Fiduciary responsibilities & Inheritance Advances

Fiduciary responsibilities & Inheritance Advances: A new Probate Tool for Probate Professionals. In this webinar, we will discuss what ProbateCash does and how we can help your clients.

Key Takeaways

• ProbateCash inheritance advances are not life insurance purchases, senior settlements, or remainder-interest transactions involving living individuals.
• ProbateCash typically does not buy out an heir’s entire inheritance. The goal is to provide interim cash while keeping the beneficiary motivated to complete the estate or trust process.
• Inheritance advances are not loans: no fixed due date, no monthly payments, no stated interest rate, and generally no personal liability if the estate is insolvent or pays less than expected.
• ProbateCash can reduce disruptive calls and emails to probate professionals by giving beneficiaries a financial bridge while probate or trust administration continues.
• The estate or trust does not need to be liquid. ProbateCash commonly underwrites estates where the primary asset is real property, including in homestead states.
• Fees are typically charged on a quarterly schedule, capped after roughly 12–15 months, with fees sometimes starting around 15% depending on risk and cooperation.
• California is the only state with a specific statute on inheritance assignments (California Probate Code § 11604 / commonly referenced as § 11604.5). ProbateCash follows that framework’s consumer safeguards broadly.
• ProbateCash may reimburse trustees/professionals for cooperation time, up to one hour in certain cases.

Full Webinar Transcript

Molly Driscoll:
Welcome, and thanks for joining today’s session, Probate Professionals: Your Responsibilities and Inheritance Advances — A New Probate Tool for Probate Professionals, a webinar brought to you by Probate Cash. I’m your host, Molly Driscoll.

As a reminder, please type your questions in the chat window. The presenters will address questions after the presentation. If your question is case-specific and confidential, please indicate that in the chat and someone will respond separately after this presentation.

Our presenter today is a professional with extensive experience in all aspects of providing cash advances to individuals awaiting inheritance payouts. Marc Harris has been working in the specialty finance industry for 25 years and has been involved in purchasing over one hundred million dollars of assets. Many of those purchases required court hearings, and Marc has attended or appeared as counsel in many of them.

Marc has spoken at conferences including the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and the National Council of Insurance Legislators. Marc earned his undergraduate degree from Florida State University and his law degree from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale. Today, he is here to speak about the relatively new business of purchasing interests in actively pending inheritance claims from estates or trusts.

Marc, what are some common misconceptions about a probate advance?

Marc Harris:
Let me be clear about what this is not.

We are not talking about interests in life insurance or property owned by someone still living. We are not talking about senior settlements or purchasing remainder interests in real property. Those are different businesses and not what we’re discussing today.

These transactions are also not intended to buy out an heir’s entire position or interest. The goal is to provide the recipient with interim cash sufficient to meet current needs while still keeping the heir engaged in the ultimate wind-up and distribution of the estate. We want the settlement of the estate and final distribution to remain a priority for the heirs we fund.

Finally, this is not a loan. There’s no fixed due date, no interim payments of principal or interest, no stated interest rate—fixed or variable—and no personal liability on the part of the recipient if the estate turns out to be insolvent or if proceeds distributed to the heir are less than anticipated.

The only time we would have a claim against a recipient is when the estate pays out, the recipient receives their inheritance, and then does not pay us. That is effectively theft. Another situation is if someone lied about who they were or their relationship to the estate—fraud. We will pursue repayment in those cases.

But if property sales are disappointing, outstanding debt eats up proceeds, or probate takes years, that is our risk.

Molly Driscoll:
What were your initial thoughts when you first heard about advances on inheritances?

Marc Harris:
I’ve worked for about 25 years in businesses that provide upfront money to people waiting for future cash flows, so this business made total sense.

It benefits both beneficiaries waiting for money and the lawyers and trustees working with them. Probate is not as predictable as people assume, and the average person doesn’t understand how long the process takes.

Many people believe that shortly after a death, there’s a reading of the will and beneficiaries leave a lawyer’s office with their inheritance. That’s the way it’s portrayed in TV and movies, but it doesn’t reflect reality.

Much of our business is referred to us by probate lawyers, trustees, Realtors, and other professionals.

Many of those professionals are grateful for this service because they are regularly contacted by anxious heirs who want money now and don’t understand the probate or trust timeline. Most people on this call have experienced repeated phone calls, emails, and sometimes unpleasant communications from beneficiaries.

Probate Cash can eliminate or at least reduce that disruption by providing beneficiaries money today and waiting to be repaid only when assets are ready to be distributed. Referring someone to Probate Cash can relieve the financial pressure that drives those constant calls to your office.

Molly Driscoll:
Does the estate have to have cash or other liquid assets?

Marc Harris:
In many cases, real property is the significant asset of the estate or trust. In fact, it’s that illiquidity that leads heirs to pursue an advance while waiting for the property to be sold.

Beneficiaries often need access to funds, but there are limited estate resources for preliminary distributions.

Even in homestead states, we can still work with advances to beneficiaries. Ultimately, does the estate or trust need to have cash assets? Not at all.

Molly Driscoll:
If you were the trustee and a beneficiary called asking about a Probate Cash advance, what would you say?

Marc Harris:
It depends on whether the question is coming from my client or from a beneficiary who isn’t my client but is still involved.

In either case, I might explain the basic considerations. I’m not substituting my business judgment for theirs.

If it’s my client, I might briefly explain the process, note that an advance can come with a significant cost, and ask whether they have other sources of cash to meet the immediate need.

If it’s a beneficiary who is not my client, I would explain the cost of taking money early. I understand beneficiaries want money as quickly as possible, but emergencies happen. Accessing money stuck in probate or trust administration can be very important for people facing real challenges.

I would also caution them not to take more of an advance than is required to address the identified need.

Molly Driscoll:
We have a question that’s probably on everyone’s mind: how much does it cost?

Marc Harris:
Our standard practice is to charge quarterly fees, capped after 12 to 15 months. If an estate takes longer than 15 months, no additional fees are charged beyond that cap.

Depending on the level of cooperation we receive from estate counsel or the trustee, fees can be adjusted to reflect risk. Fees can start at around 15% of the advance amount, depending on the case.

Molly Driscoll:
Are there any laws that govern inheritance advances?

Marc Harris:
Yes. California is the only state in the country with a statute pertaining to inheritance assignments. It’s in the California Probate Code, commonly referenced as Section 11604.

More importantly, no states prohibit these assignments. We follow the spirit of California’s code in each state, including filing the assignment with the probate court and incorporating consumer safeguards.

If the matter involves a trust rather than a probate estate, we provide the assignment to the trustee.

Molly Driscoll:
We have a question about cooperation: providing cooperation can take time. Will Probate Cash reimburse trustees for their time?

Marc Harris:
Yes. We understand attorneys and trustees value their time. We can reimburse up to one hour for time spent reviewing documents with us so the advance can be completed.

Molly Driscoll:
It looks like we’ve covered all questions. We’ll be sending out a follow-up email with a one-pager about Probate Cash and a link to the webinar. If you think of something after we wrap, you can contact Marc directly.You can call Marc at 561-476-0018 or email marc@probatecash.com. Thanks for joining us today, and have a great day.