Before you can make any financial decisions, you need to know what exists. This is the financial inventory — and it is the most important first step, regardless of how much or how little you knew about the household finances.
Here is how to find everything.
**Start with paper.** Go through recent mail — physical and email — for any financial institution statements: banks, investment firms, retirement account custodians, insurance companies. The last year of statements will surface most of what exists.
**His tax return** is one of the most complete financial inventories available to you. The most recent federal return will show bank interest, investment dividends, retirement distributions, business income if any, and other financial activity. If you cannot find it, a CPA can request a transcript from the IRS.
**His employer.** Contact HR directly to ask about any accounts or benefits you may not know about — employer-sponsored retirement plans (401(k), 403(b), pension), group life insurance, stock options, deferred compensation.
**The Social Security Administration** can provide his earnings record and benefit information. You will need this for survivor benefit planning.
**Unclaimed property.** It is not uncommon for accounts to go inactive, especially older ones. Search your state's unclaimed property database (most state treasury websites have a search tool) for his name. You may find accounts or assets you did not know existed.
**Safe deposit boxes.** If he had one, it may contain important documents — a will, deeds, certificates, insurance policies. You will need a death certificate and possibly a court order to access it if it was in his name alone.
**Digital assets.** Online banking, investment accounts accessed only online, cryptocurrency wallets, PayPal or similar. Look through his saved passwords if accessible, or contact the financial institutions directly.
Make a list as you go. You are building a map of what exists — the starting point for everything that follows.
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Once you have located the accounts, the question becomes: what do I do with each of them?
Here is a plain-language guide to the most common account types and the actions they require.
**Joint bank accounts** held with right of survivorship pass directly to you. Present the death certificate at the bank to have his name removed and the account retitled in your name alone. This is typically a simple process.
**Investment accounts in his name alone** require probate or a transfer-on-death process depending on how the account was titled and whether a beneficiary was named. Contact the financial institution with the death certificate — they will tell you their specific process.
**Retirement accounts (IRA, 401(k), 403(b))** pass according to the named beneficiary designation, not the will. If you are named as beneficiary, you can roll them over to your own IRA or elect to treat as an inherited IRA. See the IRA rollover article for detail on this decision.
**Life insurance** pays directly to the named beneficiary. Contact each insurer, request a claim form, and submit with the death certificate and any other required documentation.
**Real estate titled jointly** typically passes to you as the surviving joint tenant. You will need to file an affidavit of survivorship or similar document with your county recorder, along with the death certificate, to clear the title.
**Vehicles** are transferred through the DMV with the death certificate and title.
For each of these, the financial institution or relevant agency will have a specific process. The death certificate is the key that unlocks nearly every one of them.
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