SvvySay enir a vvy Senior Senior nio by Jim Miller A Checklist of What to Do When a Loved One Dies Dear Savvy Senior, What steps need to be taken after a loved one dies? My 71-year-old uncle, who’s divorced with no children, has terminal cancer. He’s asked me to take care of his aff airs so I would like to fi nd out what I need to do after he passes away. Unsure Nephew Dear Unsure, I’m very sorry to hear about your uncle. The death of a loved of can bring about a host of different tasks and responsibilities. Here’s a list of some things you can do now, and after his death, that can help keep a sad event from becoming even more diffi cult. Before Death Occurs There are several tasks you can do now while your uncle is still living that will make things easier for you after he dies. For starters, fi nd out where he keeps all his important papers like his trust and/or will (also make sure it’s updated), birth certifi cate, Social Security information, life-insurance policies, military discharge papers, financial documents, key or combination to a safe deposit box or a home safe. Also make a list of his digital assets (including usernames and passwords) like his email account, online banking accounts, social media accounts, etc. If your uncle doesn’t have an advanced directive, help him make one (see CaringInfo.org for free state-specific forms and instructions). An advanced directive includes a living will that specifi es his end-of-life medical treatments and appoints a health-care proxy to make medical decisions if he becomes incapacitated. In addition, you should also make a do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order. Your uncle’s doctor can help you with this. You should also pre-arrange his funeral, memorial service, and burial or cremation. Immediately After Death Once your uncle dies, you’ll need to get a legal pronouncement of death. If no doctor is present, you’ll need to contact someone to do this. If he dies at home under hospice care, call the hospice nurse, who can declare his death and help facilitate the transport of the body. If he dies at home without hospice care, call your uncle’s doctor. You’ll then need to call the funeral home, mortuary or crematorium to pick up the body. If your uncle is an organ or tissue donor, contact the funeral home or the county coroner immediately. Within a Few Days If funeral plans were not pre-arranged, you’ll need to make arrangements and prepare an obituary. If your uncle was in the military or belonged to a fraternal or religious group, you should contact those organizations too, because they may have burial benefi ts or conduct funeral services. You should also notify family members, close friends and his employer if he was still working, and make sure his home is secured. Up to 10 Days After Death To wind down your uncle’s fi nancial aff airs, you’ll need to get multiple copies of his death certifi cate, which are typically ordered by the funeral home. If you’re the executor of your uncle’s estate, take his will to the appropriate county or city offi ce to have it accepted for probate. And open a bank account for your uncle’s estate to pay bills, including taxes, funeral costs, etc. You also need to contact your uncle’s estate attorney if he has one; tax preparer to see if estate or fi nal income taxes should be fi led; fi nancial advisor for information on fi nancial holdings; life insurance agent to get claim forms; his bank to locate and close accounts; and Social Security, the VA (if he’s a veteran) and other agencies that provided benefi ts in order to stop payments. You should also cancel his credit cards, delete or memorialize his social media accounts and, if relevant, stop household services like utilities, mail, etc. His home and personal belonging will also need to be dealt with in the coming weeks. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. ior THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, DECEmbEr 30, 2022 WATER | FROM PAGE 18 Page 19 at 79,000 [on Feb. 28], Cicolini said. “I didn’t know that that street was like an ocean. So they clearly don’t have a leak leaking out to the ocean,” he said. “I don’t think you guys are trucking water out in water trucks,” Cicolini quipped. Burlakoti details how he took extensive measures to determine a potential reason for the high reading. “They made me feel like I did this to myself and I was not a good custodian of the house, so I am supposed to pay for my mistakes,” he said. “Why would I use so much water? To do what?” he asked. “I went back home and thoroughly inspected the toilets, faucets, water heater, checked visible piping around the house and looked through all avenues of leakage, but I did not fi nd any issues,” he said. A few days later, a technician visited the house and checked for leaks, but didn’t fi nd anything. But she noticed the needle on the meter was running a little faster than normal, according to Burlakoti. He invited two plumbers to the house, but they couldn’t fi nd any leaks either. Burlakoti said he met with Hatch, the tax collector, on what to do about the massive bill. He said that she sent a plumbing contractor, who also couldn’t determine the reason for the huge water bill. “I asked Wendy to request changing the old meter to a new meter and because there were no resources available to get assistance from the town immediately for cheaper cost, I spent $25,000 to change the meter to new meter through a licensed technician plumber,” he said. Switching to a new meter changed the water consumption to normal again, according to Burlakoti. But that doesn’t provide much relief for Burlakoti, who now owes more than $20,000 – which includes the interest and penalties added to the outstanding bills. The town has determined that the old meter “is normal.” He’s concerned it will affect his mortgage payments. Burlakoti called the situation unfair, “as I did not consume the kind of water and I have been making honest eff orts to identify and correct the issues with the Town.” “This has added financial burden and obligation on top of what I’ve been dealing with. It has caused me a huge amount of stress and anxiety and I am unable to sleep,” he said. I ELIGIBLE DESIGNATED BENEFICIARY f you are a disabled or chronically ill individual or you are not more than 10 years younger than the deceased IRA owner or 401(k) plan participant, you can establish an Inherited IRA account in the name of the deceased account owner with you listed as the beneficiary. Sometimes this type of account is referred to as a Benefi ciary IRA account. If the account owner dies prior to the RBD (Required Beginning Date), the date at which RMD’s (Required Minimum Distributions) commence, then the annual RMD’s going forward for the benefi ciary of the IRA account will be based upon his or her own life expectancy. Distributions must begin no later than December 31st the year following the year of death. Furthermore, the benefi ciary may withdraw any amount at any time as long as the entire balance in the IRA account is withdrawn by December 31st year following the of to age 75 in calendar year 2033. When the account owner dies prior to the RBD, a non-eligible benefi ciary of an IRA account or 401(k) account, such as a child in the typical situation, may withdraw the monies in the account at any time as long as the entire balance is withdrawn by December 31st of the 10TH year folof the 10th date of death of the original IRA account owner. If the IRA account owner or 401(k) participant dies after the Required Beginning Date, the annual RMD’s going forward are based upon the benefi ciary’s age and life expectancy or the age and life expectancy of the deceased original account owner, whichever is longer. Distributions from the Inherited IRA account must begin no later than December 31st the year following the year of death of the original account owner. In this situation, the 10 year rule does not apply. A surviving spouse can simply roll the IRA account or 401(k) account of the deceased spouse into a Spousal IRA account and not have to take RMD’s until age 72. The RMD’s will be based upon his or her own life expectancy. The Secure Act 2.0, which is part of the most recent spending bill passed by Congress, extends the Required Beginning date to age 73 commencing in calendar year 2023. It will be increased lowing the account owner’s date of death. If the account owner dies after the RBD, the annual RMD’s are based upon the child’s age and life expectancy or the age and life expectancy of the account owner, whichever is longer, but the entire balance in the account must be distributed by December 31st of the 10th year following the date of death of the account owner. Distributions must begin no later than December 31st of the year followof ing the date of death of the original account owner. These new RMD rules prevent children of the IRA or 401(k) account owner from “stretching” distributions over their life expectancy. A $500,000 IRA, for example, would have to be cashed out at the rate of $50,000 per year resulting in much higher income taxes over a much shorter period of time, not allowing for the account to grow tax deferred over the life expectancy of the child. Joseph D. Cataldo is an estate planning/elder law attorney, Certified Public Accountant, Certified Financial Planner, AICPA Personal Financial Specialist and holds a master’s degree in taxation.
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