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Clerk of Superior Court
Ex-officio Judge Of Probate
Estates Division
Small Estate
Administration
Application for Years Allowance (Surviving Spouse/ Child(ren))
If real property exists in the
deceased name, other than entireties
property between spouses, a formal administration would be necessary
to establish clear title to that real property.
In many
cases, when the decedent died leaving a surviving spouse, an Application
and Assignment of Year’s Allowance is sufficient to resolve a small
estate.
Pursuant
to North Carolina General Statutes 30-15 & 30-21, every surviving
spouse is entitled, unless he or she has forfeited the right, to an
allowance of $20,000.00 ($30,000.00 if the surviving spouse is the sole
heir or devisee of the decedent). This allowance is to be allocated from
money or other personal property of the decedent’s estate for the purpose
of support for one year after the death of the deceased spouse. In
addition, upon the death of a parent the following children are entitled
to an allocated allowance of $2,000.00:
1. Any
child under 18, including any adopted child or a child with whom the
widow may be pregnant at the death of her husband;
2. A
child under age 22 who is a full-time student in any educational
institution;
3. A
child under 21 years of age who has been declared mentally incompetent or who is totally disabled; or
4. Any
other person under 18 residing with the deceased parent at the time of
death to whom the deceased parent or the surviving parent stood in loco parentis [G.S. 30-17].
Non-probate assets, such as life insurance payable to
a designated beneficiary and joint bank accounts held with a right of
survivorship are not subject
to a year's allowance since they pass outside of the estate. Typically,
the Year’s Allowance is used to facilitate the transfer of individually
or jointly held motor vehicle titles, disbursement of individually held
bank accounts and the negotiation of checks or other monies due the
decedent.
Clerk’s office staff will assist you in answering
procedural questions related to the estate administration process, the
Clerk's Office is expressly forbidden by law to offer legal advice. It is
strongly recommended that you seek competent legal counsel to assist you.
Information Required to
Handle a Small Estate Administration
Information
below should assist you obtain the information necessary to determine if
small estate administration is sufficient or if another method of
administration may be necessary.
All items
listed below may not pertain to every estate and the list may be customized
by our office to your situation. Please review the items below to
determine what documents apply to your situation. As we work through this
estate additional documentation may be required.
Providing
this office with full disclosure of the assets of the decedent will not
only save you time and confusion but may also save money.
Last Will
and Testament- Original Will of the decedent is required by
law to be presented to this office. (This document will be retained as
a permanent record by the State of North
Carolina.)
Death
Certificate - A copy of the Death Certificate is required.
(May be obtained from the Register of Deeds in the county where the
decedent died or from the funeral home.)
Stocks and
Bonds -Confirm with brokerage firm that stocks & bonds can be
transferred based on “years allowance” NCGS 30-15; 30-21. Submit
original statements indicating the values on the “date of death” on all
stocks and bonds and verification of ownership by the decedent
individually or with others. (Include all individual, joint, or joint
tenancy with right of survivorship accounts.)
Real Estate
- Documentation of all real estate (land and houses) owned by the
decedent individually or with others. Include the value of the property
and the property address. (A print out from the county tax department
in the county where the property is located or a certified appraisal of
the value of the real estate will be accepted. You may consider
consulting an attorney concerning possible advantages of using appraised
values.)
Personal
Property with Titles - Documentation of all
motor vehicles, boats, trailers and campers owned by the decedent
individually or with others.
Include the value, model and vehicle identification number. Attach
the title or registration card of each. (A print out from the county
tax department in the county where the property is located or a certified
appraisal of the value of the property will be accepted.)
Loans - Original statement from
lending institutions for any personal property with titles identified
above. The statement should
describe the property; indicate the payoff on the “date of death” and the
model and vehicle identification number.
Funeral
Home Bill -Original funeral home statement
indicating the total amount of the bill, any amounts that have been
previously paid and who made the payment. If payee was insurance,
indicate the named beneficiary.
Life
Insurance- Estimate of life insurance and verification
of the beneficiary designation. (A copy of the policy or a statement
from the insurance company will be accepted.)
Bank
Accounts -Original statements from banks or savings
institutions indicating the value on the “date of death” and a
copy of all signature cards verifying ownership of the accounts by the
decedent individually or with others. (Include all individual, joint
or joint tenancy with right of survivorship accounts.)
Capital
Credits -Original statements from any utility
membership corporation indicating the account number and amount of
capital credit refund on the “date of death”. (Lumbee
River, South
River and Star Telephone are membership corporations.
CP&L, Sprint and AT&T are not.)
Retirement
Plan or IRA Accounts -Original statements indicating the
value on the “date of death” of any retirement plan and/or IRA account
and verification of the beneficiary designation.
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