This is just soo… not right. I tried multiple times over the last few years to get mom and/or dad to talk to a lawyer about estate planning and was always told “why spend $2000.00 on something that is so easy, it isn’t like we are rich.”

So, no beneficiaries named on any of their checking accounts, CD’s, or IRA’s, and we still have not found the original stamped versions of their wills, only copies that are marked as copies.

So now everything has to go through probate court before we can touch any of their accounts and any creditors get first dibs on the money. So much for trying to negotiate some of these outstanding medical bills down. What incentive do they have to negotiate when they know they can present the Judge with any number they want to and get paid out of the estate before the heirs?

I don’t actually need the money but my brother and sister and their families sure could use it, besides it just seems wrong not to fight for what should be my fair share of what they left us.

So now I am paying a lawyer $4500.00 to settle Mom’s estate (all the property is in her name) and another $2000.00 to settle Dad’s estate and both my brother and sister are too broke to help pay for any of it! Gee, thank you mom and dad for refusing to do any planning ahead because that would be an acknowledgment that someday you were going to die (as if we all don’t). Blarrgh!!!

Sigh…I guess it is all water under the bridge now, whats done is done, I should blame myself too for not doing more research and explaining exactly why the estate planning was needed. But please if you are reading this, please for the love of God, at least name beneficiaries on your accounts so that your survivors will be able to use your money for this kind of thing instead of their own!