If your petition is granted, you will receive letters of administration from the Queens County Surrogate's Court. These letters give you the legal authority to administer the decedent's estate, including managing their assets, paying their debts, and distributing their property to heirs.
File the original will and original death certificate: The first step in obtaining letters of testamentary is to file the deceased person's original will and a certified copy of their death certificate with the Surrogate's Court in the county where the deceased lived.
An affidavit of heirship is a document, sworn to under oath, that is submitted to the Surrogate's Court definitively identifying all of the people who may have a legal claim to inherit the decedent's assets or property.
To obtain a letter of testamentary in New York, you will first need to file a petition for probate to the Surrogate's Court in the county where the deceased resided.
In general, it can take a few months for the Court to grant the letter of administration of executor to anyone who has applied for it. This is provided that: All documents required by the Court have been filed. There is no family dispute as to who will administer the decedent's estate.
Letters of Administration will need to be obtained which requires filing a petition and many other documents with the Court. The petition for Letters of Administration is filed in the Surrogate's Court in the county where the decedent lived.
Preliminary Letters Testamentary or Temporary letters are usually valid for 6 months at a time so the fiduciary will need to act quickly and renew if necessary. In certain counties the letters are valid indefinitely so you should check the county rules.
To qualify for a small estate affidavit in New York, the total value of the deceased person's estate must be $50,000 or less, excluding real property like land or buildings. If the decedent owned real estate, the small estate procedure isn't an option. Instead, a formal probate process may be required.
You can use this program if: If the decedent (the person who died) had $50,000 or less in personal property. If the decedent owned real property, he/she owned it jointly with someone else and you don't plan to sell the real estate.
Filing for a Small Estate If there is a Will, the Executor files the original Will and a certified death certificate with the small estate affidavit petition and other supporting documents in the Surrogate's Court in the county where the Decedent had their primary residence.