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BROKER CORNER

The Basics of Selling Real Estate After a Property Owner’s Death

10/21/2021

17 Comments

 
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​We are often faced with selling property after an owner has died. Every situation
is different, but here are a few basics you should know. The following are
examples from the quickest and easiest sale of real estate after a death of an
owner to the more time consuming and difficult.
Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship
Property owned in joint tenancy with the right of survivorship automatically
passes to the surviving owners when one owner dies. No probate is necessary.
Joint tenancy can be used when couples (married or not) acquire real estate,
vehicles, bank accounts or other valuable property together.
Property Held in A Living Trust
A Living Trust is basically an alternative to a will for the property held in the Living
Trust. A decedent creates a Living Trust before death, just like a will. Title to
property is transferred to and held in the Living Trust and beneficiaries are
named. The creator of the trust is the initial Trustee and has the power to sell it
as the Trustee while alive. In the Living Trust document, a successor Trustee
would be named and the beneficiaries of the living trust are named. Except for
the Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship, this is the easiest way to transfer
property after death without the property going through probate court. No
probate, no court and no judges are involved. The property can be promptly
transferred to the beneficiaries. The Living Trust is becoming very popular, for
good reasons.
If Tom Thompson is the owner of property held in a Living Trust and he wants to
transfer it during his lifetime, he would execute a Purchase and Sale Agreement
as Tom Thompson, Trustee of the Living Trust of Tom Thompson. If there are 2
or more trustees in the living trust, both or all must execute any sale. The closing
attorney will request the living trust document and examine it prior to closing to
be certain the document includes proper authority to sell.

Property of a Decedent That Died With a Will
An estate with real property that is NOT a part of a joint tenancy or in a Living
Trust will have to be administered by the probate court or “go through probate.”
If the will names an Executor with expanded powers, including the power to

transfer real estate, then the Probate Court is petitioned by the Executor or
Executor’s attorney for a “Letter Testamentary.” When the “Letter Testamentary”
is granted, the Executor can legally sell the property as the representator of the
Estate.
If an Executor is not named or the Executor was not granted the expanded power
to sell property in the estate, then the Executor has to petition the court for leave
to sell and the court then has to grant permission to sell. However, it can get
complicated. Before granting permission to sell, the court must notify all heirs or
beneficiaries and ask for any objections to the court granting an ability to sell to
the Executor. If there are objections, a hearing may be required. The Executor
cannot sell the property until the process has concluded. Obviously, the process
of obtaining court permission to sell in a limited power situation is time
consuming and expensive.
Property of a Decedent that died Without a Will
The proper reference for a situation of death without a will is that the party died
intestate. Georgia law controls the distribution to beneficiaries of an intestate
estate. The representative for the estate is called an Administrator. The probate
court names the Administrator, who performs the same functions as an Executor.
How long does all of this take?
Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship and Property Held in A Living Trust are
the quickest and easiest ways to transfer real estate. Assuming no
complications, property can be sold almost immediately with Joint Tenancy and
Living Trusts. Other property that goes through probate can take months to
years. If a seller comes to you with Letters Testamentary or Administrative
Letters already in their possession, you can list and sell right away. Otherwise,
count on a delay.
Note: Probate cannot be avoided entirely. Even if all of the property, including
real property, cash, stock and insurance policies, in an estate can pass directly to
the joint partner and beneficiaries, the probate court still requires that a will be
validated. The probate court must also approve any requests to avoid probate.

Moral of this article: Before you list and sell real property after an owner’s death,
be certain that the Executor or Administrator has the proper authority to sell in
the form of Letters Testamentary or Administration. If in doubt, contact one of
the Broker Team or your closing attorney!
17 Comments
Hailey Miller link
3/1/2022 04:19:37 am

It got me when you said that title to property is transferred when a decedent creates a Living Trust before death. This is informative because my siblings and I need to sell the bungalow house near the lake that we inherited from our grandparents. With this, we are hoping to find a probate real estate brokerage on Thursday that can help us market and sell the property.

