How to endorse savings bonds as a personal representative of probate. An executor can collect savings bonds for the deceased person they represent. If the representative of a court-appointed estate requests the redemption of savings bonds that are part of the estate of the deceased bond owner, local financial institutions that are savings bond payment agents have the authority to collect the bonds. If the court granted the representative limited powers to distribute or dispose of ownership of the estate, the representative should write to Treasury Retail Securities Services, explaining the situation as fully as possible and providing a copy of the citation, including a list or brief description of the limited powers of attorney.
When collecting the bonds, you must provide proof of the death of the persons named in the bond records and proof of their appointment. If all of the landlords named on the bond have died, the bond is part of the estate of the last person who died. An estate planning lawyer can advise you on the best way to hold your savings bonds so that they coordinate with your overall estate plan. When someone dies and leaves savings bonds behind, the way the heir or executor handles them depends on the arrangements that were made before the decedent died.
If the deceased parent was the sole owner or the last surviving owner named in the bonds, they become the property of the father's estate. To collect (redeem) paper EE or I bonds from an estate as a court-appointed representative, you must sign the payment request on the back of the bonds with an indication of your role. If heirs claim bonds with a small estate affidavit, include a copy; if you are using probate summary procedures, include a copy of the probate court order. However, when the last owner dies, savings bonds are part of that person's estate, which must be legalized in the absence of additional estate planning designed to prevent it.
If a savings bond names only one person as the owner, the bond becomes part of the estate when the owner dies. In order to collect bonds from a deceased parent, you may need to complete the bond redemption process in the presence of a bank official. This leaves the executor with the task of calculating the amount of interest accrued on the bonds and adding it to other income on the decedent's final tax return. If the estate does not go through an estate, use Form 5336, Disposition of Treasury Securities Belonging to a Deceased's Estate that Are Settled Without Administration to request that the bond be paid to whoever is entitled to it, or to you on behalf of the heir.
If any effort was made in estate planning, the transfer of ownership can be so simple that the beneficiary might not have to do anything at all.
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