Answers · Right after a loss
The first 90 days: a practical checklist
Order 6–10 certified death certificates from the county.
Secure the house: locks, mail, anything perishable, anything valuable. An empty house is a target.
Call the homeowner's insurance company. A vacant home may need a different policy — many policies limit coverage after 30–60 days of vacancy. This is the most commonly missed item on this list.
Keep paying the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, and utilities. Federal law protects inheriting family members from the loan being called due (see the mortgage article), but missed payments still hurt.
Find the estate plan: trust, will, or neither. That determines the whole path.
Notify Social Security and any pension. Stop automatic income deposits — they claw back overpayments.
Don't rush to distribute or sell anything. Nothing about a house needs to be decided in the first month — with one exception: the Prop 19 occupancy clock, which runs from the date of death. Know your date.
General education, not advice — verify anything you’ll rely on with a CPA or estate attorney.