1) Before opening an account, gather all of the required information:

• Certified copy of the court-issued letters of administration/letters testamentary that name you as the estate administrator
• Certified copy of the decedent’s death certificate
• Taxpayer ID number (get one by filing this form if you haven’t already)

2) Decide what type of account to open

• Use checking if it is a smaller account
• Use combined brokerage and checking account if there are a lot of investments
• Be sure to open an account in the state where the deceased person lived (otherwise you may have to file an extra state tax return)

3) You can get the process started by calling the bank or going in person. You can only do this if you are named as the “Executor.“ You will need to have all co-executors/co-administrators (if any) present. If you don’t already have a bank you use, you can easily get a standalone account at Axos.

Here are some numbers and forms for some other common banks:

• Bank of America: 1-888-689-4466
• Charles Schwab – 1-800-435-4000
• Chase Bank – 1-866-926-6909
• Citi – 1-800-745-1534
• Wells Fargo – 1-800-222-8222 // https://www.wellsfargofunds.com/assets/edocs/form/new-account-application-corp-ind.pdf

4) The bank will open an account titled something similar to: “Estate of PERSON’S NAME, Deceased, EXECUTOR NAME, executor.”

5) Things to remember with this account:

• Keep records of all transactions
• Continuously transfer all money you receive on behalf of the deceased person to the estate accounts (e.g., rental income, dividends, refunds)
• Do not mix personal and estate funds. If you pay something with personal funds, and then reimburse yourself from the estate account, keep a receipt and take a note of why. This is important for legal reasons.
• Use the estate accounts to pay debts, taxes, and expenses of administration (e.g., probate court, lawyer)

Next, follow these steps: