Hillsborough County Probate - Probate in Florida
Estate planning in Hillsborough County gives you a great opportunity to keep a larger portion of your estate after your death. A Hillsborough probate lawyer can show you how you can best prepare your assets to enable your family and relatives to receive what you want to give each one of them. Here are some tips as to what a Hillsborough probate lawyer can do to help you.
A Hillsborough probate lawyer handles everything that is related to the paying of taxes and distributing of the assets of the deceased. When there is no will, then probate lawyers also ensure that the possessions and property are divided among relatives according to state law.
A Hillsborough probate lawyer can help you set up one or more trusts (which would enable you to take care of children - or grandchildren), life insurance policies, joint tenancies, IRA's, Payable On Death bank accounts, and more - enabling you to make sure that the one you want actually receives what you want them to have. In addition, you can also be shown how to give gifts of money. You can make these to people of your choice, and to charities, too - before and after you pass away which will reduce the taxes even more.
Good estate planning will also require that you write a will. This is something that your Hillsborough probate lawyer will also help you with to cover other assets that may come to you after the other estate planning has been performed. You also should have a living will, which will appoint a power of attorney for you in the event you become incapacitated. A health care surrogate can also be named to make health care decisions for you if you cannot make them on your own.
Be sure to select your Hillsborough probate lawyer from those that have actual experience with estate planning. An experienced probate lawyer would be more current on the laws and options you could draw from. In most cases, you can generally tell about the experience of a Hillsborough probate lawyer from his or her Web site.
If you must go through a probate because someone has died, then you may choose any probate attorney in the state of Florida who is of convenience to you; however, if there are issues in your probate being contested and that would require court appearances, then it would be wise to have a Hillsborough Probate lawyer because an Hillsborough probate attorney would be more familiar with the local Judges and Court system, and that would prove very helpful.
The fees for a Florida probate attorney are usually charged according to Florida Statutes Section 733.6171, which states:
733.6171 Compensation of attorney for the personal representative -
(1) Attorneys for personal representatives shall be entitled to reasonable compensation payable from the estate assets without court order.
(2) The attorney, the personal representative, and persona bearing the impact of the compensation may agree to compensation determined in a different manner than provided in this section if the manner is disclosed to the parties bearing the impact of the compensation and if no objection is made as provided for in the Florida Probate Rules.
(3) Compensation for ordinary services of attorneys in formal estate administration is presumed to be reasonable if based on the compensable value of the estate, which is the inventory value of the probate estate assets and the income earned by the estate during the administration as provided in the following schedule:
(a) One thousand five hundred dollars for estates having a value of $40,000 or less
(b) An additional $750 for estates having a value of more than $40,000, but not exceeding $70,000.
(c) An additional $750 for estates having a value of more than $70,000 and not exceeding $100,000.
(d) For estates having a value in excess of $100,000, at the rate of 3 percent on the next $900,000.
(e) At the rate of 2.5 percent for all above $1 million and not exceeding $3 million.
(f) At the rate of 2 percent for all above $3 million and not exceeding $5 million.
(g) At the rate of 1.5 percent for all above $5 million and not exceeding $10 million
(h) At a rate of 1 percent for all above $10 million.
Don't risk mishandling the estate you have been appointed to protect. You must be certain that all creditors and governmental agencies are properly paid so that the beneficiaries receive their assets free of problems in the future. Contact a Hillsborough County Probate Lawyer today!
