Assets Listed on the Two Inventory and Appraisal Attachments
When administering the estate of your loved one, one of your responsibilities is to prepare an inventory of the estate’s assets. This inventory is a detailed listing of all of the assets that your decedent owned at the time of his or her death, along with the assets’ appraised value. Personal representatives use the Inventory and Appraisal Form to provide this information. Notice, this form contains two attachments that list out the specific assets.
Attachment One of the Inventory and Appraisal Form
The first attachment, the Inventory and Appraisal Form, is used to list the money and cash of the estate. Listed below are some examples of the types of assets that should be listed in the first Attachment:
- Cash held in brokerage accounts
- Bank accounts
- Refund checks from the IRS, utility companies, insurance companies, Medicare, and other sources
- Money market mutual funds
- Proceeds in life insurance policies
- Proceeds of retirement plans
- Annuities payable to the decedent’s estate in lump sum amounts
For each item, you should list the dollar value as of the date of death of your loved one.
Attachment Two of the Inventory and Appraisal Form
Next, items listed in Attachment Two, represent all other types of property that belonged to the decedent. Here are a few examples of these assets:
- Real estate
- Stocks
- Bonds
- Securities
- Automobiles
- Partnership and business interests
- Household furniture (listed as one item, not individually)
- Any unique, artistic, unusual, or special items of tangible property (antique furniture, collectible automobiles, or coin collections)
For most of these assets, a blank space can be left until the probate referee appraises the property and completes the form. Keep in mind, an independent appraiser who is an expert in working with the specific type of asset may appraise the unique, artistic, unusual, or special items. You should make a notation on the form to indicate that such an appraiser will appraise it.
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