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My mother has died, and she had a number of IRA accounts in her name for which I am a 50% beneficiary. One was a Roth IRA. The Financial Advisor she was using wants to charge me exorbitant fees just to transfer these accounts into my name; I do not trust them and don't want to use them. My questions are:

  1. Can I transfer these accounts to my name on my own, or do I need to use a financial advisor or attorney?
  2. If I can transfer the accounts on my own, what steps do I need to take in order to do so?
  3. How can I avoid any tax implication? As I understand it, if the transfer isn't done perfectly then I might be hit with a large tax bill. But it's unclear to me what needs to be done to avoid this. (The amount is well under the amount for estate taxes in my state; I am in the USA)
Dheer
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Josh
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1 Answers1

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The normal process -

You open a new IRA at the broker. It's titled "my beloved mom's name, deceased, for benefit of my name, beneficiary."

You produce a copy of death certificate and the broker confirms the account had you listed as beneficiary. They transfer the assets into the bene account.

OR

The account stays in place but is retitled as I note above. If you are a 50% bene, it should be split in two, else there are some complications.

That was "normal." in your case, you go to a new broker and ask their help to get your money. The guy you are leaving should not be charging a high fee to close out the account, $50-$100 tops. I don't like him already.

Once moved, you will have an RMD, required annual distribution, based on your age. A small fraction, with tax due.

JoeTaxpayer
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