Q: My brother died and left a will giving all to his son and daughter with me as executor. The main value of the estate
is with a commercial property owned equally by him and me. His kids will get his half. The property was valued at $1.2 million in 2015. Do I need to file probate in Oregon? There will be no disputes or contested issues.
*Update*
Thank you for the two answers--we do have the commercial business in an LLC with my brother and I as members and I am the managing member. Does that make a difference as to whether we need to file probate? Thank you again for your help.
A: Probate is not a legal requirement, it is a tool that can be used if needed to transfer assets. All you need at this point is a consultation with a probate lawyer to see if the property had some way to transfer his half built in, such as the property being owned by an LLC and his share of the LLC transferred per the operating agreement. Anyway, a probate Attorney should be able to guide you after one consultation. Oregon does assess estate tax on estates valued at over $1 million, so you will also want to review all property owned by your brother including retirement accounts and live insurance payable on his life to see if there is any reason to be concerned with filing an estate tax return and paying estate taxes. Bottom line, make an appointment to talk to a probate Attorney.
1 user found this answer helpful
A: I'm sorry for your loss. It sounds like you likely need a probate assuming the Deed to the property does not include survivorship. Your brother's Will doesn't actually transfer anything, it is just instructions for the probate Court. You will need to be appointed by the Court as the Personal Representative of his estate to get Court approval to transfer the property to your niece and nephew. Give a local probate attorney a call.
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