Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Washington

Re: Trustee and Personal Representative Compensation

Reasonable compensation could be looked upon as what the reasonable hourly rate for the services is x the hours engaged in the services. Another approach may be to look at what the comparable services cost through other professional PRs or trustees (but consider whether your spouse has the skills of those types of professionals-that might affect the rate that is reasonable). Complexity of the estate would raise the amount that is reasonable, simplicity would tend to lower the rate. E.g. if the estate is comprised of mixed stock portfolios, rental real estate, residential real estate, and a business that has value only if continued to be operated, this could be complex estate, but if the entirety of the estate is a few mutual funds that can be continued the estate and trust could be fairly simple to administer.