Executor of an estate: the job, start to finish

Maybe you have just been told you are named in a parent's will. Or maybe you are writing your own will and wondering who could actually do this job. Either way, it helps to see the whole thing laid out, from the first week to the day the estate closes.

This guide walks through the executor's job in order.

We use Washington as the worked example, with each step tied to the statute in Title 11 of the Revised Code of Washington. Other states follow a similar outline with their own rules. Each section links to a post in our Executors series if you want more detail.

What is an executor?

An executor is the person a will names to settle the estate of someone who has died. Washington law calls the role "personal representative," and uses "executor" for a personal representative appointed by a will (RCW 11.02.005). If there is no will, the court appoints an administrator, who does the same work.

An executor is a fiduciary, which means legally required to act in the estate's interest and follow what the will says. Our post on what a fiduciary is explains the duty in more depth.

Who can serve in Washington

Washington bars some people from serving. The list includes minors, people of unsound mind, and people convicted of a felony or a crime of moral turpitude. It also includes people recently found to have committed dishonesty, theft or breach of fiduciary duty (RCW 11.36.010).

Someone who lives in another state can serve. They must appoint a local agent to receive court papers: a county resident or the estate's attorney (RCW 11.36.010). Trust companies organized under Washington law may also serve as personal representative (RCW 11.36.010).

An executor is different from a trustee. The executor handles what passes through probate; a trustee handles what is in a trust. Our post on executor vs trustee sets them side by side.

The executor's job, start to finish

Here is the work in the order it usually happens. Not every estate needs every step, but most probate cases follow this path.

1. Find the will and deliver it to the court

In Washington, anyone holding a will must deliver it within 30 days of learning of the death. It goes to the court or the named executor. An executor holding the will must deliver it to the court within 40 days (RCW 11.20.010).

The first days also bring the personal tasks: arranging the funeral, securing the house, finding the dog a place to stay. Our checklist on what to do when someone dies covers that first week.

2. Open probate and get letters testamentary

The executor asks the superior court to admit the will to probate and appoint them. Once the court does, it grants "letters testamentary" (RCW 11.28.010). That is the paper banks and title companies ask to see.

Washington may require the executor to post a bond, a kind of guarantee of faithful service. No bond is required if the will says so, and none is required when a bank or trust company serves (RCW 11.28.185).

3. Ask for nonintervention powers

Washington lets a personal representative settle the estate without returning to court for each step. These are called nonintervention powers. The court must grant them to an executor named in the will if the estate is solvent, unless the will says otherwise (RCW 11.68.011).

This is one reason probate in Washington can be simpler than its reputation. The executor still has every duty; they just don't need a judge's approval for each sale or payment.

4. Notify heirs and beneficiaries

Within 20 days of appointment, the executor must send written notice of the probate. It goes to each heir and beneficiary whose address is reasonably known (RCW 11.28.237). That includes beneficiaries of nonprobate assets, like a payable-on-death account.

Sometimes the executor doesn't give notice to creditors within 30 days of appointment. Then they must notify a state office: the Department of Social and Health Services' office of financial recovery (RCW 11.28.237).

5. Give notice to creditors

The executor may publish a notice to creditors once a week for three weeks in a legal newspaper. They file it with the court and mail a copy to the state's office of financial recovery (RCW 11.40.020). Known creditors can be mailed the notice directly.

Once notice is published, most creditors have four months from the first publication to come forward. A creditor the executor could have found but didn't notify has up to 24 months from the death. If no notice is given at all, creditors also have 24 months (RCW 11.40.051).

That four-month window is why many executors publish notice early. It puts a clear end date on the debts.

6. List and value everything

Within three months of appointment, the executor must prepare a sworn inventory of the estate's property. Each item is valued as of the date of death, with liens or mortgages listed (RCW 11.44.015). It doesn't have to be filed with the court, but heirs and certain others can ask for a copy.

This is often the slowest part. It means finding every account, opening the mail for months, and sorting a house full of belongings.

