vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
They will ""re-affirm"" their commitment to paying the mortgage and any other debts they can, and under a Chapter 13 the judge will then remand negotiations over what total portion of each card's balance is paid, over what time, and at what rate, to a mediator. Chapter 13 bankruptcy is the less damaging form to your parent's credit; they are at least attempting to make good on the debt. A Chapter 7 would wipe it away completely, but your parents would have to prove that they cannot pay the debt, by any means, and have no hope of ever paying the debt by any means. If they have any retirement savings, anything in their name for grandchildren's college funds, etc, the judge and CC issuers will point to it like a bird dog. Apart from that, their house is safe due to Florida's ""homestead"" laws, but furniture, appliances, clothing, jewelry, cars and other vehicles, pretty much anything of value that your parents cannot defend as being necessary for life, health, or the performance of whatever jobs they end up taking to dig themselves out of this, are all subject to seizure and auction. They may end up just selling the house anyway because it's too big for what they have left (or will ever have again). I do not, under any circumstance, recommend you putting your own finances at risk in this. You may gift money to help, or provide them a place to live while they get back on their feet, but do not ""give till it hurts"" for this. It sounds heartless, but if you remove your safety net to save your parents, then what happens if you need it? Your parents aren't going to be able to bail you out, and as a contractor, if you're effectively ""doing business as"" Reverend Gonzo Contracting, you don't have the debt shield your parents had. It looks like housing's faltering again due to the news that the Fed's going to start backing off; you could need that money to weather a ""double-dip"" in the housing sector over the next few months, and you may need it soon."
"I can't vouch for Australian law, but in the US there is actually a recognized mechanism for ""in-family loans"" which ensures that it's all fully documented for tax purposes, including filing it as an official second mortgage. (Just did that recently in my own family, which is why I'm aware of it.) We're required to charge at least some interest (there's a minimum set, currently around 0.3%), and the interest is taxable income, and it is wise to get a lawyer to draw up the paperwork (there are a few services which specialize in this, charging a flat fee of about US$700 if the loan is standard enough that they can handle it as fill-in-the-blank), but outside of that it's pretty painless. This can also be used as a way of shifting gift limits from year to year -- if you issue a loan, and then gift the recipient with the payments each year (including the payments), you've effectively spread the immediate transfer of money over multiple years of taxes. Of course it does cost you the legal paperwork and the tax in the interest (which they're still ""paying"" out of your gift), but it can be a useful tool, and it's one that wasn't well known until recently. Again: This is all US codes, posted only for comparison (and for the benefit of US readers). It may be completely irrelevant. But it may be worth investigating whether Oz has something similar."
"If there was still money in the account when it was closed, the bank would have turned over the cash to the state where they operated. Search Google for ""unclaimed property <state name>"" for the unclaimed property department of the state. The state's website will show if there is money for you."
If you have a copy of the deed, or the original deed itself, take it to a lawyer and have them look it over with you and your other sister.  Mention all the details you mentioned here - exactly what you want to do with the property, any correspondence you've had with your sister, and where the property is located.   We can't give you any advice without being able to see the deed, and we're not qualified to give any advice outside of 'get a lawyer', because we're not lawyers.  Get one, and arm him with as much information about the situation as possible.
"There are two scenarios to determine the relevant date, and then a couple of options to determine the relevant price. If the stocks were purchased in your name from the start - then the relevant date is the date of the purchase. If the stocks were willed to you (i.e.: you inherited them), then the relevant date is the date at which the person who willed them to you had died. You can check with the company if they have records of the original purchase. If it was in ""street name"" - they may not have such records, and then you need to figure out what broker it was to hold them. Once you  figured out the relevant date, contact the company's ""investor relationships"" contact and ask them for the adjusted stock price on that date (adjusted for splits/mergers/acquisitions/whatever). That would be the cost basis per share you would be using. Alternatively you can research historical prices on your favorite financial information site (Google/Yahoo/Bloomberg or the stock exchange where the company is listed). If you cannot figure the cost basis, or it costs too much - you can just write cost basis as $0, and claim the whole proceeds as gains. You'll pay capital gains tax on the whole amount, but that may end up being cheaper than conducting the investigation to reveal the actual numbers."
If you know what bank your parents used, call them and ask. (Or you might have to go there and show id). Chances are if such an account exists, it would be at the same bank. You can also search for unclaimed property. Here's the information link for Florida.
