Sell an Inherited Home in the Sacramento Area

Selling an inherited home in the greater Sacramento area follows a fixed order. Confirm who holds authority to sell. Establish what the house was worth at the date of death and what it is worth now. Decide how much preparation it deserves. Market it. Then close under either a Notice of Proposed Action or a court confirmation hearing, depending on the letters.

Nobody can skip the first step. A person named in a will has no power to administer the estate until the court appoints them and issues letters, under Probate Code 8400. Before that, a named executor may only pay funeral expenses and preserve the property.

Most families get the order wrong rather than the effort. A house painted before anyone reads the letters can still sit for months.

Key Facts

Letters come first. A personal representative, the court’s term for an executor or administrator, cannot sell estate real property before letters issue. Probate Code 8400
Full IAEA authority skips the confirmation hearing. The Independent Administration of Estates Act lets a representative with full authority sell without confirmation, publication or the 90% minimum. Probate Code 10503
Limited authority does not reach real estate. That representative needs court supervision to sell. Probate Code 10501(b)
A confirmed private sale needs at least 90% of the appraised value, appraised within one year before the hearing. Probate Code 10309
The inventory and appraisal is due within four months after letters issue. Probate Code 8800(b)
Probate typically takes 9 to 18 months. California Courts formal probate guide

Who Has the Authority to Sell?

Whoever the court has appointed, and nobody else. The letters state whether the personal representative has full, limited or no authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. Judicial Council form DE-150 carries that checkbox.

If the home sits in a living trust, no probate is needed and the successor trustee sells it directly. See the trust sale page. If the estate is small, or the home was the decedent’s California primary residence, a shortcut may replace full probate. See what happens before probate.

What Is the House Worth?

Two different numbers matter, and families confuse them.

The first is the date-of-death value, which a probate referee appraises for the inventory. The State Controller appoints probate referees to give a reliable, prompt and low-cost appraisal, with at least one per county. The fee is one-tenth of one percent of the value appraised, at least $75 and at most $10,000 per estate, under Probate Code 8961 and 8963. On a $600,000 house that is $600.

The second is today’s market value, which sets the list price and the net to the estate.

Should You Clean It Out and Repair It First?

Sometimes, and rarely as much as the family expects. Spend a dollar only where the market gives back more, and only where the estate has the cash to spend.

Cleanout and a deep clean almost always pay. Paint and flooring often pay. A kitchen remodel usually does not. Items a buyer’s inspector will find anyway, such as a roof or a failing sewer line, are better priced in than papered over. Read fix up or sell as-is and how to clean out a parent’s house.

What Does the Estate Pay?

The costs of sale, plus statutory fees of administration in a formal probate. Executor and attorney fees use the same tiers under Probate Code 10800 and Probate Code 10810: 4% of the first $100,000, 3% of the next $100,000, and 2% of the next $800,000.

On a $600,000 gross estate that is $15,000 each. The base is gross value without reference to encumbrances, so a mortgage does not shrink the fee.

In a court-confirmed sale, a broker is paid only if a sale is made, the court confirms it and it closes, and the court sets a reasonable commission under Probate Code 10160 and 10161.

Do All of the Heirs Have to Agree?

Not always, though life is easier when they do. A representative with full authority can sell after giving a Notice of Proposed Action, and an objection from someone entitled to notice forces the sale into court supervision, under Probate Code 10589.

Where co-owners hold title together and cannot agree, any of them may file a partition action under Code of Civil Procedure 872.210. Read what if siblings disagree first, because most disagreements settle well before that.

What Happens When You Call?

A free 15-minute call to find out who holds authority and where the case stands.
A walkthrough of the property, inside and out, at no cost.
A written price range within one business day, with the comparable sales behind it.
A written plan: what to clear out, what to fix, and what the estate should net.
Listing, offers, then the notice or the hearing, and closing.

Summary

Nobody can sell estate real property until the court issues letters.
Full IAEA authority avoids court confirmation; limited authority does not reach real estate.
A court-confirmed private sale needs at least 90% of an appraisal made within the prior year.
Statutory executor and attorney fees run $15,000 each on a $600,000 gross estate.
Formal probate usually runs 9 to 18 months, and the house can often sell inside that window.

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: You’ll get a written price range within one business day.

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.