[steph04012001]

Both of my parents passed away in 2009. Neither one of them had a will. They owned property and a house. My father also has a great amount of money in his 401k that is just sitting there. It is myself and my two younger sisters that are left with tons of questions. I Need to know where to begin this process. I know we need a lawyer to get the property and to receive my fathers money, but my sisters and I aren't capable of paying for a high dollar lawyer. Can someone lead me in the right direction?

[cdad]

For starters you need to pick a person to be in charge. Then they can be designate of the estate. To release the funds from the 401k you will need most likely certified copies of the death certificates. You can call the people handling the 401k directly and ask them. You can start probate on the possessions and once everything has cleared then you can split everything 3 ways. As far as hiring a lawyer to open probate and such they can delay the fee until the 401k is cashed. Just watch out about amounts so they don't suck it dry. Make sure you get everything in writing. Also look for insurance policies and such that may have been taken out. If the death was by auto accident then also expect others to try to make a claim against you. Sorry for your losses.

[CarrotTalker]

You don't necessarily need a lawyer to do this for you. A good accountant should be able to help, not to mention be cheaper.

It depends on how quickly you can learn and the country you live in.

Try a Google search for "county, state probate" or "county, state register of wills". The local probate office will often have lots of resources available and should be able to help guide you in the right direction.

If you are comfortable, you could post some of your more vague questions and we can try to answer them.

[ScottGem]

First, you don't need a lawyer, but it would be better to have one. Most lawyers will take their fee out of the estate so you may not need to pay anything.

Did your parent's die at the same time? If not, which one died first? A 401k usually has a named beneficiary. If so it passes to that person outside the estate.

The first thing you need to do is find out the rules of probate court in your area. You can file for one of the children to be named administrator or executor and then go from there.