First, gather the information you have on her banking history.  She may have accounted for that money and moved it to a new account or otherwise spent it.  I don't expect you'll have much banking documentation from the 1950s, but if you do, then start there and trace the money. To the extent you can, you may try to contact the banks in question or their successors.  It may be difficult to trace them through mergers or closings.  Again, it's very possible that she spent or transferred those funds and there is nothing to find anyway. There is also a risk that if the money went unclaimed for too long, then the bank was obligated to escheat any remaining balance to the state of Ohio.  You can try contacting Ohio Department of Commerce about unclaimed funds and attempt to locate anything that may have rightly belonged to her.  You will need to gather documentation to do so.  You may be able to receive the funds from the state, if it has received them.
"It depends on when, where and how the account was setup.  If the state has an UGMA (Uniform Gift to Minors) law, the account was probably opened under that -- in which case, your wife became the custodian by statute at age 18 or 21. She has always been the account owner. The ""catch"" is that if your wife's father died before she assumed custodianship of the account, it may be subject to taxation. You may be in some sort of oddball situation where due to your wife moving, the broker merging or lost records, the phone reps cannot figure out what is going on. I'd suggest working the phone tree a little harder and searching for old records."
You can probably recover it by checking with the unclaimed property division of the state where you opened the account.  See The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency website for more information.
Most likely the account funds have been handed over to the government of the state in which the account was established.  Generally it can be recovered if reasonable proof of ownership is provided (which you seem to have).  You should try going to http://unclaimed.org/ and selecting the account's state.  That site is run by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators, and generally selecting the state will take you to the web site of the particular state's unclaimed property department and give information on how to find out about the funds and/or file a claim.
The bank doesn't keep it. It will stay unclaimed until the unclaimed assets process in the state that the bank branch is in kicks in. At that point it it a state by state process, with each state being different. You will need to inquire to the state government about what the process is in that state. (This will probably be searchable online.)
There are multiple ways of determining the value of an inherited property. If you aren't planning on selling it, then the best way would be to have a real estate agent do a comp on the property (or multiple real estate agents).
"Wells Fargo Shareowner Services main job is as a Transfer Agent and Dividend Paying Agent. They work on behalf of a company (say Acme Inc.) to keep track of who the shareowners are, their job is to constantly update the official record of who owns how many Acme shares. (Also, obviously, they pay out dividends). You can see how they got involved: they are the ones who were able to ""rename"" your deceased relative's shares so they are now in your name, no one else can do that. Now, however, they don't have to keep your shares, you can transfer them elsewhere if you wish. You will have to legally prove your identity, which is not difficult to do in most cases (assuming you  are in US, have a government issued ID and a bank account, and some time to do some paperwork)."
Search the State of Washington website for unclaimed property. They will tell you everything you need to prove ownership.  Also there is never a charge for this. The third party sites you see want to to pay for a service the state already provides. Q. Do I have to pay a finder's fee? An asset locator, fee finder, or heir finder is a person or company   who charges a fee for helping owners receive their unclaimed property.   The fee is usually a percentage of the money due to the owner. Under Washington law, a finder may not charge a fee of more than 5% of   the property value. Owners and their heirs do not need to pay a   finder's fee to anyone to claim funds being held by the State of   Washington.
"Most states have a ""cap"" on the amount a ""heir finder"" can charge for retrieving the property.  It is generally around 10%.  Even if the state does not have a particular statute you can usually negotiate the rate with the company.  Thirty-percent is extortion, if they won't do it for less, someone else will."
This page seems to be a good list of people to contact to trace unclaimed assets.
"This forum is not intended to be a discussion group, but I would like to add a different perspective, especially for @MrChrister, on  @littleadv's rhetorical question  ""... estates are after-tax money, i.e.: income tax has been paid on them,    yet the government taxes them again. Why?"" For the cash in an estate, yes, that is after-tax money, but consider other assets such as stocks and real estate. Suppose a rich man bought stock in a small computer start-up company at $10 a share about 35 years ago, and that stock is now worth $500 a share. The man dies and his will bequeaths the shares to his son. According to US tax law, the son's basis in the shares is $500 per share, that is, if the son sells the shares, his capital gains are computed as if he had purchased the shares for $500 each. The son pays no taxes on the inheritance he receives. The deceased father's last income tax return (filed by the executor of the father's will) does not list the $490/share gain as a capital gain since the father did not sell the stock (the gain is what is called an unrealized gain), and so there is no income tax due from the father on the $490/share. Now, if there is no estate tax whatsoever, the father's estate  tax return pays no tax on that gain of $490 per share either. Would this be considered an equitable system? Should the government not tax the gain at all? It is worth noting that it would be possible for a government to eliminate estate taxes entirely, but instead have tax laws  that say that unrealized gains on the deceased's property would be taxed (as capital gains) on the deceased's final tax return."
