Business Hints for Men and Women by Alfred Rochefort Calhoun (important of reading books .TXT) 📕
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When the full amount, with interest, is paid in, it becomes the duty of the mortgagee to have the mortgage “discharged.”
A complete settlement is when, all payments being made, the mortgagee surrenders the note and its security, and causes to be written by the register, on the margin of the copy in his books, the words, “discharged,” or “satisfied,” affixing thereto his official signature and the date.
ASSIGNMENTS
A mortgage is regarded in law as personal property.
A mortgage need not remain in the hands of the mortgagee in order to be valid. It can be sold like bonds, stocks or other property, and there are men who deal only in that form of security.
In order to sell a mortgage, the owner must make, to the purchaser, what is known as an “assignment of mortgage.”
The assignment should be recorded in the same way as the original mortgage, the assignee paying the fee.
REDEMPTION OF MORTGAGES
While the rule as to the redemption of mortgages remains the same in some localities that it formerly was, the law in most places is now more lenient.
Now the mortgagor who has failed is usually given by law an extension of time in which to make good the payment of principal and interest.
Lenders, when the interest is met, are content to let the mortgage run on as an investment, though it will often be found, in such cases, that it is better to make a new mortgage.
EQUITY OF REDEMPTION
Where the payments on a mortgage have not been met and the instrument has not been foreclosed, the mortgagor has still what is known as an “equity of redemption.”
In some states after the foreclosure of the mortgage and the sale of the property there is still a period of redemption of from sixty days to six years.
The mode of foreclosure differs in some states. The usual method is to foreclose on an order from the court, and to have the sale conducted by a court officer.
The proceeds from the sale are used to pay the principal, interests and costs. If there is money left over it is paid to the mortgagor, whose interests in the property are then at an end.
Many people, not familiar with business methods, are inclined to regard a mortgage as something of a disgrace, when, as a matter of fact it is a most usual and honorable means of raising money for the securing of a home or the conducting of a business.
Nearly all of the great railroads of the country have been built by the sale of the mortgage bonds, which are usually renewed when due, and are sought out as a safe and sane form of investment.
The fact that a mortgage payment has to be met on a farm is often in itself the strongest inducement to industry and economy.
Whether farmer, manufacturer, merchant or professional man, and whether in youth, mid-age or declining years, every owner of personal or real property, or both, should make a will.
If you have not made a will, get over the foolish notion that it is a premonition of death, and do so at once.
A will is a written and signed declaration of the disposition one wishes to have made of his property in the event of his death.
The maker of a valid will must be of sound mind and not less than twenty-one years of age.
Women, whether married or single, if of proper age, are competent to make a will.
OF TWO KINDS
A will may be written or unwritten.
Unwritten wills are known as “nun-cupative.” Nun-cupative wills are employed only when through accident, or sudden seizure by a fatal disease, the time necessary to write and sign a will cannot be had.
The unwritten will must be authenticated by reliable and unprejudiced witnesses, and generally it can dispose of personal property only.
In the written will no precise form is necessary, though when drawn by a lawyer it usually begins with some such form as: “I, George Brown, being of sound mind and good understanding, do make and declare this to be my last will and testament”, etc.
A will is not necessarily permanent. It may be cancelled or changed in any way by the maker before his death, or a new will can be made.
The last will cancels all preceding wills.
An addition to an existing will is known as a “codicil.”
A man making a will is called a testator.
A woman making a will is called a testatrix.
LIMITATIONS OF WILLS
A man has a right to dispose of his property by will or gift as he chooses, but if he is married the law compels him to consider the rights of another.
The husband cannot, by will or otherwise, deprive his wife of her “right of dower” in his real estate and appurtenances.
Unless she chooses to accept, the wife need not accept other property that is bequeathed her in lieu of dower.
The wife’s dower interest in her husband’s estate is a life interest only. On her death it goes to the husband’s heirs, as if there had been no widow.
In some states there is no right of dower.
HOW TO MAKE A WILL
The will not only shows the purpose of the testator, but it serves as a bar to litigation among the natural heirs.
Any man or woman can write out his or her will, but unless quite familiar with such work it is better to employ a lawyer for the purpose.
The person named in the will to carry out the purpose of the testator is known as the “executor”.
No person, not twenty-one at the time the will is proved can act as an executor.
