Is there a phone number for a person I could talk to about the procedure for cashing in my mother's savings bonds? I am the executor of her estate.
Cashing someone else's savings bonds can be a tricky situation so going to your bank for guidance should be your first step.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
My father had savings bonds; he passed away. Everything went to my mom, but we did not change the savings bonds into her name. My mom passed away and I am the executor of the will. How do I get the savings bonds cashed?
Generally savings bonds have a beneficiary named but it is not mandatory and a deceased bonds would then go to their estate. Did your father also have a will and was your mother the sole heir of his estate? Do you plan to put the money from the bonds into your mother's estate? Are there other family members who may contest your right to these bonds?
Legal matters like this can be daunting but a good bank officer should be able to help you with this matter. You will need to take the bonds, death certificates, any legal papers you have pertaining to your mother and any wills that found. You can go to your parent's bank or to any bank, as this is a pretty common matter to them.
The bank officer can usually advise you of your legal rights, but, in any case, they will probably have the forms you need and someone to certify them for you.
The Treasury Dept. site may be a little daunting but I have another site that may be easier to read:
www.treasurydirect.gov/
classroom.synonym.com/
If my grandmother purchased bonds and they are in her name and my nephew and nieces names, but then my grandmother passes away and has left them in my possession. I am the executor of her estate, etc. Am I able to cash those bonds?
From what I understand, the person whose name is on the bond cashes it.
In my experience they can only be cashed by the owner. If she had another person's name on them, he/she is now the owner, based on her passing.
An executor usually takes care of items that are in the deceased's name and legally belonged to the deceased.
Some executor's duties and responsibilities may differ in different states so you should have something from your state explaining what you can and cannot do. This information should be obtainable from your courthouse.
The attorney that set up the will and executor's name for your grandmother should also be able to help you understand what you can and cannot do. Probably, the most important thing is to keep very accurate records of everything you do with your grandmother's money and possessions as this can be called in by the state at anytime and especially if a family member questions what is being done by the executor.
As for the bonds your grandmother purchased and there is no mention of their distribution in her will (like 50% goes to a niece and so forth) it will be necessary for everyone named to be present (or their legal representative) for a bank to cash these bonds. Since you are the legal representative for your deceased grandmother you would need to be present and the money should be equally divided between all named on bonds. Your grandmother's share would be placed in her estate and legally handled by the executor for paying her past/present obligations.
Since these are government bonds you can discuss the payment with a postmaster but I believe they will direct you to a bank for payment. The bank takes care of making sure the money is going to named persons (they will probably need 2 forms of identification) and forwards 'paid' bonds to the appropriate government agency.
You can always talk to someone with the post office and also to an officer within your grandmother's bank.
Being an executor is a legal responsibility and is usually overseen by the court so be sure to check out exactly what this position legally entails so you will know when you might be overstepping the legal boundaries.
Be sure you have a legal representative that you can consult anytime you have questions.
The bonds should be cashed by the person or persons whose name is on them.This should not be done if your name is not on the bonds. The nephew and nieces could file suite!
I agree but as it happens the grandmother's name is also on the bonds and the executor is the legal representative of her estate and in that instance she would be acting the same as if the grandmother was present.
I believe the bank will divide the proceeds equally among the nieces and nephews and the executor of the estate who is representing the deceased grandmother.
I worked in USPS management for over 26 years and had many dealings with postal services and government bonds was one of those areas.
I have never dealt with a case exactly like this but I handled cases where an executor was present and represented the deceased.
Now it is possible that I could have a misunderstanding of this complete scenario and nothing I have said could be correct.
I just hope all concerned will have a friendly get together and make a trip to the bank to find out exactly what will happen.
That will be the answer to this question.
Where do I call to order the FS form 5336 needed to cash the savings bonds owned by a deceased person?
There is no need to call and go pick up this form. It is available online in a PDF file and you can download it from the Treasury office. Here is the link to the form.
www.treasurydirect.gov/
Here is the link to the forms www.treasurydirect.gov/
The best way to redeem savings bonds is at your bank/financial institution.
Here are a couple of links that give very good instructions on how to cash these bonds as well as dealing with who may be a legal recipient.
www.wikihow.com/
www.treasurydirect.gov/
