The big bill for small estates

When you lose a loved one, when you are destabilized, hurt and vulnerable, it is not easy to behave like an informed consumer. But letting your guard down can come at a cost. Émilia Dubé learned this the hard way when her lawyer gave her an invoice for $ 2,590.95 to manage an inheritance of $ 5,000.

The notary fees therefore reduced half of the sum that her lover had left her.

“Robert could have had less money, which would have forced me to pay part of the bill out of my pocket,” notes Émilia Dubé with amazement. Needless to say, the 80-year-old frankly feels like she’s been ripped off because she failed to ask questions at the right time.

Her 96-year-old spouse lived in a CHSLD and he had nothing other than a bank account. Childless, he had bequeathed his meager savings to his only heiress, his accomplice of recent years.

His succession was therefore as easy as possible. But Émilia Dubé admits, at 79, she was not comfortable with the paperwork and the phones that a death entails. When the notary who searched for the most recent will offered to help her manage the estate, she accepted.

“I didn’t think about it, that he could charge me for every act he did to help me. If I had known it was so expensive, I would have told him when I left that I didn’t want it to be expensive because Robert was not rich. I didn’t think about it, because I was too emotional. ”

The bill she received in the mail stunned her.

In addition to the amount, the description of the acts performed by the notary is puzzling.

Opening of the file; file management; obtaining, classifying and verifying the necessary documents, documents and information; preliminary interview with yourself; interviews; reading and analysis of the will; preparation of will searches; preparation of an amicable accountability formula, etc.

In all, the list contains 22 items, sometimes redundant, often enigmatic. All this, I remind you, for the estate of a man who only had $ 5,000 in a bank account.

Hourly rate: $ 200, what M^me Dubé was also ignorant.

The same kind of scenario happened to a lady from the Eastern Townships when her mother died a few years ago. Having little knowledge of inheritance, she relied on a notary who passed her an invoice of more than $ 600, while she inherited $ 2,700.

Believing the sum to be “not at all reasonable”, her husband decided to learn how to liquidate an estate on his own. What he has done three times since the death of his mother-in-law.

” Long live Google ! If you ask the right questions, everything is there, as I told my students, ”launches this former teacher who requested anonymity to maintain good relations with his lawyer. To find out exactly what to do, he ordered the 68-page document What to do in the event of death, offered free of charge by the Government of Quebec.

Consult the guide What to do in the event of death

In his experience, anyone “who can read and have access to the internet” is able to liquidate an estate that does not involve trusts, overseas real estate and family squabbles. The retiree says he explained the process to neighbors, friends and acquaintances and that half then did the work themselves.

“Don’t be afraid, it’s easy and it costs less than $ 100! I have nothing against notaries, but certain fees are excessive, judges the retiree. They will tell us that only they can do this work, but it is wrong. ”

Of course, you have to have the time and the inclination to get started. Otherwise, as Isabelle Dubé underlines in her report “The hidden invoice of a death”, a simple verbal agreement with a notary can cause unpleasant surprises. Especially since the complexity of a file is not always proportional to the value of the estate.

At the Chambre des notaires, the president Hélène Potvin explains that it is possible to delegate all the tasks of the liquidator to a notary or only some. But in both cases, a transparent quote must be signed.

This will not prevent the notary’s invoice from eroding a good part, if not all of the inheritance. But at least an informed decision can be made at the right time.

“When we see that it will happen kif-kif, we say that it is a risk to accept the inheritance. And there, people have a decision to make which is often heartbreaking. They have the impression, by renouncing it, that they are not honoring the memory of the deceased, ”says the director general of the Professional Association of Notaries of Quebec, François Bibeau.

Advice from François Bibeau

• After a death, do not go alone to the notary. “You are emotionally weak. Often, the information given is not withheld. ”
• Ask for a service contract, that is, a quote similar to what a mechanic would give you. “Otherwise, you leave the notary’s office blindfolded. ”
• The contract must mention the list of acts that will be performed by the notary, an estimate of the total fees, the methods of payment accepted, the amount of the deposit required (if applicable) and the terms of payment (an invoice at the end or invoices as the file progresses).
• Make sure that the notary will contact you if he finds that he will exceed the expected fee. This is provided for in its code of ethics.
• Do not assume that the amount of inheritance is proportional to the complexity of the case. “Closing a bank account that has $ 5,000 or $ 100,000 is the same job. ”
• If you renounce the estate, expect it to cost you a few hundred dollars.
• Be patient, a liquidation can take up to three years.