, working with insurance and utility companies, filing for probate, securing and valuing assets and property and filing and paying taxes to name a few.
Many people appoint their loved ones or friends to be their executor and often don’t ask or advise them of this decision. They do this with the best of intentions, without realizing how overwhelming this role can be for those without the right skills and experience. There are alternatives.
Trust companies or “corporate executors” is an alternative if expertise is required in administering complex, contentious and high net worth estates. For those not in this category, another alternative is hiring a Professional Executor. Experienced at estate administration, Professional Executor Estate Services offer an affordable solution with a variety of support services.
- Sole executor to perform all estate settlement tasks
- Co-executor to share the load with a family member executor
- Alternate executor if the primary executor cannot perform the role
- Agent for the executor to support and coach the appointed executor
Let’s explore some of the benefits of working with a Professional Executor and how this choice lifts the burden from grieving loved ones.
1. Experience and Expertise
The job of an executor is time-consuming requiring a variety of skill sets. At Financial Concierge, we offer Professional Estate Services Calgary and follow our comprehensive Executor Checklist which includes over 300 tasks an executor may need to perform depending on the circumstances.
Taking on the role of executor can become a full-time job –a struggle for family and friends as they try to integrate these new tasks with their existing job and family responsibilities. It’s a role that many people are inexperienced to perform and lack the necessary skills to carry out the duties.
Professional Executor Estate Services GTA specialize in administering estates. It’s their job to make sure estates are managed efficiently with accuracy, diplomacy and transparency ensuring all beneficiaries are well informed and receive their estate distributions as quickly as possible.
2. Local Presence
Not everyone’s family or close friends live in the same country or province. Appointing a loved one as your executor who resides out of province can pose unexpected challenges.
The costs of appointing an out of province executor can be high. In some provinces, an out-of-province executor must secure the estate assets with a surety bond. Also, out of country executors can negatively impact the taxes an estate is required to pay. And if your appointed executor lives a far distance from you, it can complicate the sale of physical assets, like real-estate and vehicles.
A Professional Executor works locally which allows more efficient handling of asset disposition and a more personalized connection with beneficiaries, bank managers and other stakeholders involved in the estate settlement process. A local presence is especially important if there is family discord where a neutral third-party is needed to mediate a contentious issue regarding the estate.
3. Neutral, Impartial Third-Party
Executors are accountable for impartially following the instructions outlined in the will. They must balance the interests of the estate’s beneficiaries and creditors. This is a challenge when the executor is also a beneficiary and even more challenging if their family dynamics are strained.
It can be difficult to remain impartial if the family member making executor decisions also benefits from those decisions, and may have biased views toward certain other family members who are also beneficiaries.
The best way to avoid this situation is to appoint an impartial Professional Executor. They can remain neutral when interpreting and following the will’s instructions because they do not have a vested interest in asset distribution and they do not have a personal relationship with any of the beneficiaries.
4. Consistency and Stability
We all know that change is the one thing we can count on. We may appoint a loved one to be our executor, but there is no certainty that they will be available or willing to perform the role when the time comes. This is particularly worrisome that even the best laid plans can be derailed and put your estate in limbo with no executor.
Appointing a Professional Executor removes the worry by offering stability and consistency for your estate. They are part of a team of professionals that you can count on to be there to manage your estate when the time comes.
5. Risk Avoidance
It is important for executors to understand the legal responsibilities that come with the role
Many who appoint executors or become executors are not aware this role comes with personal financial risk. The executor is a fiduciary and is required by law to perform their responsibilities with competence, impartiality and act in the best interests of the estate. Failure to properly protect the estate’s assets and carry out their duties accurately can result in litigation from debtors and/or beneficiaries.
This can pose high risk for loved ones appointed as executors as they assume liability in the performance of responsibilities for which they are unfamiliar with and inexperienced.
Professional Estate Executor Services are based on having a clear understanding of the risks associated with assuming this role. Services that offer experience and knowledge to accurately and efficiently administer estates. They also protect themselves and the beneficiaries with Erassure® estate risk assurance.
Unburden your Loved Ones and Hire a Professional Executor
Appointing a loved one as your executor can create unintended issues for your estate plan. It assumes your loved one:
- Has the time, experience and necessary skills to manage your estate
- Lives in your province and is nearby for practical tasks like disposing of property
- Can guarantee they will be available and willing to assume executor duties when the time comes
- Is aware and willing to assume liability associated with performing executor responsibilities.
Being an executor means taking quick and decisive action upon your death. There are many time sensitive tasks that must be performed which can be stressful for a loved one who is grieving.
Hiring Professional Executor Estate Services to either support your appointed family or friend executor, or to act as your executor is a practical solution to protect your estate plan.
The additional layer of privacy, expertise and impartiality a Professional Executor offers can give your loved ones the space and time they need to grieve, come together as a family, and celebrate your life and their memories..