In this episode of Probate Notes, Sam sits down with Natalie Armenta, a probate and fiduciary vehicle specialist at Carstub, to break down one of probate's most overlooked challenges — what to do with a deceased person's car. From understanding AND vs. OR titles to navigating duplicate title paperwork, death certificates, and DMV fees, Natalie walks through the full process of getting a vehicle properly transferred or sold during a California probate case.

Natalie also covers practical strategies attorneys and fiduciaries need to know — like placing a vehicle on non-operational status to stop accumulating DMV fees, and how junking a car can actually wipe out fees that exceed the vehicle's value.

With nearly 25 years at Carstub, Natalie brings deep hands-on expertise to every step of the vehicle disposition process — making her an invaluable resource for any probate professional dealing with estate vehicles.

In this episode, you will hear:

• AND vs. OR vehicle titles and how each affects the sale process in probate
• Required paperwork for transferring or duplicating a vehicle title in California
• How death certificates factor into probate vehicle sales
• Placing a vehicle on non-operational (non-op) status to avoid accumulating DMV fees
• When junking a car is the smartest option and how it eliminates outstanding DMV fees
• How Carstub handles the full vehicle disposition process, from towing to paperwork
• Tips for out-of-state or remote sellers dealing with probate vehicles in California

Resources from this Episode

The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw

https://carstub.com/fiduciary/

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Episode Credits

If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.

In this episode, Sam sits down with James Leestma — attorney, estate litigator, and owner of Advance Inheritance LLC — to break down everything you need to know about probate cash advances. Whether you're dealing with a looming foreclosure, an heir who can't afford to relocate, or a beneficiary who needs legal representation, a probate cash advance might be the solution you didn't know existed. James explains how these non-recourse assignments work, how they differ from traditional loans, and how they can be structured to benefit the estate as a whole.

James brings a combination of legal expertise and investment experience, having reviewed thousands of probate estates through his work at Advance Inheritance LLC. He covers lien priority, underwriting considerations, early repayment discounts, and real-world use cases practitioners encounter every day.

If you've ever been out of options in a probate matter, this episode is your next move.

In this episode, you will hear:

• What probate cash advances are and how they differ from traditional loans
• How non-recourse assignments work and what heirs can and can't assign
• Common use cases including foreclosure prevention, relocation costs, and legal retainers
• Lien priority rules when an heir takes multiple assignments from multiple companies
• How attorneys can use cash advances as a fast alternative to ex parte injunctions
• Early repayment discounts and how assignments get satisfied at final distribution

Resources from this Episode

https://advanceinheritance.com/

https://www.jamesleestmaprobate.com/

The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw

Follow and Review:

We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast.

Episode Credits

If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.

What happens when a hit song, a music catalog, or even a celebrity's name and likeness becomes part of a probate estate? In this episode, Sam welcomes Iver Scott of Scott Valuation, LLC, a specialist in intellectual property valuation, to break down how IP assets are valued in an estate context — from discounted cash flow analysis to the rare cases where comparable sales can apply.

Iver shares what goes into valuing music catalogs, how reversion and recapture rights affect value, and the critical distinction between valuing an asset immediately before versus after an artist's death — a nuance that played out in a landmark tax court case involving the Michael Jackson estate.

Iver's insights are essential listening for any probate professional who may encounter IP assets in an estate.

In this episode, you will hear:

• How intellectual property valuation sits at the intersection of art and science
• Discounted cash flow analysis explained — and why future cash flows are worth less than cash in hand today
• When comparable sales methodology works for music catalogs (and when it doesn't)
• The role of genre, commercial trajectory, and an artist's "S curve" in valuing a song
• Reversion and recapture rights and how they impact the value of music copyrights
• Inside the Michael Jackson estate valuation — name, image, and likeness under the microscope
• Why the timing of a valuation (immediately before vs. after an artist's death) can mean a difference of tens of millions of dollars in estate tax

Resources from this Episode

The 6-Stage Probate Process: How to Navigate California Probate: https://a.co/d/82310Rw

iver.scott@scottvaluation.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/iver-scott-1731a937/

https://www.scottvaluation.com/

Follow and Review:

We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast.

Episode Credits

If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com Let them know we sent you.