CHAPTER 5 How Selling A House In An Estate Differs From Regular Home Sales A house is sold in probate court when someone dies intestate (i.e., without a will) or without bequeathing their property. When that happens, the state administers the property’s sale according to state law. The court wants the property marketed and sold at the best possible price and requires certain steps, processes, and procedures be followed. Probate laws vary by state, but a good real estate agent should be knowledgeable about probate sales both in general and in the specific state where the sale will take place. A probate sale is the process executed at a county court in the USA where the executor for the estate of a deceased person sells property from the estate (typically real estate) to divide the property’s value among the beneficiaries of the deceased. A personal representative of the estate will determine if the real estate is going to be sold at all, though, and is not required to use the services of a real estate broker. Determination of the value of real estate and other functions may need to be performed by a probate referee. Even absent a will in effect at their time of death, if there is a valid living trust the lengthy and costly process of probate can be bypassed, avoiding fees that include attorney, court, and arbitrator costs. In total, these fees can cost a solid 6% of the overall estate value, whether that value is represented by boats, cars, bank savings, retirement funds, securities, personal items, or the real estate itself. However, you can proceed with the actual probate by yourself if you choose to, although it is a complex process perhaps best left to 30
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