Can I SELL an inherited house in GEORGIA?
I am Brad from georgiaprobateresource.com and arborviewhomebuyers.com.
We are a real estate solutions company located in Metro Atlanta. Our expertise lies in buying houses throughout Georgia, particularly in the field of probate and inheritance properties.
I have compiled a decision tree to simplify the process of selling a house that you’ve inherited. This is based on my years of experience in the industry and the numerous properties that we’ve purchased. These questions have been formulated to help you navigate the hurdles that we have faced along the way.
Who owns the property?
If you have inherited a property and plan to sell it, the first thing you need to consider is who owns the property. It’s important to determine whose name is on the property’s deed, not just who has been paying the taxes. You should also check if there have been any other title transfers to ensure that you are the rightful owner of the property.
If the deceased person is still the rightful owner of the property, and their name is the only one on the title, then things can get complicated. However, for now, let’s skip that and move on to the next step.
Are you the surviving spouse of the deceased? Or perhaps you’re the surviving child of the deceased and both of you were on the title together. The crucial question here is whether you were joint tenants with survivorship or tenants in common.
Usually, if you were tenants in common, it may not be explicitly stated on the deed. However, if you were joint tenants with survivorship, it would be explicitly mentioned on the deed.
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Joint Tenants with Survivorship or Tenants in Common
If the deed does not explicitly state “joint tenants with survivorship,” then you are considered tenants in common. In this case, you share ownership of the property with others.
However, joint tenants with survivorship means that if one owner passes away, the surviving owner automatically becomes the 100% owner of the property. Please note that I am not a legal expert, and my explanation is based on my personal experience. If you require legal advice, I recommend consulting a qualified attorney. If you need help finding one, I can provide referrals.
Tenants In Common
If you are unsure about the type of ownership you have with someone else on a property, look for the phrase “joint tenants with survivorship” on the deed. If you cannot find this phrase, then it is likely that you and the other person own the property as tenants in common. This means that you both own 50% of the property. If the other person passes away, their estate still owns 50% of the property, and you continue to own the other 50%.
If you are in charge of the estate, you will need to sign the deed twice when you sell the property: once on behalf of the estate, and once on behalf of yourself as the other owner.
If you jointly own a property as tenants in common, you will likely need to go through the probate process to sell the property.
Joint Tenants with Survivorship
However, if you own the property as joint tenants with survivorship and you are the surviving owner, then you generally won’t need to go through probate to sell the property.
However, if there are other assets in the estate, you may still have to go through probate to sell those assets. In this case, we are only talking about one property or multiple properties that are being sold. Therefore, if you own the property as joint tenants with survivorship, you can sell it without going through probate.
If you own the property as tenants in common, we will discuss what steps you need to take in a moment.
Quitclaim Deed
If the property is already under your name, it’s important to consider how you obtained ownership.
In case you are the surviving spouse, you can ignore this.
However, if you acquired the property through a QUITCLAIM DEED, it’s crucial to know who created it for you.
Was it a probate attorney or a real estate attorney?
If it was, it’s more likely that the deed is valid and will be reviewed during the title review process when you decide to sell the property. Nonetheless, if you did it on your own, there are higher chances that it wasn’t done correctly, and the quitclaim deed is not valid. Even if you spent some money on it and recorded it with a court, you may have to redo it all.
If you already have the title to a property and you obtain it again through a quitclaim deed from a probate or real estate attorney, then your ownership of the title is most likely valid. However, obtaining ownership through a quitclaim deed is not the most suitable method, as there are better options available.
If you obtain the ownership through an estate deed or administrator’s deed, it is generally considered valid as it would have been prepared by an attorney. Once you own the property, you can sell it, but it is always advisable to consult an attorney before doing so. When you sell the property, it will go through a title review process, and the title company will scrutinize the ownership documents.
Going Through Probate
Let’s step back to the “complicated part”
The Next Question to ask is, “when did the deceased pass away?”
If the deceased has passed away just in the last month, two months, maybe a year, a couple of years, within the last, generally speaking, three years, then you’re more than likely going to have to probate the estate. 9.9 times out of 10, you’re going to have to probate the estate.
If it’s been more than three years, (I’ve talked about this in another video) there are some exceptions to the probate process, but they’re very, very limited and they don’t apply to everyone in every situation, so don’t get your hopes up here. If you want to know, you need to consult an attorney about that. If you need to consult our real estate attorney that we use, they can ask you some questions and get the facts from you and understand whether there might be a way to actually not have to go through probate. It’s worth a shot…It’s a little bit more complicated, but it saves time. But again, it’s only in limited circumstances, so please don’t take this as gospel, because it doesn’t happen that often. More than likely you’re going to have to probate the estate.