"What can I do to help him out, but at the same time protect myself from any potential scams? Find out why he can't do this himself.  Whether your relative is being sincere or not, if he owns both accounts then he should be able to transfer money between them by himself.  If you can find a way to solve that issue without involving your bank account, so much the better. Don't settle for ""something about authorized payees and expired cards.""  Get details, write them down.  If possible, get documents.  Then go to a bank or financial adviser you can trust and run those details by them to see what they have to say.  Even if there's no scam, if what he's trying to do is illegal (even if he doesn't realize it himself) then you want to know before you get involved.  You say you're willing to deal with ""other issues"" separately, but keep in mind that, even if there's no external scam here, those ""other issues"" could include hefty fees, censures on your own account, or jail time. Ask yourself: Does it make sense that this relative has an account overseas?  I don't have any overseas accounts, because I don't do business in other countries.  Is your relative a dual-citizen?  Does he travel a lot?  What country is the overseas account in?  How long has he had this account?  What bank is it with?  Where the money is going is just as important as how it gets there (ie: through your account.)  Arguably more so. Keep in mind that many scammers tell their marks not to share what's going on with anyone else.  (Because doing so increases the odds of someone telling them to snap out of it.)  It's entirely possible he's being scammed himself and just not telling you the whole story because the 419er is telling him to keep it quiet.  (Check out that link for more details on common scams that your relative may be unwittingly part of, btw.) Get as many details as possible about what he's doing and why.  If he's communicating with anyone else regarding this transfer, find out who.  If there are emails, ask his permission to read them and watch for anything suspicious (ie: people who can't spell their own name consistently, constant pressure to act quickly, etc.)"
Maryland is one of only two states (as of the writing of that article) that collects both inheritance tax and estate tax. These are two different issues, and it's important to differentiate between them sufficiently. I can't provide you a definitive answer, so consult a tax professional in Maryland for specific details to make sure you don't run afoul of tax authorities. This blog has a nice summary of the differences, as of 2012: The estate tax is assessable if more than one million dollars passes at death.  The total dollar value of the property determines whether there is an estate tax.  The inheritance tax is not dependent upon the value of the estate, as even very small estates can have inheritance tax imposed.  Inheritance tax is assessed on property given to a person who is further removed in relationship than a sibling.  Thus, for example, a 10% tax will be assessed on property passing to a cousin, niece, nephew or friend.  Another section of the page states, as an example: If you give someone $10,000 in cash, the inheritance tax will simply reduce the amount inherited – in this case to $9,000. There are several other exemptions to the inheritance tax in addition to the immediate family exception discussed above: Property that passes from a decedent to or for the use of a grandparent, parent, spouse, child or other lineal descendant, spouse of a child or other lineal descendant, stepparent, stepchild, brother or sister of the decedent, or a corporation if all of its stockholders consist of the surviving spouse, parents, stepparents, stepchildren, brothers, sisters, and lineal descendants of the decedent and spouses of the lineal descendants. Putting this information together makes me think that the inheritance wouldn't be taxable in your case because it's a cash inheritance from an immediate family member, so it qualifies for one of the exemptions. Since I'm not a tax professional, however, I can't say that for sure. Hopefully these pages will give you enough of a foundation for when you talk to a professional.
Assuming the stock was worth more at the time she gave it to you than when she bought it, the cost basis would be the amount that she bought it for. You would then pay tax on the increase in value from that time.  Generally it's better to inherit assets than receive them as gifts, since the cost basis of inherited assets is raised to the value at the time of the death of the one leaving the inheritance. You will probably need to find some record of the original amount paid so you can determine the right cost basis.
As regards Inheritance Tax if your parents are abroad the question must be asked about their Domicile status as non doms are generally only subject to IHT on assets situated in the UK.
"If this is in the United States, there are laws governing business behavior when they have recorded expenses (checks, bills, etc) which are never withdrawn or deposited.  A business is required to turn over these funds after a certain time frame to the state government as a part of their business tax cycle.  (One caveat- these laws vary in age by state, and 13 years is a long time.  You might still be out of luck for an amount so old..) There are even businesses which have cropped up to search for ""lost money"" (for a fee, of course) that your great uncle might have left behind and which now sits in a government holding account somewhere.  It's not necessary to go through the third parties though, because the United States posts this information for the world to see.  A good starting place is: USA.gov Unclaimed Money Tool Do as much legwork there as you can.  You could even attempt to contact the former employer (you said the business accounts still exist) and in a very friendly, non-confrontational manner ask them what their procedures are and would have happened to your paycheck funds.  As others have stated, they are under no legal obligation whatsoever to fix your problem for you, but who knows, you could get lucky and they might voluntarily help you out!  You're looking for information not cash, so politeness, patience and understanding are your tools. If all else fails, you could try one of these 3rd party services.  Here you run into diminishing returns as paying fees to search for money which might not exist just puts you further in the red."
