Do you need a Probate REALTOR®?
When a homeowner dies without a will, it often results in a lengthy legal process called probate.
If you are buying or selling a home in probate there can be a lot of differences from a standard sale.
Why a REALTOR®? Because we are official members of the National Association of REALTORS® who agree to abide by the Code of Ethics & Standards of Practice, ensuring that we serve your best interests.
Why a Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist? Because we have specific training on the probate process. This combined with our real world experience puts us in the best position to help you.
I chose to obtain this certification after my son suddenly became involved in the process. It was clear that I needed more than my 15 years of standard real estate practice to really be of help to him.
When you are the personal representative in the probate process you are acting in the interest of your loved one’s estate. You must follow the state probate laws and any potential directives from the probate court when setting the price and often the time line.
How can we help? Give me a call: Wednesday Duncan 909.559.0618
Lets start with the basics
What does a Probate REALTOR® do and when do you need one?
A Certified Probate REALTOR® guides you through the probate process when you are the executor or personal representative of a loved one in the probate process.
This is critical if you will need to sell real estate, but it can also be very helpful even if you don’t have real estate to sell in the probate process.
Finding the best REALTOR® for your probate property.
You need a REALTOR® who has the specific training to guide you through the process. And just as importantly you need a REALTOR® who knows the housing market specific to the real estate you need to sale.
As a Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist (CPRES) I have been trained by the U.S. Probate Services and in order to obtain my certification I was required to pass a test that measures my ability to handle complex probate property sales procedures. Working with a CPRES REALTOR® is the best way to make sure that you are working with someone who understands the probate system.
I have inherited property, what do I do now?
Proper preparations can definitely simplify the process. That’s why getting the help of both your probate attorney and a Certified Probate REALTOR® puts you in the best position to successfully proceed through the process.
What do I need to know to sell a house in probate?
A lot and there it can very dramatically on the location of the property, your individual circumstances, your loved one’s situation, other family members involved, etc. That is where we come in to help you sort out what is most important and how to proceed.
Will selling as-is for cash speed up the probate process?
Unfortunately, more often than not the answer is, “No.” Simply put, the process can only go as fast as the courts can go. In most cases, the judicial approval process is long enough that the buyer has sufficient time to put together their financing.
That’s why it is so important to focus on your best interests and work with a wide range of buyers. Too often an effort moving faster can cost you money and not actually speed up the process. More often than not, its best to work with all of the potential buyers to get the best result for your and your loved ones.
The probate real estate sale process
For a real estate sale, the probate process can differ depending on whether the probate court granted you rights of independent administration or dependent administration. Here’s a brief look at how each process works:
The independent administration rights probate process
If you, as the executor, have been granted independent administration rights, the probate property sale proceeds in a similar way to a traditional property sale. You have the freedom to set the list price, list the property on your timeline, and accept an offer without interference from the probate court.
However, there still are probate-specific details that your agent needs to stay on top of, including:
Setting up the proper probate contracts
Listing the home as a probate property
Making disclosures specific to probate
If these details aren’t in order at your final probate hearing, the probate court judge likely won’t allow the estate to be closed. As a result, you may need to redo the paperwork and schedule a new hearing, causing the lengthy probate process — which sometimes takes a year or more — to drag on even longer.
The dependent administration rights probate process
If you’ve been granted dependent administration rights, the probate property sale may be lengthier and more complicated. In these cases, the probate court oversees the home sale through an additional hearing called the court confirmation hearing.
Before this hearing, the executor hires a probate real estate agent to list the house at a price that can’t be less than 90% of its fair market value, according to Stimmel Law. Once you receive and accept an offer, it must then be presented to the probate court for confirmation.
California and the overbid process
In many states, the probate judge does not automatically confirm the accepted offer at the confirmation hearing. Instead, the court may entertain higher offers from other buyers attending the hearing. Known as the overbid process in California, this procedure functions much like an auction, with the court accepting the best offer price before it confirms the sale.
Fortunately, many states have taken steps to streamline the probate process and to avoid complicated steps like the court confirmation hearing.
So far, 18 states have adopted the American Bar Association-approved Uniform Probate Code to simplify probate proceedings. Other states have streamlined the probate process on their own, including in California where they’ve enacted the Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA).