Q: Entering fathers home during probate.
My father was found dead in his home in Florida. He had been dead for 6-7 days. The home had to be “tented” to get rid of smell. The home now needs cleaned of all the millions of bugs the fumigation did, and to have carpet ripped out, clothes thrown out, etc, to help with smell and appearance of the home. It was left to 4 children to be sold and money divided equally. He has no bills and this has been his residence for 30 years. I also need to find any insurance papers, bank accounts, etc. the house is beautiful and cleaning it and replacing anything, I , and my Aunt, feel , is needed immediately. Can myself and my Aunt go down to clean, paint, restore, the home. The other 3 siblings have full time jobs and are unable. My sister wants to hire complete strangers to do this job. (Going thru his drawers, desk, papers, and clean). I think it is disrespectful to my father. My sister is the only one who wants strangers in the house. Should I feel bad if my Aunt and myself go down
A:
Sorry for the loss of your father in this situation.
Please go and see a probate attorney to hire to represent you or whoever will be the personal representative of the estate, as soon as possible. Whoever is appointed personal representative can go through the drawers and look for documentation after the house, which is now contaminated has been professionally cleaned. The attorney can also explain the proper procedures to be followed. What is in the home needs to be inventoried. The attorney can assist you with whether the personal representative and other family members, or a professional needs to retained to do this as well.
It is important to make sure the assets of the estate are protected, obviously in this situation it is critical to professionally clean the house, as well as securing the property. You will probably need the services of cleaning company that can remove contaminated debri and properly sanitize the home. These companies are usually rather expensive. Check for licensed companies in your area. This needs to be done as soon as feasible. What needs to be taken out of the house needs to be properly bagged and disposed. You probably should not do this work yourselves or even be in the house for extended periods of time until this company completes it work, then you can arrange for the additional clean up necessary. Make sure you document and keep records of all expenses and time spent. The personal representative or someone designated by the personal representative should be present during this activity.
Phillip William Gunthert agrees with this answer
A: Very sorry for your loss on the passing of your father, please accept my condolences. You should not feel bad if you are able to gain access and do the work yourself, I would encourage you to track all expenses related tot he property and the estate as well as create a list of the entire inventory of the house that has any reasonable value. You will want to contact a Florida Probate Attorney, depending on the size of the estate and the type of assets that have to go through probate will determine the type of probate that has to be pursued. If there is a Will you should make a copy of it and submit the original to the clerk of the court in the county where you dad lived as soon as reasonably possible (the law says 10 days from death but no one will hold you to that timeline). Hiring a company that handles cleaning and such may be easier because you can submit the bill and there is no doubt or questions from the other interested family and siblings, if you do it yourself, make sure you track everything the best that you can. As you go through the papers you will see if his accounts had beneficiaries listed or if the asset has to go through probate. You really need to get on the same page with all the siblings per a Will or otherwise and get hold of a probate attorney.
A: You or your aunt should apply to be personal representative. Once you have been appointed, you will have the authority to take care of the house.
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