"Three companies may have copies of it: the bank, the Title Company (aka settlement company), and perhaps the real estate agent. The bank (assuming you had a mortgage) is usually the easiest one to contact, as you're probably still making payments to them. They may have sent you the form in a large packet when you sold the house and paid off the old mortgage. There is a tradition of sending customers their entire mortgage file once they pay off the mortgage after 30 years - which is very rare nowadays but many banks still adhere to it because the mortgage business is built on momentum and very slow to change. Otherwise, the title company should have a copy of it. If you don't know which company was used, they should be named as Trustee on the Deed Of Trust (which in most states is the official name of the document that we call a ""mortgage""). The county recorder's office will have a copy of that Deed Of Trust on record if you can't find it anywhere. Some counties have digitized these so you could find it online, but some would require you to request a copy and pay a small printing fee for it."
You could talk to them, but (assuming you're in the U.S.), it's highly doubtful any bank would honor a check from 26 years ago.  Most checks in the U.S. are only valid for 180 days, mainly to help companies and banks keep accounting simple. I would suggest talking to your late husband's former employer.  Explain the situation and ask if they'd be willing to research it and perhaps honor his memory and contribution to their company by issuing a new check.  They might do it as a gesture of good will. Are they legally bound to do this?  To my knowledge, the answer is no.  The check was issued and never cashed, which is not all that unusual for companies in business for a long time.  A good example of this would be rebate checks, which (you'd be surprised) quite frequently end up in a drawer and forgotten about.  There has to be some closure for the issuing company in its accounting, else they'd have money in their bank accounts that doesn't properly show in their ledgers. This is an interesting question, though.  I hope others will reply, and perhaps they have a more informed take than me.  I'm going to upvote it simply because I'd like to see this discussion continue. Good luck!
I agree with the comments so far. Access doesn't equal ownership. There are also different levels of access. E.g. your financial advisor can have access to your retirement account via power of attorney, but only ability to add or change things, not withdraw. Another consideration is when a creditor tries to garnish wages / bank accounts, it needs to find the accounts first. This could be done by running a credit report via SSN. My guess is an account with access-only rights won't show up on such a report. I suppose the court could subpoena bank information. But I'm not an attorney so please check with a professional.
Assets can be acquired in different ways and for different purposes. I will only address common legal ways of acquiring assets. You can trade one asset for another asset. This usually takes place in the form of trading cash or a cash equivalent for an asset. The asset received should be of equal or greater value than the asset given in the eyes of the purchaser in order for the trade to be rational. Take this example: I am selling a bike that has been sitting on my porch for a few months. It's worth about $25 to me. My friend, Andy, comes by and offers $90 for it. I happily accept. Andy valued the bike at $110. This transaction produced value for both parties. I had a value benefit of $65 (90 - 25) and Andy had a value benefit of $20 (110 - 90). You can receive an asset as a gift or an inheritance. Less common, but still frequent. Someone gives you a gift or a family member dies and you receive an asset you did not own previously. You can receive an asset in exchange for a liability. When you take out a loan, you receive an asset (cash) which is financed by a liability (loan payable). In your case: Why would I buy a mall if having assets worth the same amount as the mall? I must value the mall more than the assets I currently have. This may stem from the possibility of greater future returns than I am currently making on my asset, or, if I financed the purchase with a liability, greater future returns than the cost associated with payment on the principal and interest of the liability.
"They may be confused. The combination of ""my wife received stock when younger"" and ""her father just died"" leaves questions. A completed gift, when she was a kid, means she has a basis (cost) same as the original owner of that stock. This may need to be researched. The other choice is that she gets a price based on the date of dad's death, a stepped up basis, if it was his, but she got it when he passed.  No offense to them, but brokers are not always qualified to offer tax advice.  How/when exactly did she get to own the stock. Upon second reading it appears I answered this from a tax perspective. You seem to have issues of ownership. What exactly does the broker tell you? In whose name is the statement for the account holding these shares? Scott, saw your update. For the accounts I have for my 13 year old, I am custodian, but the tax ID is her social security number. When 21, she doesn't need my permission to sell anything, just valid ID. What exactly does the broker tell her?"