Things You Need To Know To Sell A House In Probate

Hello World!  Welcome Friends!  Probate is a legal process that allows beneficiaries to legally acquire property allocated to them in a will, as well as pay off dates of the state. If there is no will, then the probate process will use a law known as “state intestacy” to assign ownership to the deceased’s close relative.

In most states including Florida, the only option of gaining ownership of a home is through a probate process. Although there are many states that use the “uniform probate code”, a few have different probate laws.

For example, if you want to dispose of a house in Florida that’s in probate and there’s no requirement for you to sell it within probate court, then you will have to complete the whole probate process prior to listing the house.

Steps of selling a house in probate

1. Find a probate attorney

The first step in the probate process is finding a Probate Attorney in Palm Coast Florida who will represent you during the probate process. Your probate attorney will help you in understanding a lot of things about the probate process and how it works. As such, it is important to ensure you hire a competent attorney.

Among the things your attorney will assist you with include: filing court documents, solving income tax issues, collecting any money acquired from life insurance and many others. The attorney will also serve as your chief advisor during the entire process.

2. File a petition to start the probate process

The next step is filing a petition in a local court to kick start the process. It is important to understand that the court office must be close to where the deceased lived. Besides that, you will also be required to alert all heirs listed in the will about the petition you have filed to trigger the probate process. Ensure that you give them the court dates so that they can raise any issues regarding the property during the hearing.

3. Take stock of the estate

You will need to go through the house and take inventory of it. This involves collecting al vital documents such as:

• State planning documents (will, power of attorney, advance medical directive, funeral arrangements, living will)
• Debt
• Assets (bonds, stocks, cars, deeds, life insurance, etc.)

4. Notify creditors and pay claims

After taking the inventory of the estate, ensure that you notify people whom the deceased owed money (if any). This is referred to as “notifying known creditors”. You will use money from the estate to pay verified creditors.

5. Manage income tax returns

You will also be required to file income tax returns for the deceased. This means paying any inheritance tax owed to the federal government.

6. The legal transfer of assets to the beneficiary

After you have paid all the bills and creditors, the court will then transfer all assets to the rightful beneficiaries through a petition.

How long does the probate process take?

The length of the probate process is often determined by the estate as well as the will you will have to prove. For example, if there is a will, then the probate process can be shorter and easy.

Click the links below for any posts you have missed:

Summer Lawn Care

DIY Projects that Help your Home Value Increase

Paving Project Details

Resurfacing a Swimming Pool

Make it Pretty Monday

Can Dogs Eat Fruit?

 

I’d love for you to join my email list!  You’ll receive a notification straight to your inbox once a week on Monday which will include links to party posts and my home project posts!  Simply enter your address below.

 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a wonderful day/night depending on where you are in the world!  Go with God and remember to be kind to one another!   

Toodles,