What goes in estate accounts
The accounts start with what the person owned and owed on the day they died, at the values used for probate. Then come four parts that explain how that became what each beneficiary gets:
- a capital account: what each asset sold for against its value at death, plus refunds and other money in;
- an income account: interest, dividends and rent received since the death;
- administration expenses: the probate fee, solicitors, estate agents, valuers, tax paid and the other costs;
- a distribution account: the gifts in the will, the residue, each residuary beneficiary's share and what is still due to them.
Co-op Legal Services describes the same sections, with an inheritance tax summary where tax was due. Enter inheritance tax you paid under Money and it gets its own line, as in the OpenOffice template; the builder does not work tax out.
Worked example: the estate of Margaret Ellis
Margaret left her house, savings, shares and a car. Her will gives the car to her grandson Tom, £5,000.00 to a hospice, and the residue in equal thirds to Anne, David and Lucy. The executors paid £40,000.00 each to Anne and David and £30,000.00 to Lucy part way through, and kept back £500.00 for final costs. These are the accounts the builder prints from those entries.
Final estate accounts
Estate of Margaret Ellis, who died on 14 Mar 2025
Will dated 2 Jun 2019
Personal representatives: Anne Ellis and David Ellis
Accounts to 28 Feb 2026
Assets and liabilities at the date of death
| Assets | |
|---|---|
| 12 Elm Road, Ashford | £285,000.00 |
| Current account | £4,312.18 |
| Premium Bonds | £10,000.00 |
| Stocks and shares ISA | £18,450.62 |
| Ford Fiesta | £3,500.00 |
| Household contents | £1,200.00 |
| Total assets | £322,462.80 |
| Debts and funeral | |
| Credit card | (£612.40) |
| Council tax | (£154.00) |
| Electricity | (£88.17) |
| 2 Apr 2025 Funeral director | (£4,295.00) |
| Total debts and funeral | (£5,149.57) |
| Net estate | £317,313.23 |
Capital account
| 30 Sep 2025 12 Elm Road, Ashford: value at death £285,000.00. Sold £280,000.00 | (£5,000.00) |
| 1 Apr 2025 Current account: value at death £4,312.18. Closed £4,312.18 | £0.00 |
| 12 May 2025 Premium Bonds: value at death £10,000.00. Sold £10,000.00 | £0.00 |
| 15 Jul 2025 Stocks and shares ISA: value at death £18,450.62. Sold £19,102.30 | £651.68 |
| 1 May 2025 Ford Fiesta: value at death £3,500.00. Handed to Tom Ward at £3,500.00 | £0.00 |
| 20 Jul 2025 Household contents: value at death £1,200.00. Sold £650.00 | (£550.00) |
| Total change in value since death | (£4,898.32) |
Income account
| 1 Apr 2025 Interest on current account since death | £18.34 |
| 31 Dec 2025 Interest on executor account | £412.10 |
| Total income | £430.44 |
Administration expenses
| Probate or court fee | |
|---|---|
| 20 May 2025 Probate application fee | (£300.00) |
| Professional fees | |
| 30 Sep 2025 Estate agent | (£3,360.00) |
| 30 Sep 2025 Conveyancing | (£1,450.00) |
| 20 Jan 2026 Solicitor, estate administration | (£2,400.00) |
| Other tax paid | |
| 31 Jan 2026 Income tax on estate income | (£86.00) |
| Other administration expense | |
| 5 Aug 2025 House insurance while empty | (£412.50) |
| 5 Aug 2025 Notices to creditors | (£95.40) |
| Total administration expenses | (£8,103.90) |
Distribution account
| Net estate | £317,313.23 |
| Capital account | (£4,898.32) |
| Income account | £430.44 |
| Administration expenses | (£8,103.90) |
| Held back for costs still to come | (£500.00) |
| Total available for distribution | £304,241.45 |
| Cash gifts | |
|---|---|
| St Mary's Hospice | (£5,000.00) |
| Gifts of items | |
| Tom Ward: Ford Fiesta | (£3,500.00) |
| Residue | £295,741.45 |
Residue split between the beneficiaries
| Line | Share | Paid so far | Still due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Ellis (1/3) | £98,580.49 | (£40,000.00) | £58,580.49 |
| David Ellis (1/3) | £98,580.48 | (£40,000.00) | £58,580.48 |
| Lucy Ward (1/3) | £98,580.48 | (£30,000.00) | £68,580.48 |
| Total | £295,741.45 | (£110,000.00) | £185,741.45 |
Where the estate is now
| Held now | |
|---|---|
| Money held (all entries in and out) | £186,241.45 |
| Total held | £186,241.45 |
| Still to pay out of it | |
| Held back for costs still to come | £500.00 |
| Anne Ellis, residue still due | £58,580.49 |
| David Ellis, residue still due | £58,580.48 |
| Lucy Ward, residue still due | £68,580.48 |
| Total still to pay | £186,241.45 |
| Difference (the accounts balance) | £0.00 |
The residue of £295,741.45 does not divide into exact thirds. Each share is rounded down to £98,580.48, and the penny left over goes to the first share, so the three shares add back to the exact residue. Because Lucy had £10,000.00 less on account, £10,000.00 more is still due to her.
How to prepare estate accounts
- List the assets and debts at the date of death, with the values from the probate or inheritance tax forms.
- Open an executor's bank account and pay everything in and out through it, so the statement is your record.
- Record each sale or account closure against the asset it came from, and each bill against the debt it pays.
- Record income separately from capital: interest, dividends and rent since the death.
- Record every payment to a beneficiary, including interim payments and items handed over, with the date.
- Check your entries against the bank statement, then work out the residue and each share, net of what each person has had.
- Send the accounts to the residuary beneficiaries for approval before the final payments.
GOV.UK says to prepare the final estate accounts once the estate has been distributed, and that they should be approved and signed by you and the main beneficiaries. It also warns that if you pay out without keeping enough back, you may have to pay remaining debts and tax bills yourself. That is what the "keep back for costs still to come" line is for.
Questions about UK estate accounts
Who is entitled to see the estate accounts?
Co-op Legal Services says only the residuary beneficiaries are entitled to see them: the people who share what is left after debts, costs and gifts. A residuary beneficiary who is refused can apply to the court for an inventory and account order.
What is the difference between the capital account and the income account?
The capital account shows changes to what the person owned: an asset sold for more or less than its probate value, refunds and other capital money. The income account shows what those assets earned after the death, such as bank interest, dividends and rent.
Where do funeral costs go?
With the debts, as a deduction from the estate at death, as in the OpenOffice template's summary of assets and liabilities. In the builder, enter the funeral bill under Money as a payment for the funeral and it lands there.
Can beneficiaries be paid before the final accounts?
Yes, but GOV.UK warns that if you pay out without keeping enough back, you may have to pay remaining debts and tax yourself. Record each interim payment. The final accounts work out each share on the whole residue and take off what that person has already had, so nobody is paid twice.
What if the residue shares in the will do not add up to the whole?
Then part of the residue has nobody to go to. Section 49 of the Administration of Estates Act 1925 passes that part under the intestacy rules, so check the wording of the will first. The builder refuses shares that do not add up to exactly 100%, and tells you what is missing. Take advice before paying out.
Sources: GOV.UK Distributing the estate; Co-op Legal Services, What are estate accounts; the OpenOffice Estate Accounts in England and Wales template; HMRC manual IHTM12086; Administration of Estates Act 1925, section 49. The people in the example are made up. This is not legal or tax advice.