Selling a house in probate.

First: does this even need probate?

Plenty of families start a probate they did not need. Before anything else, check three things.

Was the house in a trust? If so, there is no probate. The successor trustee can sell directly. That process is on its own page.

Is there a surviving joint owner or a transfer-on-death deed? Joint tenancy property and property with a recorded beneficiary deed pass outside probate.

Was it their primary residence, worth $750,000 or less? For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, California allows a streamlined court petition — the Petition to Determine Succession to Real Property, form DE-310 — instead of full probate. You file no earlier than 40 days after the death, and a probate referee appraises the property. It covers a primary residence only. A rental or a second home does not qualify.

One common trap: the small estate affidavit, the one people hear about with the $208,850 limit for deaths on or after April 1, 2025, applies to personal property only. It cannot transfer a house, no matter how small the estate.

Who can actually sign

Not the family. Not the person named in the will. Until the court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, nobody has authority to sign a listing agreement or a deed. That is the first real milestone, and it is usually a couple of months in.

What the Letters say next determines everything about how the sale runs:

• Full authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act — the representative can accept an offer and close after serving a Notice of Proposed Action on the heirs and waiting out the objection window. No hearing needed if nobody objects.
• Limited authority — the sale must be confirmed by the court. A hearing is set, and at that hearing anyone can overbid the accepted offer. Your buyer can lose the house in the courtroom.

That distinction is why the first question we ask on a probate call is not about the house. It is whether the representative has full or limited authority, because it changes the timeline, the certainty, and what a buyer should be willing to pay.

Where the time actually goes

Twelve to eighteen months is normal for a straightforward California probate. People assume the delay is the house. It usually is not.

The piece nobody can compress is the creditor claim period: four months from the day Letters are issued, fixed by statute. Filing to first hearing is commonly a couple of months depending on the court's calendar. The sale itself can run in parallel with all of it.

So the house is rarely the bottleneck — but it is the thing costing money the entire time. Property taxes, insurance on a vacant home, utilities, yard maintenance, and the risk of a break-in all run against the estate until it sells.

What we do differently

We buy probate property as-is, with everything still in it. Nobody has to fly in to empty a garage. We close on the estate's timeline, which in probate means we can also wait — if the hearing is eight weeks out, that is fine.

And because we hold a general contractor's license, the repair number in our offer is a bid rather than a guess made to protect a margin. If the estate would genuinely net more by putting money into the house and listing it on the open market, we will show you that comparison and tell you so, even though it is the worse outcome for us.

Common questions

Can you sell a house while it is still in probate in California?

Yes. In most California probate cases the house is sold during administration, not after it closes. The personal representative needs Letters from the court first. With full authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act, the sale can usually close after a Notice of Proposed Action to the heirs. With limited authority, the sale goes to court confirmation, where the price can be overbid in the courtroom.

How long does probate take in Santa Clara County?

A straightforward California probate typically runs about 12 to 18 months. Part of that is fixed by statute: the creditor claim period runs four months from the date Letters are issued and cannot be shortened. The house can usually be marketed and sold well before the case closes.

Do I need probate at all if the house was my parent's home?

Not always. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, a primary residence valued at $750,000 or less may transfer through a Petition to Determine Succession to Real Property using Judicial Council form DE-310, filed at least 40 days after the death. It applies only to a primary residence, not to rentals or commercial property, and a probate referee appraises the value.

What is the small estate affidavit limit in California?

For deaths on or after April 1, 2025 the limit is $208,850. Deaths between April 1, 2022 and March 31, 2025 use $184,500. Importantly, that affidavit covers personal property only — bank accounts, vehicles, belongings. It cannot transfer real estate.

The heirs live in different states and do not agree. Can the house still sell?

Usually yes. The personal representative appointed by the court has authority to sell, subject to the notice or confirmation rules that apply to the case. Disagreement among heirs makes the process slower and is a reason to have the attorney involved early, but it does not automatically stop a sale.

Does the house need to be cleaned out or repaired before selling?

No. We buy probate property as-is, including everything left inside. If the estate would net more by fixing the house first, we will show you that math too.