Executors Accounts

wasabi_project

Hi all,

My mum passed away late last year, and we are getting to the point where we will be ready to put her house on the market. I am the executor of the will and will be dealing with the sale of the house. I have been advised that I would more than likely need an executors account for the house funds once the sale is complete.

If this is the case, do I need to use a bank that I currently have a current account with? I currently have an account woth Barcays and Natwest. Also, will I need the Grant of Probate to set up this account?

Thank you in advance

SiliconChip

You don't need an executor account, which is not so easy to come by, but you may need to provide the solicitor dealing with the sale of the house with a letter authorising them to transfer the balance to your personal account.

wasabi_project

SiliconChip said:

You don't need an executor account, which is not so easy to come by, but you may need to provide the solicitor dealing with the sale of the house with a letter authorising them to transfer the balance to your personal account.

Oh ok, when i spoke to the solicitor when sorting the probate application they said I would probably need one, hence why i'm enquiring to check 🙂

blue.peter

FWIW, when my no. 1  sister and I acted as executors of my father's estate, we didn't use an executors' bank account. We simply gave the people holding his assets written instructions as to where payments should be made. Having said that, his estate was fairly simple: everything passed to our mother. The big sums (proceeds of selling their home and Dad's ISAs) were paid directly to Mum's bank account. One or two investments were transferred directly to Mum in specie. Ownership of their joint current account was directly transferred to Mum's sole name. Some of the smaller amounts were paid into my bank account, so that we could pay off one or two small debts (our expenses, repayment of an overpaid pension instalment and suchlike). The remaining cash after payment of those debts was, of course, passed on to Mum.

When Mum dies (which, sadly, is beginning to look imminent), her estate will be a bit more complicated, with 11 beneficiaries (her four children and seven grandchildren). We might use an executors' account for that one: the subject hasn't been discussed yet.

Olinda99

you are the executor - simply tell the solicitor the sort code and account no where you want the funds to be paid.

they take instructions from you - not vice versa

retiredbanker1

Whether you need an executors account depends!

Are there any bills to be paid from the estate?
Are you the sole beneficiary?
Is the solicitor dealing with payment of bills etc?

If you are the sole beneficiary under the will and the solicitor is acting on your behalf and paying bills etc then you should not need one.

However if you are acting as executor and you have payments to make to other parties it would be advisable to keep estate money separate from your own.

Runner_Duck

We decided we needed to keep Mum's money completely separate from our personal accounts so we set up an Executors account with Lloyds. As neither of the execs banked with Lloyds we had to show them a copy of the will plus various ID documents.  It took about 3 weeks to set up but was only activated once I showed them an original Grant of Probate.  This account did not earn interest so we left the money in it for as short of time as possible.

Barkin

When I sorted his affairs after my father died in 2022, I just used one of my current accounts and kept good records of everything. 

blue.peter

Barkin said:

When I sorted his affairs after my father died in 2022, I just used one of my current accounts and kept good records of everything. 

Yes. It's the audit trail that's important. Good records are vital for this. Whilst an executors' account can be helpful, it's not a necessity.

All beneficiaries need to be able to see what there is, what's come in, how it's distributed once it has come in, and to be able to compare it with the will. One possible way of doing this is to scan everything and make copies available to everyone involved, perhaps through a shared folder on Dropbox. A spreadsheet detailing all monies received, disbursements, and distribution of the residue is also useful.

wasabi_project

blue.peter said:

Barkin said:

When I sorted his affairs after my father died in 2022, I just used one of my current accounts and kept good records of everything. 

Yes. It's the audit trail that's important. Good records are vital for this. Whilst an executors' account can be helpful, it's not a necessity.

All beneficiaries need to be able to see what there is, what's come in, how it's distributed once it has come in, and to be able to compare it with the will. One possible way of doing this is to scan everything and make copies available to everyone involved, perhaps through a shared folder on Dropbox. A spreadsheet detailing all monies received, disbursements, and distribution of the residue is also useful.

Definitely! I have numerous excel sheets on the go and have been scanning documents and keeping them stored for full record of things.

Fortunately it is just myself and my brother on the will, and he has signed a legal form so i can deal with all of the financial matters in the estate, which makes things a lot easier.

Ive heard that executors accounts can be a pain to set up, so glad to hear that this isnt a necessity

Speedbird676

When I sold my late-father's property (I was sole beneficiary) the conveyancer initially wanted to transfer the proceeds into an executor's account.

Once I provided the Grant of Probate and written authority to transfer the proceeds into my own account it was all fine.