If you need to probate the estate, the first question is whether there exists a will or not. If a will exists, the next query is its validity.
Typically, a probate attorney can examine the will for you and ascertain its validity. If deemed valid, the process involves probating the will in solemn form, as it’s termed. This necessitates filing a petition for probate to proceed through the probate process. Essentially, the probate attorney reviews the petition, the will, and other submitted documents to confirm the will’s validity, allowing you to move forward. Subsequently, they grant you letters testamentary as the executor.
Letters Testamentary
If you’re the executor of the will, they’re going to give you letters testamentary. Generally speaking, those letters testamentary are going to have a line item or a clause in there that’s going to grant you, the executor, the authority to sell the real estate on behalf of the estate. If you’ve got those letters testamentary, you can sign the closing documents, you’re good to go.
Now, there’s one more step here. I’ll go over that in a minute.
Administration of the Estate
If there is no will or if the will is considered invalid by the courts, then you will need to administer the estate. This means that you will have to identify who you want to be the administrator of the estate. It could be someone you trust or it could be you if you’re watching this video.
If you decide to be the administrator, then you will need to file a petition for administration.
During the petition process, you will be asked to provide some documents. In the petition, you will have to name all the heirs, specify the assets, and other important details. Additionally, you will have to identify the administrator, and you might need to obtain a bond. You will have to contact a company to get the bond, which will cost you some money. Once you obtain the bond, you can get sworn in as the administrator.
As the administrator, you will need to go through the probate process to sell any real estate or assets on behalf of the estate. You will receive letters of administration from the probate court, which should include a line item granting you the authority to sell the property. Once you have these letters, you can sign the closing documents and proceed with the sale. However, before that, you must open a bank account for the estate as the attorney handling the transfer of the title and sale proceeds cannot write a check in your name. The money must go to the estate’s bank account. If you have any questions about the probate process or opening an estate bank account, consult an attorney.
EIN To Open An Estate Account
To open an estate bank account, you will need to obtain an EIN (Employer Identification Number) from the IRS. It’s an easy process that you can do yourself by visiting irs.gov and clicking on “Obtain EIN”. Select “estate” as the type of entity and answer the questions that follow. The EIN will serve as the taxpayer identification number for the estate in the eyes of the IRS, as you’ll need to file a tax return for the estate. If you prefer, you can also have an attorney or a CPA obtain the EIN for you. However, it’s not a complicated process and you should be able to do it yourself if you’re reasonably intelligent. I have a video that explains the process in detail if you need further guidance.
Once you have obtained your EIN (Employer Identification Number), you can proceed to open a bank account for the estate. You can go to any bank, but it is advisable to call ahead and ask if they offer estate accounts. Most banks do, but some may require you to present a probate letter or a copy of the petition indicating that you are the administrator. It is essential to have your EIN to open a bank account in the name of the estate.
Bottomline
Once you have set up your estate account and obtained your letters testamentary or letters of administration, you become eligible to sell your real estate. The attorney handling the real estate closing will review your documents and ask for them as necessary. They will ultimately determine whether the sale can proceed. However, if you have the necessary documents and the estate account, the sale will usually go through. The closing attorney or title company will need to transfer the money to your estate account, after which you can distribute the funds. It is important to ensure that you follow all legal requirements while distributing the funds.
Once the real estate transaction is complete, there are still a few more steps to be taken through the probate process. If you have a probate attorney, they will be able to guide you on what needs to be done. However, if you do not have one, there are still some additional steps that need to be taken. Unfortunately, I cannot provide more information on those steps in this video. We have some other videos with attorneys who can explain all of those steps in detail.
Let’s Connect
I’m Brad from georgiaprobateresource.com and arborviewhomebuyers.com. We are a real estate solutions company located in Metro Atlanta. As investors, we buy houses for cash, regardless of their condition or the amount of junk inside them. We offer a quick and easy cash offer, and usually, we can close the deal within a couple of weeks if you have letters testamentary or letters of administration. If you prefer the traditional route of listing the property with a real estate agent, I am a licensed real estate agent in Georgia with OneSource Realty in Woodstock. I would be more than happy to help you list your property and get it out on the market.
Disclaimer: I’m not an attorney. Do not take what I say as legal advice. If you need a referral to a great attorney, I can do that. I’m just speaking from experience here. I’ve done this, I’ve done hundreds of deals, and have been doing them for years.