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Idaho probate law requires families in the Gem State to verify the wills of their loved ones before distributing assets following their deaths. The probate process is designed to ensure that a deceased person’s possessions end up in the right hands.
However, many estates in Idaho and other states include both probate and non-probate assets. Families should understand the differences between probate and non-probate assets to avoid confusion when they’re working toward closing their loved ones’ estates.
Learn more about what sets probate and non-probate assets apart below to help you streamline the process of sifting through your loved one’s estate.
What Are Probate Assets?
Probate assets are any possessions a deceased person owned that are subject to the probate process at the time of death. These can include assets that a deceased person left behind to their loved ones in their will. They can also include any assets that weren’t specifically named in a will or any other legal documents.
The probate process involves the following steps:
- Validating a deceased person’s will if they had one
- Inventorying a deceased person’s assets and seeking appraisals for them
- Settling a deceased person’s debts
- Distributing a deceased person’s assets according to the wishes they left behind in their will or a state’s intestate succession laws
The probate process is designed to formally transfer ownership of assets from a deceased person to their loved ones under the watchful eye of a probate court judge. Understanding the differences between probate vs. non-probate assets should help your family steer clear of not having this process play out properly.
Common Examples of Probate Assets
Many of the personal possessions that a deceased person leaves behind will fall into the probate asset category. Generally speaking, any items that a deceased person owned themselves and that they didn’t provide a legal beneficiary designation for are considered probate assets.
The following are some examples of probate assets:
- Vehicles
- Personal bank accounts
- Real estate
- Jewelry
- Artwork
What Are Non-Probate Assets?
Now that you know probate assets are required to go through the probate process, you can probably guess what non-probate assets are. The biggest difference between probate vs. non-probate assets is that non-probate assets are exempt from the process we just broke down. These assets aren’t subjected to probate because of how a deceased person decided to leave them behind to loved ones.
In some cases, non-probate assets are owned jointly, so they’re covered under right of survivorship laws. A deceased person shared joint ownership of these assets with a spouse or someone else, which makes transferring them a seamless process. There’s no need to put them through probate.
In other instances, non-probate assets are passed on to beneficiaries through other reliable asset transfer tools, such as trusts. Trust assets tend to have designated beneficiaries to bypass the potential complications and disputes around assets.
For example, certain types of bank accounts automatically transfer from a deceased person to a beneficiary at the time of their death. Transfer-on-death (TOD) and payable-on-death (POD) accounts work like this.
Common Examples of Non-Probate Assets
If a deceased person didn’t take estate planning seriously enough, they may have more probate vs. non-probate assets. However, those who commit to the estate planning process often have their fair share of non-probate assets that transfer immediately after their death.
Examples of non-probate assets include:
- Revocable and irrevocable trusts
- Life insurance policies
- Retirement accounts
- Jointly owned real estate
- Transfer-on-death and payable-on-death accounts
- Some business interests
Probate vs. Non-Probate Assets: Which Ones Are Easier To Deal With?
One of the key reasons you should know the differences between probate vs. non-probate assets is to determine which will make it easier to work through the legal proceedings after a loved one dies.
In general, non-probate assets require more work on the part of a person when they’re still alive. However, they make life easier for their family once they have died since a deceased person will have already taken steps to distribute their non-probate assets seamlessly.
Probate assets, meanwhile, require more work on the part of a family distributing a deceased person’s assets after their death. The probate process can take months and force families to wait for extended periods to receive the assets left to them by loved ones.
What To Do While Waiting for Probate Assets
Waiting for probate assets to be distributed can leave you feeling frustrated. It might also have a negative financial impact if you’re depending on an inheritance to help you through a difficult time.
Rockpoint Probate Funding has a solution. You can apply for probate funding while you wait for the outcome of the probate process. You may receive this funding within a matter of days and use it for whatever you would like.
This funding is also considered non-recourse, so if you don’t receive an inheritance for some reason, you aren’t required to pay anything back. It’s an excellent option for those in financial binds following the deaths of loved ones.
Apply for Probate Funding Today
After hearing about the differences between probate vs. non-probate assets, do you suspect your family might have to navigate its way through the probate process following the death of a loved one? Rockpoint Probate Funding makes it possible to apply for a probate loan quickly.
We also provide a wide range of probate law resources for families. Contact us at (888) 263-8588 with any questions or concerns you may have about how probate funding works.