Probate — Aura
Probate solicitors for Aura executors
Executor of an estate at Baringa, Nirimba, Banya or Bells Creek? A grant of probate for $3,300 including GST, or the whole administration handled for $8,800.
Grant of probate
$3,300
including GST
Full estate administration
$8,800
including GST
The Supreme Court filing fee and the cost of publishing the required notice are set by others and charged at cost. No percentage of the estate. See the full probate page for what each fee covers.
Aura estates are unlike the coastal ones a few kilometres east. The deceased is usually younger, the house is mortgaged, the superannuation carries insurance, and more often than not there is no will — because nobody expected to need one yet.
That combination changes what has to happen first. The lender needs to be told promptly so the loan does not slide into default while a grant is pending; the superannuation fund needs to be notified and any insurance claim started, because those claims are slow; and where there is no will, we need to establish who is actually entitled to apply for letters of administration under Queensland's intestacy rules before anything is filed.
Superannuation is also where families most often get a nasty surprise. A death benefit paid to an adult child is taxed differently from one paid to a spouse or a financially dependent child, and if there is no binding nomination the trustee decides where it goes — which may not be where the family assumed.
We act for Aura executors from our office at 40 Theresa Street, Golden Beach, about ten minutes from the estate, and will come to you if that is easier.
Probate for Aura executors: what to do first
There is no probate registry on the Sunshine Coast. Every Queensland application is filed electronically in the Supreme Court of Queensland at Brisbane, so acting through a local firm costs you nothing in time and saves the trip.
The notice of intention to apply is published on the Queensland Courts website and served on the Public Trustee, and the application cannot be filed until at least fourteen clear days later. We publish in the first few days of the file so that clock is already running while the death certificate, the asset list and the affidavit are being assembled.
Most Aura estates turn on one title and one superannuation account. Once the grant issues we lodge the transmission application with Titles Queensland to put the executor on title, then run the sale or transfer from the same file rather than sending the estate to a second firm.
- Ten minutes away
- 40 Theresa Street, Golden Beach, with home appointments across Baringa, Nirimba, Banya and Bells Creek.
- Where it is filed
- Supreme Court of Queensland, Brisbane registry, electronically. No court attendance is required of you.
- Mortgages handled early
- Lender contacted in the first weeks so the estate is not paying default interest while the grant is pending.
- No will
- Letters of administration with next-of-kin evidence under Queensland's intestacy rules, at the same fixed fee.
Areas and postcodes served: 4551 Baringa · 4551 Nirimba · 4551 Banya · 4551 Bells Creek · 4551 Caloundra West
What comes up on a Aura estate
Mortgaged homes
The lender is contacted in the first weeks so default interest and enforcement costs do not eat into what the beneficiaries receive while the grant is obtained.
Superannuation and insurance claims
Fund notified, binding nomination checked, insurance claim lodged and followed, and the tax treatment of a benefit paid to an adult child confirmed before the estate counts on the figure.
Intestacy and next of kin
Where there is no will, we establish and evidence who is entitled to apply and who takes under the intestacy rules, at the same fixed fee as a grant of probate.
We tell you if you do not need a grant
Assets held as joint tenants pass by survivorship, and superannuation and life insurance often sit outside the estate. If the bank's threshold covers it, we will say so rather than sell you an application.
Notice, filing and requisitions handled
Notice of intention to apply published and served on the Public Trustee, the application and executor's affidavit prepared and filed in the Supreme Court of Queensland, and any registry requisitions dealt with.
Property in the estate dealt with in-house
Transmission application to put the executor on title, then the sale or transfer itself. One firm, one file — the estate is not paying a second practice to finish the job.
Where we meet you
Our Sunshine Coast office is at 40 Theresa Street, Golden Beach QLD 4551 and our peninsula office at 15 Fortune Street, Scarborough QLD 4020, both by appointment. We act for executors across Aura and Baringa, Nirimba, Banya, Bells Creek, Caloundra West, Pelican Waters, and most of an estate file runs perfectly well by phone and email.
Who will handle it
Michael Klein
Legal Practice Director
Admitted 2003. Based in Redcliffe, Moreton Bay.
Read Michael's profile
Common questions
There is no will — what happens?
We apply for letters of administration instead. The intestacy rules in Queensland decide who may apply and who receives the estate, which for a surviving partner with children is a statutory legacy plus a share of the balance. The process and our fixed fee are the same; the additional work is in identifying and evidencing the next of kin.
The house still has a mortgage on it — what do we do?
Tell the lender early and put the account on notice that the borrower has died. Most lenders will hold enforcement while an estate is being administered, but only if they know. Whether the loan is paid out by insurance, whether the property is sold or transferred, and who carries the repayments in the meantime are the three things to settle in the first month.
Do we need a grant if the house was in both names?
Often not for the house itself. If it was held as joint tenants, it passes to the survivor by survivorship and only a survivorship application on the title is needed. If it was held as tenants in common, the deceased's share forms part of the estate and a grant is usually required. We check the title before the estate spends money on an application it may not need.
How much does a grant of probate cost in Aura?
Our fixed professional fee for a straightforward grant is $3,300 including GST, and full estate administration is $8,800 including GST. The Supreme Court filing fee and the cost of publishing the required notice are set by others and charged at cost. We put both figures in writing before you engage us, and the estate normally pays them.
How long does it take?
The notice must be published and served on the Public Trustee, and the application cannot be filed until at least 14 days later. Where the material is in order a grant commonly issues six to ten weeks after we start. Collecting assets and distributing takes longer again.
What if there is no will?
The application becomes one for letters of administration, and the intestacy rules decide who is entitled to apply. The steps and our fixed fee are the same; the extra work sits in identifying and evidencing the next of kin.
When can the estate be distributed?
Not within six months of the date of death without accepting real risk — a family provision application can still be brought, and an executor who has already paid the money out can be left personally carrying it. We will tell you when it is safe to distribute and what to do if a claim is foreshadowed.
Do I have to attend an office?
No. Most executors deal with us by email and phone, and documents can be signed and witnessed locally. Our offices at 40 Theresa Street, Golden Beach QLD 4551 and 15 Fortune Street, Scarborough QLD 4020 are available by appointment if you would rather sit down with someone.
Related pages and guides
- Wills, estates and elder law
- Estate disputes and family provision claims
- Do I need probate in Queensland?
- Dying without a will in Queensland
- What an executor does when the estate is contested
Probate in nearby areas
Send us the will and we will tell you what is needed
Call 0488 340 853 or send the will and a list of assets through. We will confirm whether a grant is required and give you the fee in writing.