Executor Fee Calculator (MS)
If the will does not specify how executor compensation should be calculated, MS estates must follow state compensation rules.
Click to scroll to MS Fee Calculator.
How Much Should an Executor be Paid in MS?
In Mississippi, if executor compensation is not specified in the will, the executor is entitled to compensation the court "deems proper considering the value and worth of the estate and considering the extent or degree of difficulty of the duties discharged by the executor".
One common approach in Mississippi is to base executor compensation as a percentage of the gross estate value (before considering debts, but not including assets that the executor doesn't actually manage, such IRAs or 401Ks with named beneficiaries):
- 5.0% on the first $100K
- 4.0% on the next $200K
- 3.0% on the next $700K
- 2.5% on the next $4M
- 2.0% on the next $5M
- 1.5% on anything more
So, for example, a Mississippi estate worth $75K would yield $3.5K in executor fees, and one worth $500K would generate $15K in executor fees.
Alternately, you can use a "services-rendered" approach, and bill by the hour. The hourly rate can be determined according to the nature of the work involved, the effort involved, the professional background of the executor, the results and benefits of that work for the heirs, and so forth. If you charged $35/hour, and spent 400 hours, you would charge $14K.
Both approaches have the potential to be reasonable, and in fact previous statute mandated the uses of estate percentages, and subsequent case law (Estate of Bessie L. Lusk) has affirmed the validity of services-rendered. Whatever approach you decide, you should probably keep detailed records of your efforts in case you need to justify your fee in court, since the court will want to see this in determining the overall context for reasonableness:
- Nature of the task (e.g., Drove to bank to get medallion stamp for IBM stock)
- Amount of time spent (e.g., 2 hours)
- Hourly rate for the task (e.g., $35/hour)
- Results (e.g., sold the car for Blue Book value)
MS Compensation Calculator
EstateExec provides the following executor compensation estimator for MS estates, but please keep in mind that there are no hard and fast rules for MS estates, and ultimately you must determine what would be reasonable for your particular circumstances. 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.
Below EstateExec provides two compensation approaches: you can decide which, if either, is appropriate for you. The first uses a sliding percentage scale based on the total estate gross value (the larger the estate, the smaller the percentage); the second simply compensates the executor for the value of his or her time, and is the more common approach in MS. See estimation methodology for details.
You can use this calculator now, but if you use EstateExec to help you track the settlement process, it will automatically calculate the inputs for you based on the estate and suggest those values in the fields below (you can create an estate for free).
Executor Compensation Considerations
Timing: Generally, any executor compensation is paid during the final stages of estate distribution, as one of the last things the executor does. Be careful in situations in which there is not enough to pay yourself and all other outstanding debts, as this may expose you to legal issues. However, in most states, executor compensation has precedence over almost all other debts (for example, in NY, only funeral expenses have a higher precedence).
Communication: You may wish to discuss your compensation with the other heirs early during the process, so they don't end up surprised and unhappy when they notice their shares are somewhat less than expected. You may also want to leave the door open to modify your planned compensation as the process unfolds and you determine how much or how little work will actually be required on your part.
Optional: Keep in mind that collecting executor fees is optional. Even if the will specifies compensation, or if state laws support specific fees, the executor can choose to forego that compensation, and many do. That being said, serving as an executor is A LOT of work, and there's a reason that state laws support such compensation.
Tax Optimization: One reason an executor might choose to forego explicit compensation is that executor compensation is taxable, while inheritances are generally not taxable. Consequently, if the entire estate (or a large portion of it) is going to be inherited by the executor, you may end up with more after-tax value if you forego executor compensation.
Trusts: Note that trustee compensation for managing a trust is handled differently than that of executor compensation for settling an estate (see Trustee Compensation).
Expense Reimbursement: In addition to compensation for his or her services, an executor is also entitled to reimbursement from estate proceeds for legitimate and reasonable estate administration costs, such as death certificate copies, notarization of documents, the EstateExec licensing fee, and even travel costs strictly associated with managing the estate. Once you have established an estate banking account, you can often pay for these costs directly from that account, so that no reimbursement is necessary, but you should keep good records in case you later have to justify your expenditures to the IRS or to estate heirs. Executor expenses can be reimbursed when desired, although certain probate proceedings may require prior approval. While executor expenses are generally not considered when calculating executor compensation (i.e., executor fees), if the executor incurs substantial costs paying for services that would normally be directly handled by an executor, a probate judge may sometimes require that the default executor fee be reduced accordingly.
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Additional Information
See also the EstateExec Complete Executor Guide.
In case you're interested, see also Compensation for general remarks on executor compensation, and note that authoritative details about executor fees in other states can be found here: