I received a call from a friend who runs an Estate Planning company, and my friend sent me a text as I was listening to her voice message.
The call came to me because this Estate Planning company knows that I specialize with Seniors (55+) Real Estate needs. Many times that means specialized information regarding Assisted Living placement, Trusts, Wills, and Probate.
This call was about probate, but it wasn’t your normal call about probate.
Quick background: Probate is when you own property and pass away without having joint tenancy (meaning you’re not married and nobody else jointly owns the property with you), you left behind no will, and the estate is not in a trust.
A probate judge will select a family member as a Personal Representative (or PR) of the estate. You may have heard the term Executor. This would be the same person. Personal Representative = Executor.
In this case, I was receiving the call because a gentleman passed away in Florida. His primary residence was in Florida, and it turns out his entire family lives in Florida. However, he has an investment property in Utah.
A Florida judge appointed his surviving brother as the Personal Representative.
But how does that help when there is property in Utah and everyone is based in Florida?
The question: If a probate judge names a PR in Florida, does the family have to go through probate in Utah? Meaning, does someone else have to be assigned by a Utah judge, or the same person, etc.?
Yes and no.
It would seem like a straightforward answer and it mostly is, but with one step.
Utah reciprocates probate from other states; however, the personal representative needs to file the Florida judges orders in the state of Utah. This is called Ancillary Administration.
I quickly let my friend at the Estate Planning company know and they were off to file the necessary paperwork and pay the small fee. There’s always a fee! The State will always want a little piece – no matter what State you live in! LOL
I’m not going to lie – an Estate Planning company, that has attorneys, called me to verify the law and procedure. That was pretty cool! 😎
Now you know too!
I’ll leave you with this: the best way to protect your property is to place the real estate into a trust. A trust will pass your property to your heirs with zero issues.
If you need an estate planning company to speak to then reach out and I’ll connect you!
