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What to do when a family member dies

Wealth Management Q & A

Dear Lillian,

I have wondered if someone in my family dies, what are the steps I should take. Do you have a checklist that I could follow?

Lee

Dear Lee,

What to do now? I have been asked by my clients what should I do. I have gathered about 30+ steps you should consider.  Not all will apply. Use commonsense. I am only going to give you the first 12 basic first steps.

1. Call the doctor -- the doctor will probably call the coroner for you. You may need to call your local police.
2. Try not to move anything until an official pronouncement is made.
3. Make note of the time of death (as near as you can)
4. Contact friends or family for support during this difficult time
5. Keep a running list of people to thank (for help, support, flowers, etc.) You may want to consider having family members contact others to save yourself some time on the phone during a stressful period.
6. The first important legal paper you need is the health directive with instructions or General Power of Health.
7. If the Decedent wished, a donation of body parts and tissues should be considered.
8. Look for instructions the Decedent may have left regarding preferences for funeral and burial arrangements.
9. Determine if the Decedent belonged to a burial or memorial society that may make special arrangements for the funeral, such as military honor guards.
10. Contact a funeral home concerning burial or cremation arrangements.
11. Complete funeral and burial arrangements.
12. Write obituary or death notice. An obituary is an announcement that you pay for. A death notice is free.

Please take time to breath. See your attorney and your wealth manager.

Lillian

Send questions to:Lillian@meyersfinancial.com

Lillian Meyers (CA Insurance Lic.# 0809561) is a financial advisor practicing at 670 West Napa Street, Suite C, Sonoma, CA 95476. She offers securities as a registered representative of Commonwealth Financial Network®, a member firm of FINRA/SIPC. Her firm, Meyers Financial, is a Registered Investment Adviser. She can be reached at (707) 935-1124 (707) 935-1124 (707) 935-1124 or at Lillian@meyersfinancial.com. Strictly intended for individuals in: AZ, CA, CO, ID, IL, NY, OR, PA, WA. No offers may be made or accepted from any resident outside these states due to various state and registration requirements regarding investment products and services. Check us out at www.meyersfinancial.comPursuant to Internal Revenue Service Circular No. 230 and based upon current IRS rules and standards, the advice contained herein is not intended to be used, nor can it be used, for the avoidance of any tax penalty that the IRS should assess related to this matter. Please do not hesitate to call me if you have further questions regarding this matter.