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Questions Answered by Sara W. Harrington
1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for North Carolina on
Q: Will dad's house pass to immediate family outside of probate in NC?

My dad's NC house is paid-off and titled to him. His assets include only the house and household goods. If he died, would the house pass to "immediate family" under NC law, outside of probate? If so, since the assets subject to probate would be $20,000 would that allow the use of... View More

Sara W. Harrington
Sara W. Harrington
answered on Sep 19, 2018

In North Carolina, real estate passes to the heirs at the time of death. If there is no will, that is determined by the laws of intestate succession. If there is a will and the real estate was specifically devised to individuals, that would override intestate succession.

Generally real...
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1 Answer | Asked in Probate for North Carolina on
Q: Can executor of intestate case rent out property, he was told no prior to agreeing to allow him to be executor

Rumors are stating that he has plans to rent out two homes as soon as we sign off on appointing him as executor

Sara W. Harrington
Sara W. Harrington
answered on Sep 19, 2018

If there was no will, the surviving spouse has priority to qualify as administrator of the estate. If there is no surviving spouse, the intestate heirs share equal priority to be the administrator. If you and the other heirs do not want this person to administer the estate, one of you can apply to... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Estate Planning and Probate for North Carolina on
Q: I am completing the form AOC-E-506 for my grandmother (2015) and grandfather's (2017) estates as an annual account in NC

I have payments for storage, legal fees, accountants, flights/hotels/car rentals (to handle estate), cleaning supplies (for property), utilities/insurance/property taxes(all of which I am not sure I was even allowed to pay, but not sure what to do about it now). I am not sure where these go on the... View More

Sara W. Harrington
Sara W. Harrington
answered on Sep 19, 2018

It sounds like you've been doing a lot of the right things, but you could use the assistance of an attorney experienced in estate administration/probate to help you make sure you take care of all the small details that may fall through the cracks. I recommend you contact a local estate... View More

1 Answer | Asked in Public Benefits and Probate for North Carolina on
Q: My estranged father died and became ward of the state. What do I do?

He wasn’t married and my sister isn’t doing anything about it. It’s been 6 weeks and I just found out. What are my responsibilities as his daughter? Or since he’s a ward of the state do I have responsibilities? Should I claim his ashes or do I then force myself into a position of executor?

Sara W. Harrington
Sara W. Harrington
answered on Sep 19, 2018

If your father was a ward of the state, someone should have been serving as his guardian or social worker. You might want to contact the agency who was taking responsibility for him to find out about the disposition of his remains. Also, if he was a ward of the state, there is probably no estate to... View More

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