First Steps After a Death in New Mexico

A medical professional must pronounce the death. If death was expected under hospice, the hospice nurse can pronounce; if unexpected, call 911. Then choose a licensed New Mexico funeral home or cremation provider to transport and care for your loved one.

Lock the residence, keep utilities and insurance active, and avoid distributing property until authority and ownership are clear. Because New Mexico is a community property state, the surviving spouse already owns one-half of the community property, so be careful not to treat jointly owned property as if it all belongs to the estate.

The probate court or district court needs the original signed will to admit it to probate. Look for codicils, trusts, deeds, vehicle titles, account statements, beneficiary designations, and life insurance policies. In New Mexico, a person who has custody of the will must deliver it after the testator's death (NMSA 1978, Section 45-2-516). Note that informal probate may not occur until at least 120 hours (five days) after death (NMSA 45-3-302).

Certified copies are issued by the New Mexico Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics, online, by mail, or in person, and at some regional vital records offices. The funeral home usually orders them for you. Order more than you think you need - banks, insurers, the MVD, the court, and title offices each ask for one. Each certified copy costs $5, and each additional copy ordered at the same time is also $5; only a person with a direct and tangible interest (such as the surviving spouse, parent, child, or personal representative) may obtain a certified copy.

New Mexico has a two-court split. Informal, uncontested probate of a will and appointment of a personal representative is handled by the elected county Probate Court (a part-time probate judge) for a $30 docket fee (NMSA 1978, Section 34-7-14). Formal, supervised, or contested administration - will contests, supervised administration, heirship determinations, and closing - is handled by the District Court (one of New Mexico's 13 judicial districts) for the standard civil docket fee of about $132 (NMSA 1978, Section 34-6-40). The probate court and district court share original jurisdiction over informal proceedings.

Separate probate assets (solely owned with no beneficiary or survivorship) from nonprobate assets such as joint survivorship accounts, beneficiary-designated accounts, life insurance, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, a recorded transfer on death deed, and trust property. In New Mexico, also note which property is community property, since the surviving spouse already owns one-half of it. This list becomes the basis for deciding whether the estate needs full administration, a small estate path, or another route.

If at least 30 days have passed since death and the value of the entire estate (wherever located, less liens and encumbrances) does not exceed $50,000, a successor may collect the decedent's personal property by affidavit, without letters or probate (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1201); this path cannot perfect title to real estate. For a community-property homestead, a surviving spouse may transfer title by recording an affidavit with the county clerk six months after death, where the assessed value does not exceed $500,000, without opening probate (NMSA 45-3-1205). Larger or more complex estates require informal or formal administration with a personal representative.

The person named in the will may be appointed personal representative; if there is no will, an eligible person may be appointed. File an Application for Informal Probate and/or Appointment of Personal Representative with the county Probate Court (or the District Court). Bring the original will, a certified death certificate, and information about heirs. The court issues Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (without a will), which are New Mexico's official proof of authority that banks, title offices, and the MVD require.

Apply for a free estate EIN from the IRS, then open a bank account in the estate's name (for example, 'Estate of Jane Doe'). Keep estate money completely separate from personal money and keep receipts for every payment and distribution.

In New Mexico, publishing notice to creditors is optional, not mandatory. If the personal representative chooses to publish, the notice runs in a newspaper once a week for three successive weeks, and creditors then have 4 months after the first publication to present their claims or be barred (NMSA 45-3-801). A creditor given actual written notice has the later of that 4-month period or 60 days after mailing. Regardless of notice, all claims arising before death are ultimately barred 1 year after the date of death (NMSA 45-3-803).

Within three months after appointment, the personal representative must prepare an inventory and appraisement of the decedent's property, with estimated date-of-death values and encumbrances (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-706). The inventory is sent to interested persons who request it and may be filed with the court.

If notice to creditors was published, the claim window runs 4 months from the date of first publication (NMSA 45-3-801); regardless of notice, all pre-death claims are barred 1 year after death (NMSA 45-3-803). Do not distribute assets to heirs or devisees before valid claims have been paid. Distributing too early can expose the personal representative to personal liability.

Report the death to the Social Security Administration (1-800-772-1213), notify each bank and brokerage, file life insurance claims, notify the employer and any pension or retirement administrators, and address utilities and subscriptions.

Use the estate account for all estate income and expenses, and keep receipts for every transaction. Review the decedent's final federal Form 1040. A federal fiduciary return (Form 1041) may apply if the estate earns income during administration, and estate or trust income is subject to New Mexico fiduciary income tax. Federal Form 706 applies only if the estate exceeds the federal exemption. New Mexico imposes no state estate tax and no inheritance tax.

An unsupervised administration is closed by filing a verified closing statement no earlier than six months after appointment (NMSA 1978, Section 45-3-1003); a supervised administration is closed by court order. The personal representative's appointment terminates one year after the closing statement is filed if no proceedings are pending.