Full estate administration services and costs

• Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate executive to work on your matter
• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries
• Accurately identify the type of Probate application you will require
• Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application
• Complete the Probate Application and the relevant HMRC forms 
• Draft a legal oath for you to swear
• Make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf
• Collect all assets in the estate 
• Pay any tax, liabilities and legacies
• Deal with any HMRC Inheritance Tax queries and/or requisitions
• Prepare full estate accounts
• Distribute the estate to the entitled beneficiaries

Our fees for this will vary depending upon the terms of the Will (or if the deceased died intestate), the size and complexity of the estate and the type of assets involved.

As a guide, the fees for full estate administration will typically start from £3,000 – £5,000 plus VAT for a very straightforward estate whilst fees for complex estates can exceed £10,000 plus VAT.

Before undertaking any work, we will meet with the family/executors to review the Will and discuss the estate. We will then give you a fee estimate – which is a range of costs that we believe we could incur when dealing with the estate. We will also give you a fixed fee alternative. If you chose a fixed fee option you’ll know exactly how much the estate administration will cost.

Probate Court fees, disbursements and the costs of selling property are payable in addition to our fees.

How much are Probate Court fees and other disbursements?

• Probate court fee of £155.00.
• Extra official copies of the Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration 50p each.
• Swearing of the oath (per executor) £5.00 plus £2 to mark the Will.
• Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches £2 for each entitled beneficiary 
• Trustee Act s.27 Statutory Notices (where required) in the London Gazette and in a Local Newspaper £160.00 –£180.00. These help to protect the executors/estate against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. 

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. 

Timescales

The administration of an Estate can be a lengthy and complicated process. This firm aims to deal with matters as quickly as possible but some matters will be outside of our control, for example if a house has to be sold or if beneficiaries have to be traced. We aim to complete an administration within one year from the date of death. Simple straightforward Estates will probably take much less time; large or complicated Estates may sometimes take longer.
On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 6 to 12 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 4 to 6 weeks (note this will be significantly longer in estates where Inheritance Tax is payable).