Executor Compensation and Fees (AR)

In Arkansas, the estate executor is known as a "personal representative".

Arkansas law holds that the executor fee should be reasonable, and not exceed certain percentages of the personal property the executor administers:

• 10% on the first $1,000
• 5% on the next $4,000
• 3% on the rest

So, for example, an Arkansas estate with $4,000 in personal property would yield up to $250 in executor fees, and one worth $800,000 would generate up to $24,150 in executor fees.

Assets that pass directly to named beneficiaries, such as life insurance policies or 401Ks, are not included in these calculations.

Lawyers do not consider real estate to be "personal property", and instead call that "real property". Consequently, the above schedule does not explicitly include real estate, which can represent a large portion of the estate. If the executor performs "substantial" services with regards to real property, the court will usually allow an additional reasonable amount to the overall fee for these services.

The executor may decide compensation, according to the rules above, but the reasonableness of any fees paid may be reviewed by the court, with the possibility of refunds being required.

See Arkansas Probate Code § 28-48-108.

EstateExec provides the following executor compensation estimator for AR estates, but please keep in mind that circumstances may vary, and that there may be special situations addressed by local custom or law. By using this estimator, you acknowledge that EstateExec provides any results as informational input only, not as legal advice, and cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies for, or misunderstandings about, any given estate.

Since AR statute does not specify the commission associated with real property that requires substantial services, the EstateExec calculator simply adds any such property to the overall estate value and applies the defined commission schedule.

You can use this calculator now, but if you use EstateExec to help you track the settlement process, it will automatically perform the sometimes complex calculations to provide inputs for the fields below (you can create an estate for free).