Estate administration requires that personal representatives locate wills when possible. They typically have to follow the instructions provided by the decedent in their estate planning paperwork. If there is no will, then they must follow the guidelines established by the laws of intestate succession.
Before a personal representative can distribute estate resources to beneficiaries or heirs, they must first take stock of the decedent’s financial circumstances and fulfill any outstanding financial obligations including payment of any taxes which are due. Personal representatives may be at risk of personal liability for unmet financial obligations if they mismanage estate resources.
Even if a personal representative is not a co-signer, they could be liable for the value of any assets they inappropriately distribute without first fulfilling financial obligations. What obligations do personal representatives generally need to prioritize?
Filing and paying taxes
Some tax responsibilities survive the passing of a decedent, while others originate after a person passes. The decedent could potentially owe income taxes at the time of their passing. The personal representative of an estate usually files a final income tax return to reconcile any outstanding income tax obligations.
The estate could also owe income taxes if the personal representative sells assets as part of estate administration or if money in an account gains interest. In addition to filing returns, the personal representative must preserve estate resources to pay any taxes due from the deceased individual or the estate itself.
In Pennsylvania, inheritance tax is due depending on the relationship of the beneficiary to the decedent. If the estate is particularly large, then there may be federal estate taxes to consider. In 2025, the total value of the estate resources must be $13.99 million or more for federal estate taxes to apply.
Communicating with and paying creditors
Personal representatives should review financial records and correspondence to identify the creditors of the decedent. After doing so, they can then send written notice to known creditors advising them of the upcoming probate proceedings.
The publication of notice for unknown creditors is also standard procedure. Personal representatives typically need to prioritize repaying creditors before making distributions to beneficiaries, especially if there are enough debts to consume most or all of the estate’s resources.
If a personal representative fails to follow the right procedures or makes inappropriate distributions without paying creditors first, they could be personally responsible for those mistakes. Having assistance throughout the probate process may help people limit their likelihood of potentially costly errors. If you need assistance with probate in Southeastern Pennsylvania, contact our office today.