You will be able to choose executors and trustees and explain the work they take on.
When Jasmine's father died eleven years ago, her mother was named executor. She was 71, grieving, and had never dealt with a lawyer or a court form in her life. In practice Jasmine did most of the work, between her own job and two teenagers. It took fourteen months. She remembers the bank queues, the letters asking for the same death certificate again, and a dispute with an uncle about a piece of jewellery that nobody had written down.
That experience is why she wants to choose her own executor carefully. This lesson covers what an executor and a trustee actually do, how long it takes, and how to choose. It is education, and a lawyer can advise on the details for your estate.
An executor's work is practical, detailed and often slow. The main stages look like this.
First, find the will and the assets. That means locating the original will, then identifying every bank account, investment, policy, property and debt. Without a list, this alone can take months.
Second, get legal authority. Banks and other institutions won't release assets in your sole name until the executor shows them a grant of probate from the court. Lesson 8.2, Probate, letters of administration and the Public Trustee, explains the application.
Third, collect and protect. The executor closes or transfers accounts, collects money owed, keeps property insured and maintained, and deals with anything that has to be sold.
Fourth, pay what the estate owes. Debts, final bills, any income tax for the year of death and property tax come out of the estate before anyone inherits. The executor also has to keep records of every amount in and out.
Last, distribute. Once debts are settled, the executor hands out specific gifts and divides the residue according to the will, then gives the beneficiaries an account of what was done.
Assets that pass outside the will, such as CPF with a nomination or a flat held as joint tenants, don't go through the executor, which is one reason the asset map from lesson 7.5 is so useful to whoever takes this on.
A simple estate, with a clear will, a short list of local assets and no disputes, can often be wound up in months, while a complicated one takes much longer. Overseas assets, a property that has to be sold, a business, missing paperwork or a beneficiary who disputes the will can stretch the work to years.
During that time, the executor is answerable to the beneficiaries and can be held personally responsible for mistakes, such as paying out before debts are settled. It's real work that carries legal duties, and the person doing it is usually grieving at the same time.
If your will sets up a trust, for example to hold money for a young grandchild or a beneficiary who shouldn't receive a lump sum, someone has to manage that money for years after the estate is wound up. That person is a trustee: someone who holds and manages assets for beneficiaries under the rules the trust sets out.
The executor and trustee are often the same person, but they don't have to be. An executor needs to be organised for a year or two. A trustee needs good judgment, patience and a willingness to stay involved for as long as the trust lasts. Lesson 8.3, When a trust helps, looks at whether you need one.
Good executors tend to share a few qualities. They are organised and comfortable with paperwork and deadlines. They are trusted by the rest of the family, because an executor who is resented makes disputes more likely. They live close enough to deal with Singapore banks, courts and property in person, or can manage it remotely. And they are likely to outlive you, which is why choosing someone of your own generation, or older, carries a risk.
Ask the person before naming them. Some people would be honoured. Others would rather not, and it is better to find out while you can choose someone else. An executor can also be a beneficiary, and often is.
Always name a backup. If your first choice dies before you, is ill or simply declines when the time comes, the backup can step in without the family having to go to court to appoint someone.
Professional executors are an option. Trust companies and some law firms will act as executor for a fee, usually paid from the estate. They bring experience and neutrality, which helps in a family where relationships are strained or the estate is complex. The cost and the distance from the family are the trade-offs.
Jasmine named Megan as her executor. Megan is organised, lives nearby, gets on with her brother and already knows where the plan is kept, with Ryan as the backup. She thought about naming Leong, but worried that her children might resent a partner handling their mother's estate, and that he is close to her own age. Instead, she will ask Megan to keep Leong informed.
She also decided that Megan should not face what her own mother faced. The estate file in lesson 8.5, Build your retirement income plan and estate file, will give Megan the list of assets, documents and contacts on day one.
Before the activity, think about the people you might name: who is organised, who is trusted by the rest of the family, and who would step in if your first choice couldn't.
Write who you would name as executor and backup and why each would be able to do the work.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).