When a Brooklyn family loses a parent who never drafted a will, the ensuing months are rarely quiet. Usually, one sibling steps forward to handle the aftermath. For the next year or more, that person’s life becomes a second full-time job. They secure vacant real estate, locate obscure bank accounts, file final tax returns, field calls from frustrated creditors, and manage the inevitable friction among heirs. Eventually, after spending countless evenings sorting through files and sitting on hold with financial institutions, that sibling stops to ask a highly rational question: am I expected to do all of this for free?
The Statutory Right to Compensation
The short answer is no. Under New York law, the person appointed by the Surrogate’s Court to manage an estate—whether serving as an executor under a will or an administrator when there is no will—is entitled to compensation. I never view this payment as a mere reward for good behavior. It is earned compensation for assuming strict fiduciary duty and personal liability.
When you accept the role of estate administrator, you become legally responsible for the proper management of the deceased’s assets. Accountability. If you miss a creditor claim, fail to file a required tax return, or distribute funds incorrectly, you can be held personally liable for the shortfall. The law recognizes this heavy burden. The amount you get paid is not pulled from thin air, nor is it based on an arbitrary hourly rate. Compensation is strictly governed by state statute.
Specifically, SCPA §2307 establishes a standardized sliding scale for fiduciary commissions. This scale is based entirely on the total value of the probate estate you are tasked with managing.
Calculating the Administrator’s Commission
The state legislature designed the commission structure with a clear logic: managing a larger estate carries heavier liability, but the day-to-day administrative work does not necessarily scale linearly. The commission rate decreases as the estate’s total value increases.
Under the current statute, an estate administrator is entitled to receive:
- 5% on the first $100,000 of the estate
- 4% on the next $200,000
- 3% on the next $700,000
- 2.5% on the next $4,000,000
- 2% on any amount above $5,000,000
To see how this works in practice, consider an administrator handling an estate valued at $600,000. They earn $5,000 on the first tier, $8,000 on the second tier, and $9,000 on the remaining $300,000. Their total statutory commission is $22,000.
This commission covers the standard duties of administration. An administrator is also entitled to reimburse themselves from estate funds for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred during the process—such as court filing fees, property maintenance costs, or funeral expenses paid upfront.
The Probate Distinction: What Assets Actually Count?
One of the most common misunderstandings we see among newly appointed administrators is the assumption that their commission applies to the deceased person’s entire net worth. It does not. The statutory fee applies strictly to assets that pass through the administration process.
If a parent leaves behind a $2 million life insurance policy with named beneficiaries, a joint checking account held with a spouse, and a home properly deeded into an irrevocable trust, none of those assets contribute to the administrator’s commission base. Those assets pass by operation of law outside of Surrogate’s Court. The administrator is only compensated for the assets they actually receive, manage, and distribute. If the only asset requiring administration is a $50,000 individual brokerage account, the commission is based solely on that $50,000—regardless of the wealth that passed outside the estate.
Multiple Administrators and Co-Fiduciaries
Family dynamics often result in multiple siblings petitioning to serve as co-administrators. While having a co-fiduciary divides the labor, it directly affects the compensation structure.
If the total value of the probatable estate is under $100,000, the law dictates that only one full commission is available, which must be split among the co-administrators according to the work they actually performed. If the estate is valued at $100,000 or more, up to two full commissions can be paid out. If there are more than two administrators on an estate exceeding $100,000, those two full commissions are divided evenly among them. We frequently counsel families on this exact issue—the desire to have multiple hands on the wheel can inadvertently increase the administrative costs of settling the estate.
Taxes and the Decision to Waive Compensation
Taking a statutory commission is a right, but it is not mandatory. In many instances, an administrator who is also the sole or primary beneficiary will deliberately choose to waive their fee.
The reasoning comes down to tax law. Administrator commissions are classified as earned income by the IRS and the state, meaning they are subject to ordinary income tax. Inheritances, conversely, are generally received entirely income-tax-free. If you are the sole beneficiary of your mother’s estate, taking a commission simply converts tax-free inheritance money into taxable income. In such scenarios, it is rarely prudent to claim the fee.
However, when an administrator is managing funds for multiple siblings, distant relatives, or difficult beneficiaries, taking the statutory fee is entirely appropriate. Stewardship over other people’s money is a thankless, high-risk job. The law provides this framework precisely because the work is demanding—you should not be expected to shoulder family liability without fair consideration.
Before petitioning to serve as an administrator, you must clearly understand the scope of the liability you are assuming and the compensation framework that applies to the specific assets involved. If you are preparing to step in for a family member who died intestate, schedule a probate assessment with our office to review the estate’s inventory and calculate the projected administrative costs.