7. Pay debts and taxes

The executor pays valid debts and final expenses from the estate's own funds. They also handle taxes.

• The final income tax return. The IRS says to prepare it the same way you would if the person were alive. It reports income up to the date of death (IRS).
• Federal estate tax. For deaths in 2026, the basic exclusion amount is $15,000,000 (IRS). Estates that must file Form 706 have 9 months from the death, with an automatic six-month extension available (IRS Instructions for Form 706).
• Washington estate tax. Washington has its own estate tax with a much lower threshold: $3,000,000 for deaths on or after July 1, 2026. The return is due nine months after death (Washington Department of Revenue).

8. Wait out the contest period

In Washington, a challenge to the will must be filed within four months after it is admitted to probate. If nobody does, the probate becomes binding and final (RCW 11.24.010).

9. Distribute and close

When debts and taxes are paid, the executor distributes what is left as the will directs. An executor with nonintervention powers can then file a declaration of completion. It lists the fees paid to the executor, lawyers, appraisers and accountants (RCW 11.68.110).

If nobody objects after notice, that declaration works like a final court decree, and the executor is discharged (RCW 11.68.110). The job is done.

The Washington timeline at a glance

How long does it take?

There is no fixed answer, and anyone who promises one is guessing. What Washington's deadlines do tell you is the floor.

An executor who publishes notice to creditors can't safely close until that four-month window has passed. An estate that must file an estate tax return is usually still open at nine months. Selling a house, finding missing accounts or a family disagreement can stretch it much further.

Our posts on how long probate takes and how long it takes to settle an estate go further. They cover what speeds it up and what slows it down.

When probate isn't needed at all

Not every estate needs a court case.

In Washington, a probate estate worth $100,000 or less after liens may not need a court case. Once 40 days have passed, a successor can collect personal property with a sworn affidavit. Debts must be paid and other successors notified first (RCW 11.62.010).

Assets with a named beneficiary, joint accounts with survivorship rights and property in a trust pass outside probate altogether (RCW 11.02.005). Our post on how to avoid probate explains the common ways people plan for that.

Does an executor get paid?

Yes, an executor can be paid from the estate. In Washington, if the will sets the executor's pay, that amount controls unless the executor formally gives it up before serving. Otherwise the executor receives what the court considers "just and reasonable" (RCW 11.48.210).

That statute sets no percentage. The same section lets the court reduce or deny pay if the executor failed in their duties (RCW 11.48.210). Rules on executor pay differ from state to state.

Our posts on how much an executor gets paid and executor fees in Washington go further.

What the job asks of a family member

On paper, an executor's duties are a list of deadlines. In real life, the job lands on someone who is also grieving. Often it is a daughter with a job, children of her own, and a flight between her house and the estate.

Here is a typical case, a composite: a woman of 52 is named executor for her father, who lived in Spokane. She lives in Atlanta.

Over the next year she flies out to empty the house and meets the lawyer by video. She waits on hold with three banks and argues gently with her brother about the piano.

None of that is unusual. It is simply what the job is. And because an executor is a fiduciary, the work carries legal responsibility as well as emotional weight.

Before you say yes

• Do you live close enough to handle the house, or can you hire help for that?
• Do you know where the will, accounts and passwords are?
• Can you set aside time for phone calls, paperwork and court deadlines over many months?
• Are there relatives likely to disagree with the will?
• Will the estate need an estate tax return?
• Is there a backup executor if you can't finish?

Can an executor say no?

Yes. Being named in a will doesn't oblige anyone to serve. In Washington, if some named executors refuse, letters go to the others named; if all refuse, the court appoints someone else (RCW 11.28.010).

If nobody named in the will serves, Washington sets an order. A surviving spouse or registered domestic partner comes first, then children, parents, siblings, grandchildren, and nieces or nephews. A trustee or agent who controlled most of the assets comes next, then beneficiaries and creditors (RCW 11.28.120).

That order is why naming a backup matters. See our posts on whether you can refuse to be executor and what happens if the executor can't serve.

