Once you have recovered from the distress of losing a rich relative, inheriting a relatively large sum of money presents you with a series of dilemmas.
Should you spend it, and how? Should you spend some and invest the rest? Should you invest all of it? Should your investment be locked away for your old age, or accessible in case of emergencies? And so on.
Over the next few weeks we shall look at some of the options.
But, before you even get the money in your hands, you ought to be aware of an option very rarely explained to you that it is not always necessary to call in the experts to administer the estate.
You may be able to do it yourself, even if your are an heir, and it will save you the fee of 3,5 percent (plus VAT) maximum of the value of the estate which an executor can charge.
Be quite firm about this.
Banks for example do not charge to draw up a will but they usually press to be named as executors. It's a lucrative business generating up to R4 000 for every R100 000 of assets in a will, for a varying degree of effort.
Obviously, having a reputable executor is important.
It is not unknown for a shady executor to pocket some of the proceeds of the will, because it is a position of enormous trust.
But, you can name anyone you like when you are drawing up your will, and the person taking up the appointment as executor could employ an agent to undertake the work on his or her behalf.
But, if the person appointed is for any reason unable or unwilling to act as executor, the Master of the Supreme Court would have to be approached for the appointment of an "executor dative".
The Master has to be satisfied that you are competent to execute, which would usually be no problem if you are an accountant or lawyer, or even if you are business person.
You need to have some commercial background because winding up an estate demands administrative common sense and efficiency.
Sometimes the Master will only appoint you an executor if you have a professional person to assist you but you would obviously have to pay the professional unless he or she were a family member or friend doing a favour.
According to Trevor Beeton, managing director of Standard Trust, the Master does not appoint an executor in estates of less than R50 000, because they are a relatively simple matter.
If you are looking at a bigger estate, Beeton says your decision whether to be an executor should be based on the complexity of the situation.
Some people die with their affairs in good order. So if the money is easy to collect, there are few debts to settle and no disputes seem likely, you should not be afraid to do it yourself.
However, if there is property to sell or a business undertaking to dispose of, it might be better to use professionals.
Administering an estate is not a mystery. Beeton says the first thing to do is advertise in the press and the Government Gazette calling for creditors to lodge their claims.
Once you have paid all debts, you draw up an executor's account and lodge it with the Master of the Supreme Court and you advertise it to enable any objections to be lodged within a specified period.
After four weeks have expired, if no-one has objected, you can pay out the heirs. The average estate takes about six months to finalise.
If you are not experienced with estates, you can always ask the Master's office for advice on the various steps to take, and they will write to tell you what's needed or what you are doing wrong.
Beeton says there can be a dispute if it is not made clear that someone has been appointed an executor and left money in the will as a consideration for being the executor, in lieu of a fee.
That leads to a final point of caution about acting as an executor within your own circle of friends or family.
Where there is a will, there is a relative.
Distant kinsmen you have not seen for decades will probably appear with claims and even close family members will exhibit hitherto unsuspected greed.
Do not expect anyone to be grateful because you are saving them some money they will still complain you got the silver teaspoons they were promised in 1962.