The two questions that determine the procedure
When a California resident dies owning real estate, the procedure for selling that real estate depends on two questions answered very early in the case. First: was the property held in a way that bypasses probate (revocable living trust, joint tenancy with right of survivorship, transfer-on-death deed)? If yes, the property doesn't go through probate court at all. Second: if probate is required, was the personal representative granted full authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA) or only limited authority? That single answer changes the timeline, the paperwork, and the price the estate can accept.
The IAEA framework lives in the California Probate Code, primarily §§ 10400 and following. Full authority gives the executor or administrator broad power to act without court supervision for most transactions, including the sale of real property. Limited authority requires court confirmation for real property sales. The petition for letters typically asks the court for full authority; whether the court grants it depends on whether the will permits it (it usually does), whether any heir or beneficiary objects, and what the estate's complexity looks like.
The Wikipedia overview of probate covers the general US framework and is useful background for understanding how California's procedure compares to states that use other approaches.
Opening the estate: petition to petition for letters
Probate begins with a petition filed in the superior court of the county where the decedent lived at death. For a Sacramento County estate, the petition is filed at the Sacramento County Superior Court Probate Division. The California Courts probate self-help center publishes the forms, walks through filing requirements, and lists the procedural sequence.
The petition asks the court to admit the decedent's will to probate (if there is one) and to issue Letters Testamentary (with a will) or Letters of Administration (no will). Letters are the document that proves the personal representative's authority to third parties — the bank that holds the decedent's accounts, the title company that needs to know who can sign deeds, the brokerage that holds the decedent's investment accounts.
The petition has to be set for hearing — usually 30 to 60 days out depending on the court's calendar — and notice has to be served on heirs and beneficiaries under Probate Code §8110. At the hearing, if no one objects and the paperwork is in order, the court issues letters. From the petition filing date to letters in hand is typically 60 to 90 days in California superior courts.
The inventory and appraisal
Within four months of being appointed, the personal representative must file an inventory and appraisal listing all probate assets and their date-of-death values. For real property, the appraisal is performed by a probate referee — a state-appointed appraiser who specializes in date-of-death valuations. The probate referee is assigned by the court at the time letters issue, and the referee's appraisal sets the official starting value for any later sale.
The referee's number matters because IAEA limited-authority sales have to be at or above 90% of the appraised value. A property the referee appraised at $500,000 can be sold without court confirmation issues at $450,000 or higher; below that floor, the court will not confirm. Full-authority personal representatives have more discretion but still face fiduciary scrutiny if a sale is well below appraisal.
Appraisals are point-in-time numbers and can be stale by the time the property is ready for sale, especially in rising or falling markets. The personal representative can request a supplemental appraisal if conditions have moved enough to justify it. The referee's fee is set by statute at a percentage of the appraised value and is paid from estate assets.
Full authority sale: how it actually moves
With full authority and a will that doesn't restrict the personal representative's power to sell, the sale proceeds much like a normal residential transaction:
- The personal representative lists the property with a broker (or sells direct to a buyer) and negotiates a contract
- The personal representative serves a Notice of Proposed Action on heirs and beneficiaries describing the sale terms — buyer name, price, deposit, closing date
- Heirs and beneficiaries have 15 days from receipt to object. If no one objects, the sale proceeds to escrow and close as a normal transaction
- The deed is signed by the personal representative in their representative capacity and recorded at the county recorder
- Sale proceeds go into the estate account and become part of the assets distributed at the end of probate
If an heir or beneficiary objects to the Notice of Proposed Action, the personal representative can still proceed by getting court confirmation, which converts the transaction back to the limited-authority procedure described below. Objections are uncommon when the sale is at fair market value and the personal representative has explained the rationale. They become common when an heir wants to buy the property at a discount, or when the sale price is below appraisal, or when there's pre-existing conflict among the heirs.
Limited authority sale: the court-confirmed procedure
Limited authority sales require the personal representative to bring the proposed sale to court for confirmation. The procedure runs roughly:
- List and accept an offer. The personal representative negotiates a sale contract. The contract is contingent on court confirmation. The buyer deposits at least 10% of the purchase price into escrow.
- File petition for confirmation. The personal representative files a Report of Sale and Petition for Order Confirming Sale with the court. Notice goes to heirs and beneficiaries and is published in a newspaper.
- Confirmation hearing. Set 30 to 45 days out. At the hearing, the court reviews the sale terms. If the price is at least 90% of the probate referee's appraised value and the sale is otherwise reasonable, the court is inclined to confirm. But the hearing is also an overbid hearing — see below.
- Overbid procedure. The court accepts bids from the floor higher than the contract price. The first overbid must be at least 10% of the first $10,000 plus 5% of the balance over the contract price — so for a $400,000 contract, the first overbid must be at least $400,000 + $1,000 + $19,500 = $420,500. Subsequent bids must be in increments set by the court. If an overbid wins, the original buyer's deposit is returned and the overbidder's deposit takes its place.
- Order confirming sale. The judge signs the order, which authorizes the personal representative to deliver the deed at close.
- Close of escrow. Title transfers, funds distribute to the estate.
The overbid procedure is what makes limited-authority sales different from any other real estate transaction in California. A buyer who negotiates a contract at fair market value can be displaced at the hearing by a competing bidder who shows up with a cashier's check. This dynamic shapes pricing: limited-authority listings often sell at or near appraised value because the overbid mechanic effectively conducts a public auction.
