Most people who inherit a house in the Sacramento area ask the same questions in the same order: can I sell this, how long will it take, what will it cost, and what about my family. This page answers twenty of them, each with a link to the full article. It covers ten counties around Sacramento.
Two terms recur below. A personal representative is whoever the court appoints to run the estate, called an executor when a will names them. Letters are the court document proving that appointment.
Key Facts
- Nobody can act for the estate until letters issue (Probate Code 8400).
- Formal probate typically takes 9 to 18 months, sometimes longer (California Courts guide to formal probate).
- The inventory and appraisal is due four months after letters first issue (Probate Code 8800).
- A court-confirmed private sale needs at least 90% of an appraisal less than a year old (Probate Code 10309).
- Sacramento County probate is heard at 3341 Power Inn Road, in Departments 126 and 129 (Sacramento Superior Court department assignment).
Can you sell, and when?
Can you sell a house while it is still in probate?
Yes, once the court appoints a personal representative and issues letters. Before letters, a named executor can only pay funeral costs and protect the property. Full authority then means no confirmation hearing, and limited authority means court supervision. Full article: selling a house during probate in Sacramento.
Do you always have to go through probate to sell an inherited house?
No. A home in a living trust, in joint tenancy, or passing under a recorded transfer on death deed usually avoids full probate, and California has small-estate shortcuts. Ask a probate attorney which path fits. Full article: when probate is required to sell.
What is the $750,000 primary residence petition?
A small-estate petition created by AB 2016. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, successors can ask the court to order that the decedent’s California primary residence passes to them when its gross value is $750,000 or less. Full article: the $750,000 primary residence petition.
What is the difference between full IAEA authority and court confirmation?
Full authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act lets you sell without published notice, a confirmation hearing or the 90% minimum. The trade is the Notice of Proposed Action, and one objection sends the sale to court. Full article: full IAEA authority versus court confirmation.
How do court confirmation and overbids actually work?
You accept an offer, publish a notice of sale, and report the sale to the court. At the hearing another buyer can overbid by 10% of the first $10,000 plus 5% of the rest, so a $500,000 offer becomes $525,500. Full article: court confirmation and overbids.
Can a trustee sell a house without going to court?
Usually yes. The successor trustee, meaning whoever takes over the trust after the death, has statutory power to sell trust property at private or public sale. Trust administration is meant to run free of judicial intervention, but the trustee must still notify beneficiaries and heirs within 60 days. Full article: selling a house held in a trust.
Money and taxes
Do you pay capital gains tax when you sell an inherited house?
Often far less than people fear. The basis resets to fair market value at the date of death, so gain is measured from that value. Any gain is long term, and California taxes it as ordinary income. Full article: capital gains on an inherited house.
How does stepped-up basis work on an inherited home?
The basis becomes the home’s fair market value on the date of death, or the alternate valuation date if the estate elects it. Community property can get a new basis on both halves. Keep the referee’s appraisal. Full article: stepped-up basis on an inherited home.
Will property taxes go up on an inherited house under Prop 19?
Usually yes, unless a child moves in. Proposition 19 covers parent to child transfers since February 16, 2021. The parent’s base value carries over only if a child makes the home their principal residence within one year and claims the exemption. The exclusion is also capped at the factored base year value plus $1,044,586 through February 15, 2027. Full article: Prop 19 and inherited property taxes.
How much are executor and attorney fees in a California probate?
Both follow the same statutory scale: 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000, 2% of the next $800,000, then smaller tiers. The base is gross value, so a mortgage does not reduce it. A $600,000 estate means $15,000 each. Full article: executor and attorney fees.
Who pays the mortgage on an inherited house during probate?
The loan does not go away, and the estate normally keeps paying from estate funds. A lender generally cannot call the loan due because the house passed to a relative when the borrower died. Full article: the mortgage during probate.
Who decides what the house was worth on the date of death?
A probate referee appointed by the State Controller, at least one per county, appraises the house at its date-of-death value. The fee is one-tenth of 1% of the value appraised, at least $75 and usually no more than $10,000. Full article: probate appraisals in Sacramento County.
Deciding what to do with the house
Should you keep, rent or sell the inherited house?
The math turns on monthly holding costs, what the house would really net as a rental, and whether every heir agrees. Selling near the date of death often means little taxable gain. Full article: keep, rent or sell.
Should you fix up an inherited house or sell it as-is?
It depends on which repairs buyers pay for and whether the estate has cash, which many estates do not. Paint, flooring and landscaping usually return more than major systems work. As-is sells well with clear disclosures and a realistic price. Full article: fixing up or selling as-is.
Is a cash buyer better than listing a probate house?
A cash buyer sells speed and certainty, and you pay for both in price. A listing usually draws more offers, and in a court-confirmed sale the 90% floor and the overbid process work against an underpriced quick deal. Full article: cash buyer or listing.
What should you do with a vacant inherited house?
Call the insurance carrier first. California’s standard fire policy suspends coverage for loss occurring while a building is vacant or unoccupied beyond 60 consecutive days. Then secure the house, keep the utilities on and stop the mail. Full article: a vacant inherited house.
How do you clean out a parent’s house before selling?
Slowly enough to be humane, quickly enough to stop the holding costs. Find the paperwork first, since deeds, policies, titles and tax records cannot be replaced. Then work room by room and let a sale or donation service handle volume. Full article: cleaning out a parent’s house.
Family, authority and timing
What if siblings disagree about selling the inherited house?
Most deadlocks end in a buyout, a sale with the proceeds split, or a partition action. For partition actions filed on or after January 1, 2023, the Partition of Real Property Act gives co-owners an appraisal and a buyout chance first. Full article: siblings who disagree.
What happens to the house if there is no will?
Intestate succession rules decide who inherits, starting with the surviving spouse’s share, then children and other descendants, then parents, then siblings. Someone must still be appointed administrator under a statutory priority order before the house can be sold. Full article: no will and intestate succession.
How long does probate take in Sacramento County?
Plan on the statewide range of 9 to 18 months, sometimes longer. The first hearing is set not less than 15 nor more than 30 days after filing. Creditor claims and the inventory both run four months from letters. Full article: probate timelines in Sacramento County.
Summary
- Nobody can sell estate real estate until the court issues letters to a personal representative.
- Full IAEA authority avoids court confirmation but needs a Notice of Proposed Action at least 15 days ahead.
- A court-confirmed sale needs at least 90% of a one-year-old appraisal, and the first overbid adds 10% of the first $10,000 plus 5% of the rest.
- Inherited property takes a date-of-death basis, and California taxes capital gains as ordinary income.
- Proposition 19 keeps a parent’s base value only when a child moves in and claims the exemption within one year.
Next Steps
Talk with Bart: Book a free 15-minute call. I’ll listen to where you are in the process, look at the property, and tell you your options, including the ones that don’t involve hiring me.
Request a free probate home valuation: Tell me a little about the house, and you’ll get a written price range within one business day.
Related Reading
- How the probate sale process works
- Selling an inherited home
- Selling a home held in a trust
- Where Bart sells probate homes
About the Author
Bart Hubbard is a Realtor with HomeSmart ICARE Realty (DRE #01815497) and a C.A.R. Certified Probate and Trust Specialist who helps families across the greater Sacramento area sell inherited, probate and trust homes. He works alongside probate attorneys, fiduciaries and local vendors to handle pricing, cleanouts, repairs and court-confirmation sales, so executors can focus on their families. More about Bart is on his bio page.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Probate and tax rules depend on your facts. Talk with a California probate attorney or CPA before acting. Figures current as of October 2026.