PROBATE SALE
In California when a person dies with property not held in a living trust, state law requires the estate to go through the probate process. In short the probate process is a court administered clearing of assets/debts held in the estate, which usually takes about a year to complete. Selling a property through California probate is a lot more involved than a regular sale. The court sets forth a strict set of steps that must be followed in order for the court to approve a probate sale.
A California probate sale requires the assistance of agent who is well versed in the probate process to successfully sell the property. At Flow Properties we are California Association of Realtors certified Probate & Trust Sale Experts with almost two decades of experience helping people successfully sell properties in probate.
Our team specializes in:
Selling a Property in a Probate
Coordinating with the Probate Attorney
Coordinating an Estate Sale of the Personal Items
Junk Removal & Clean Out
Pre-Listing Cleaning and Preparation
Relocation of Personal Items
If you’d like to schedule a time for a free probate consultation, feel free to complete the form below or call Adam at (626)995-0869 ext 101.
Frequently asked California Probate Sale questions
Why do I need probate?
This is a very common question and if you are reading this you’re probably wondering why the California State court needs to get involved in your parent’s/loved one’s estate. While there are many reasons why heirs can end up in a probate court, a simple answer is that your parent’s/loved one’s assets were not held in a living trust. The “vesting” (way in which one hold’s title to property), determines whether or not the distribution of assets of a deceased parent/loved one requires probate or not.
What is “vesting” and why is that important?
“Vesting” is the way in which a person hold’s title to their property. For example: Many married people in California hold title to their property as joint tenants. They grow older, pay off their home and continue to hold title as joint tenants. One spouse passes on, then the other follows. The adult children now realize in order to sell their parents house they must do so through California Probate. Because the married couple never bothered to form a living trust and transfer the property into it, California State Law requires the property (and estate) to go through the probate process.
Common ways in which people hold property in California (“vesting”) is:
Sole Owner
Tenants in Common
Joint Tenancy
Community Property
Community Property with Right of Survivorship
Living Trust
Many homeowners are unaware of the advantage of forming a living trust to transfer their assets into. They continue to hold title as joint tenants into their later years in life. When the first spouse passes on the surviving spouse becomes sole owner through joint tenancy’s built in right of survivorship. When the surviving spouse passes on the children then realize there is no built in right of survivorship for the children to inherit the property as surviving owners. This requires the California State Probate Court to get involved. The only exception to probate is if the property held in joint tenancy is worth less that $166,250 at the time of death.
The adult children realize they need to contact a probate attorney to initiate the probate process. As you can see a probate sale is much more complicated than a regular home sale. This is why it is essential to work with a real estate agent well versed in California Probate. As they have extensive experience working with California Probate Attorneys and the California Probate Court.
How do I find out how a property is “vested”?
A title company can help to research the chain of title to see how a property is “vested”. If you need assistance, we can help you with this as well. Contact us to get the process started.
How do I start the probate process in California?
Once you’ve determined the property is not held in a living trust, the next step is to contact a probate attorney and a probate real estate agent. It’s important that you contact an attorney and a real estate agent that has extensive experience with California probate, as this is a highly specialized area of Law / Real Estate. At Flow Properties we are California Association of Realtor certified Probate and Trust Sale Experts with nearly two decades of probate experience. Contact us to learn more about how we can help you. We are located in Pasadena, California - however we service Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Bernardino County, and Riverside County. If you are located outside of these areas we can find a local Probate real estate expert to help you as well.
What is the average timeline for a California Probate?
Although every situation is different, on average a probate in California takes about a year to complete. It’s important to hire an experienced California Probate Attorney and California Probate Real Estate Agent, as an inexperienced attorney and real estate agent can make the process much longer and much more stressful for all involved. One of the heirs will be appointed as a Personal Representative in charge of overseeing the probate, and there may be a disagreement amongst the heirs on who this should be. If the heirs begin fighting the probate process can take much longer than a year. An experienced California Probate Attorney and California Probate Real Estate Agent are well versed in helping to resolve disagreements, which ultimately keeps the probate on track toward resolution.
If you would like more information on how to proceed with California Probate Sale, please complete the form above.
For immediate assistance call Adam at (626)995-0869 ext. 101.