How long the whole thing takes
For a straightforward California probate with a sale included:
- Months 1-3: petition filed, hearing held, letters issued
- Months 3-4: probate referee appraises the property
- Months 4-8: property prepared, listed, contract negotiated
- Months 8-9: limited authority — confirmation petition filed, hearing held, sale confirmed; full authority — Notice of Proposed Action served, sale closes
- Months 9-12: remaining administration (creditor claims, accounting, distribution)
Total from death to close on a sold property: roughly 9 to 12 months under full authority; 12 to 18 months under limited authority. Cases with disputed heirs, will contests, or complex assets stretch longer. Cases with a clean estate, full authority, and a quick buyer can close on the home in eight or nine months.
Executor and administrator duties during the marketing period
While the property is being prepared for sale, the personal representative has fiduciary duties to preserve the asset. Practically:
- Maintain insurance. Vacant homeowners insurance is harder to get and more expensive than owner-occupied coverage. The personal representative needs to confirm the existing policy still covers a vacant property, or obtain a vacancy endorsement, or switch carriers to one that writes vacant property coverage.
- Pay property taxes and any senior liens. Sacramento County and Placer County both assess property tax annually with installments due in November and February. Missed installments accrue penalties and (eventually) trigger tax-collector procedures that can damage the estate's equity position.
- Maintain the property. Yard service, plumbing checks, leak prevention. A pipe burst in a vacant home that goes undiscovered for two weeks can produce $40,000 in damage and a difficult insurance claim.
- Secure the property. Locks changed at appointment, alarm system maintained, valuables inventoried and removed for safekeeping. Vacant probate homes are targets for both theft and squatters.
The American Bar Association publishes general guidance on executor and administrator duties at the ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law, which is a reasonable starting point for personal representatives who are unfamiliar with the role and want background reading before sitting down with counsel.
When the heirs want to sell fast for cash
Some California estates need to liquidate the real property quickly rather than wait for a conventional listing and contingencies. Common scenarios: out-of-state heirs who don't want to manage the property across nine months of preparation and marketing; estates with a single asset and ongoing carrying costs (mortgage, tax, insurance, maintenance) that erode the inheritance; properties in distressed condition that won't appeal to mortgage-financed buyers; family situations where the heirs are eager to close the estate and split the money.
For full-authority estates, a cash sale to a direct buyer proceeds essentially the same as any cash residential sale — the personal representative signs a contract, serves Notice of Proposed Action, and closes through a title company. The advantage over a conventional sale is speed: a Sacramento-area estate that retains a Sacramento cash buyer can typically move from signed contract to wired funds in seven to fourteen days, compared to the 45-60 days a conventional financed transaction requires. The trade-off is price: cash buyers offer a discount from market value in exchange for the speed and certainty of a guaranteed close on the personal representative's date. Whether that trade is worth it depends on the estate's specific circumstances — how much carrying cost the property generates monthly, how distant the heirs are, whether the property is competitive on the MLS, and what the heirs' time horizon is.
For limited-authority estates, even a cash buyer's contract has to go through court confirmation with the overbid procedure. The cash buyer's only advantage at the confirmation hearing is certainty of close once confirmed — they don't avoid the overbid risk. Some limited-authority estates time-bridge by petitioning for full authority before listing, which removes the court-confirmation step from the sale itself.
Property tax reassessment under Proposition 19
Real property in California is generally reassessed to current market value when it transfers — that's the foundational rule of Proposition 13. There are exceptions for parent-to-child transfers and other intra-family scenarios, but those exceptions changed significantly under Proposition 19, which took effect February 16, 2021. The California State Board of Equalization Proposition 19 page maintains the current rules and the application process for the parent-to-child exclusion.
Under current law, a parent-to-child transfer of the parent's primary residence avoids reassessment only if the child uses the property as their own primary residence within one year and files the homeowner's exemption. There is also a cap on the amount of value protected from reassessment. Transfers of rental property, vacation homes, or any other non-primary-residence real estate from parent to child trigger reassessment to current market value. This change effectively ended the long-standing practice of inheriting a low-tax-basis rental property from a parent.
The reassessment matters at sale because the new tax basis follows the inheriting party, not the buyer. The buyer pays a new tax based on the purchase price under the post-sale assessment. The inheritor's tax basis (and reassessment status) affects what the inheritor pays during any period they hold the property between inheritance and sale.
Probate fees and what they cost the estate
California probate fees are set by statute under Probate Code §10810 and §10811. The fee schedule is calculated on the gross value of the probated assets (not the net):
- 4% of the first $100,000
- 3% of the next $100,000
- 2% of the next $800,000
- 1% of the next $9,000,000
- 0.5% of the next $15,000,000
- Reasonable amount above $25 million as determined by the court
The personal representative is entitled to one full statutory fee. The attorney representing the personal representative is entitled to a separate equal statutory fee. So a Sacramento home valued at $600,000 going through probate produces $15,000 in personal representative fees and $15,000 in attorney fees — $30,000 total — payable from the estate before distribution. Extraordinary services (will contest defense, complex asset sales, tax disputes) can be billed separately above the statutory fee with court approval.
For estates with one piece of real property and no other complications, this fee structure makes attorney-represented administration roughly proportional to the property value. For estates eligible for simplified procedures (small estate affidavit under $184,500, Spousal Property Petition for transfers to a surviving spouse), the fees and timeline both compress significantly.