Neither a convict, an imbecile, nor one known to be a drug fiend or an habitual drunkard, is eligible for the post of an executor. If an executor be appointed against his will, the law does not compel him to serve.
There must be at least two witnesses to a will, some states require three.
The witnesses need not know the contents of the will, but they must understand before signing that it is a will, and they must see it signed by the testator.
Under the common law the will is void if the witnesses are beneficiaries.
In some states a will so witnessed is valid, except that the witnesses cannot receive their legacies.
All the witnesses should sign at the same time and add their addresses.
If an heir at law, say a child, is not mentioned in the will, the law assumes that he was forgotten by the testator and generally gives the share the heir would be entitled to if there were no will.
At the end of the will the testator, in the presence of the witnesses, should write his name in full.
AN EXECUTOR’S DUTIES
An executor is the legal representative of the testator. It is his duty to see that the provisions of the will are carried out.
No man is qualified to act as executor who is not competent to make a will. Executors, unless relieved by the provisions of the will, are required to file bonds, proportioned to the value of the estate, for the faithful performance of their duties.
Should there be no executor named in the will, or if the person so named refuses to act, or if he dies or resigns, the court will appoint a person to act in his place.
The executor appointed by the court is known or called an “administrator with the will annexed.”
In some states the court having jurisdiction of wills and estates of deceased is known as “the probate,” in others it is called the “Surrogate’s Court,” and in still others, “The Orphan’s.”
ADMINISTRATORS AND THEIR DUTIES
If a man, owning property, dies without making a will, the judge of the proper court will appoint an administrator to settle the estate.
This is the method of procedure:
1. A person, interested in getting the estate settled, goes before the proper judge and asks him to appoint an administrator. 2. The administrator must give the same bond as an executor. Their duties are the same. 3. In settling the estate the administrator is governed by the law, and by the special directions of the officer having jurisdiction in such matters. 4. He must make a careful list of all the property belonging to the estate. The value of the personal property is estimated by men specially appointed by the court for the purpose and known as “appraisers”. 5. The administrator must account for every item of property that comes into his possession. 6. All debts of deceased must be first paid, including funeral expenses. If the proceeds of the personal property are not sufficient for this purpose, the administrator may, if there be real estate, sell the whole or part of it, on an order from the court.
DEBTS
Debts must be paid in an order prescribed by law. The following is the usual order:
1. Funeral expenses and expenses of last illness. 2. The widow’s allowance or award. 3. Debts due the state or municipality. 4. Claims of other creditors.
Whatever property is left, after paying these obligatory sums, is divided among the rightful heirs under the direction of the court, and in the manner provided by law.
The administrator must advertise, in one or more county papers the fact that he has been appointed to settle the estate of the deceased, whose name is given, and he must ask that all claims be presented within a given period, usually fixed at six months.
When the estate is settled to the satisfaction of the court, the same authority releases the administrator and his bondsmen.
All the fees connected with the settlement are regarded as debts and must be paid from the proceeds of the estate before closing.
THE FINAL SETTLEMENT
When the debts are paid and the residue divided among the heirs, the administrator files his account. If it is allowed the case ends.
The parties of interest in an estate may agree to settle it out of court. This saves expense, but it is not the safest way.
What has been said about deeds and mortgages applies not only to the farmer, but also to every owner of a building lot. The same may be said of wills. They have a business interest for the town as well as for the country dweller.
BUSINESS LETTERS
The purpose of this book being “strictly business,” no attempt will be made to instruct the reader in anything not connected with the subject under consideration.
Social, friendly, and such letters are matters for individual time and taste, and no rule can be laid down for their writing, but the business letter is a different matter, and one which deserves special consideration from every man or woman who receives an order by mail, or who sends one.
To write a good business letter is no mean accomplishment, and although a gift with some, it can be acquired by all.
A letter is, in a way, a testimonial of the character and ability of the writer.
The purpose of a business letter is to express just what you want and no more.
Any man with a good common school education, and a little patient practice, can soon learn to write as good a business letter as the college graduate.
Correct spelling may not be general, but it is certainly desirable.
Letter writing, as in the preparation of other papers, has its own well-recognized forms, and these may be easily learned.
Every properly constructed business letter should consist of the following parts:
1. Where written from. 2. When written. 3. To whom written. 4. Address. 5.
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