Executing someone’s estate can be taxing, especially if you were close to the deceased person and are still grieving their loss.
To add to your problems, you may face pressure from beneficiaries to hurry up and distribute the estate. If the estate needs to go through probate, then it’s always going to take a while, but the following things could cause it to take even longer:
Disorganization by the deceased
Some people will leave everything you need nicely filed in one place. Others will not have done much at all to prepare for their death, and you will need time to track things down and make sense of everything. There’s not much you can do to speed that up except perhaps ask for help and let the beneficiaries know why things are taking so long.
Someone contesting the terms of the will
Maybe the deceased’s wishes seem pretty clear to you, but that does not mean everyone will agree. Someone who feels they should get more may seek to file a contest that will slow the whole process for everyone. As executor, you should not take it personally, but it will create more work for you as you need to act on behalf of the estate to defend against any challenges.
Making mistakes with the probate process
It’s natural to make errors the first time you do something new — and few people are experienced with the probate process. If you want to make probate as efficient as possible, consider legal help to guide you through this complex process.