Reply
Milwaukee Surveyors Group link
5/3/2022 08:45:05 am

Thanks for explaining the basic of selling real estate property. This has been really helpful!

Reply
Charlotte Surveyor Group link
5/11/2022 05:01:47 am

Right. If a seller presents you with Testamentary or Administrative Letters,
You can list and sell letters that are already in their possession. Otherwise, expect a delay.

Reply
Mia Evans link
6/1/2022 07:38:18 am

It's interesting to know that the law will be making the decision regarding distributing the estate to the beneficiaries. My mom should work with deceased estate professionals for the property of my grandmother. It was not put into a will as well that is why there would probably be a lot of things to work on to get the ownership of the house.

Reply
Orange County Family Law Lawyer link
6/4/2022 12:47:22 pm

The property can be promptly transferred to the beneficiaries. I’m so thankful for your helpful post!

Reply
Orange County Divorce Lawyer link
6/4/2022 03:05:36 pm

The Executor cannot sell the property until the process has concluded. I truly appreciate your great post!

Reply
Investment Home Loan link
7/26/2022 02:27:15 am

Nice post so far. Thanks for sharing your amazing blog.

Reply
Mortgage Broker in RoseVille link
7/26/2022 03:07:13 am

This is amazing. Great article so far.

Reply
Braden Bills link
11/8/2022 10:07:45 am

My dad passed away, and we're not sure how to manage his property. It makes sense that handling the estate correctly would be important. It might be best to work with an estate specialist to ensure that we handle things correctly.

Reply
Broker For A Mortgage link
12/9/2022 12:17:14 am

I appreciate your post. Your piece about the basics of selling real estate after a property owner’s death was interesting to read. This content will be bookmarked for sure.

Reply
Hudson Maverick link
12/31/2022 10:57:55 am

Nice Post! you did a great job with this one. I am a regular reader on this blog but this one is the best i’ve seen so far.
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Reply
Brian Petruzzelli link
1/16/2023 04:02:44 pm

It’s unfortunate that these things happen, but it’s important to always be prepared and know the basics when it comes to selling a property after an owner’s death.

Reply
Millie Hue link
4/14/2023 11:05:20 am

Thanks for pointing out that living trusts can also work as a will for the owner and the beneficiary wherein it can be transferred already. I wonder if this can be done regarding the property of my grandmother, so my mother can get it under her name. The purpose of this is to sell the house so that they can have extra money to fund her treatments. So I hope that we can talk to experts and estate sales services soon to know what options my mom has regarding this dilemma of ours.

Reply
Robert Redstone link
7/20/2023 04:26:01 pm

My wife was JTWROS of her parents' house along with her mother and father. She sold the house one month after her last parent died. Is any of the capital gain excludable by her? She never lived in that house, though her parents lived in it for 12 consecutive years.

Reply
sutherland shire conveyancers link
9/23/2023 11:57:16 am

When one of the joint tenants who jointly owns the property passes away, the remaining joint tenants will instantly become the new owners of the property. The estate won't need to go through probate because the survivors would own it all equally. In that instance, all you need to show that one of the owners passed away is a death certificate. The death certificate will be filed with the county clerk and recorder in order to provide proof that ownership has been transferred to the surviving family members. At that point, selling the property is essentially another transaction from the survivors to the new buyer.

Reply
service drywall atlanta link
10/6/2023 06:11:36 pm

Before distributing the remaining funds to the heirs or beneficiaries, any expenses related to the property, such as outstanding debts or estate taxes, are paid from the sale proceeds.

Reply
K.Christian
5/30/2024 09:27:20 am

So my question is if you have a joint tenancy with right of survivorship how would you get that transferred?
My grandparents passed and my mother didn't pay the mortgage, I applied to be successor of interest, The home sold on the local courthouse steps to highest bidder before I got any info of becoming successor. (Yes taxes had been paid)
What authority makes sure these homes get to the rightful owner after a death??

Reply



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