U.S. SAVINGS BONDS ARE STILL AROUND; INFORMATION IS AT SAVINGSBONDS.GOV

Although I have been under the impression that their popularity has declined, I still get questions about U. S. savings bonds.  The government stopped issuing paper savings bonds at the end of 2011, but you can still buy them electronically through the U. S. Treasury’s TreasuryDirect program.  
The question I get most frequently is, of course, how to transfer bonds that were issued in the name of a person who is now deceased.  First, I’ll tell you how to avoid this problem: register your bonds with two owners, or one owner with a beneficiary, or with your trust as the owner.  
If the bonds are registered to a deceased individual owner without a co-owner or a beneficiary, they can still be redeemed, but it’s more complicated.  The process depends on whether or not a personal representative has been (or will be) appointed for the estate of the deceased individual owner.  There are instructions on the web site of TreasuryDirect.  Look for FS Publications 0064 and 0065.