If you are choosing your own executor

Think about who could realistically do this work when the time comes, perhaps twenty years from now. A sibling the same age may be facing their own health questions by then. A grown child three time zones away may be stretched thin.

Some people name a family member first and a professional as backup. Others name a professional first so their family can simply grieve. Our post on who should be your executor walks through the choice, and the guide to choosing professional help compares the options.

Kinly members can name Trella Trust Company, a Washington State chartered trust company, as executor, first or as backup to someone they choose. If it actually settles the estate, that work is charged by the hour, and you always see the rates before anything starts. There is more on how it works.

Every post in this guide

Here is each post in the Executors series, with a line on what it answers.

Probate basics

What is probate? What probate actually is, what it is for, and why so many people try to avoid it. A good first read if the word itself feels heavy.

How long does probate take? The deadlines that set the minimum length of a Washington probate, and the things that commonly stretch it out.

How to avoid probate. The simplest ways to keep assets out of court, from beneficiary forms to a funded living trust.

The probate process, step by step. A walk through every stage of probate in order, from the petition to the final declaration.

Probate fees: what an estate actually pays. Court filing fees, lawyers, appraisers and the executor's own pay, and how each one is set.

The executor's work

Executor checklist: the first 30 days and the first year. For someone just named executor: what to do first, what can wait, and what to keep track of.

What to do when someone dies: a checklist. The first week after a death, step by step, before probate even begins.

What to do when a parent dies. A guide for grown children handling a parent's affairs, in the order things need to happen.

How long does it take to settle an estate? The calendar time and human hours an estate takes, and what makes it heavier or lighter.

Pay and stepping aside

How much does an executor get paid? Whether executors are paid and how the amount is decided. It also covers when a family member might decline the fee.

Executor fees in Washington State. How Washington's "just and reasonable" standard works in practice.

Can an executor refuse or step down? Your options if you can't or don't want to serve, before or after appointment.

What happens if the executor dies or can't serve? Who steps in when the named executor isn't available, and why a backup saves months.

Common questions

What does an executor of an estate have to do?

An executor finds the will, asks the court to open probate, and notifies heirs and creditors. Then they list the assets, pay debts and taxes, and distribute what is left as the will directs. In Washington, the role is called personal representative.

How long does an executor have to settle an estate?

There is no single deadline for finishing. In Washington, notice to creditors gives them four months from first publication, and estate tax returns, when required, are due nine months after death. An estate can't safely close before the creditor window passes. One that must file an estate tax return usually stays open until it is filed.

Can an executor be a family member who lives out of state?

Yes, in Washington. A nonresident can serve as personal representative. They must appoint a local agent to receive court papers, either a county resident or the estate's attorney. They must also file a bond unless it has been waived, for example by the will.

Can a trust company serve as executor?

Yes. In Washington, trust companies organized under state law may serve as personal representative. No bond is required when a bank or trust company serves. A will can name a trust company first or as backup to a family member.

Does every estate have to go through probate?

No. In Washington, a probate estate of $100,000 or less can often be collected by affidavit after 40 days. Assets with a beneficiary, joint survivorship accounts and trust property pass outside probate altogether.

Sources

• RCW 11.02.005: Definitions, including executor and nonprobate asset (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.20.010: Duty of custodian of will (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.24.010: Contest of probate (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.28.010: Letters to executors, refusal to serve (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.28.120: Persons entitled to letters (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.28.185: Bond of personal representative (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.28.237: Notice of appointment (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.36.010: Parties disqualified, nonresident personal representatives (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.40.020: Notice to creditors (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.40.051: Time limits for creditors (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.44.015: Inventory and appraisement (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.48.210: Compensation of personal representative (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.62.010: Small estate affidavit (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.68.011: Settlement without court intervention (Washington State Legislature)
• RCW 11.68.110: Declaration of completion of probate (Washington State Legislature)
• File the final income tax returns of a deceased person (IRS)
• What's new: estate and gift tax (IRS)
• Instructions for Form 706 (IRS)
• Estate tax (Washington State Department of Revenue)