Selling an Inherited House
You can sell an inherited house as-is for cash without cleaning it out, making repairs, or listing it, even from out of state. Equity ResQ handles the details and works around probate timelines, so you can settle the estate quickly and split the proceeds cleanly.
You're Dealing With:
- ! You live out of state and managing the property is impossible
- ! The house is full of belongings you don't have time to sort
- ! There are multiple heirs and you need to liquidate quickly to split proceeds
- ! Property taxes and bills are piling up while the estate sits empty
- ! The house needs significant repairs you can't afford to fund
- ! You're still in probate and need a buyer who can wait
Inheriting a house should be a gift. Too often, it becomes a burden. Property taxes, mortgage payments, maintenance, utility bills, and the emotional weight of clearing out a loved one’s belongings all fall on you at the worst possible time.
If you’ve inherited a property in the Central Valley and Antelope Valley and you don’t want to deal with it, we buy inherited homes for cash, as-is, with all the contents still inside. You don’t have to clean. You don’t have to repair. You don’t have to make decisions about furniture, photos, or anything else. We handle it all and you walk away with cash.
Probate in plain English, for heirs and executors
- Someone has to be appointed. If there was a will, the executor it names asks the court to be appointed, and should act within 30 days of learning of the death. If there was no will, the court appoints an administrator, usually a spouse, partner or close relative.
- Nobody can sell until “letters” issue. The court’s letters are what give the executor or administrator power to act for the estate, including selling the house.
- Full or limited authority. With full authority under California’s Independent Administration of Estates Act, the executor can sell the house without a court hearing, after sending heirs a Notice of Proposed Action at least 15 days ahead. Any heir can object in writing, and then the sale goes to court. With limited authority, the court has to confirm the sale before title passes.
- Creditors get a window. Creditors generally have four months after letters issue (or 60 days after notice, if later) to file claims.
- It takes a while. California’s courts say the whole process typically takes 9 to 18 months, sometimes longer.
When you may not need full probate
- For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, estates worth $208,850 or less may be handled with a small-estate affidavit.
- A primary home worth up to $750,000 can pass to the heirs through a simpler court petition.
- Property going to a surviving spouse usually doesn’t need probate; the spouse can ask the court for a spousal property order.
Property taxes if you keep the house
Under Proposition 19, a child who inherits a parent’s home and moves in as their own main home can keep part of the parent’s lower property tax base. If no one moves in, for example if it’s sold or rented out, the house is generally reassessed. The forms have deadlines (within one year for the homeowners’ exemption, within three years for the exclusion), so ask the county assessor early.
Where probate is filed in our area
- Fresno County: Fresno County Superior Court, B.F. Sisk Courthouse, 1130 O Street, Fresno
- Kings County: Kings County Superior Court, 1640 Kings County Drive, Hanford
- Tulare County: Tulare County Superior Court, 221 S. Mooney Blvd, Visalia, or South County Justice Center, 300 E. Olive Ave, Porterville
- Kern County: Kern County Superior Court probate division, Juvenile Justice Center, 2100 College Ave, Bakersfield
- Antelope Valley (Los Angeles County): Antelope Valley Courthouse, 42011 4th St. West, Lancaster (hearings at Stanley Mosk Courthouse, Los Angeles, with remote appearance from Lancaster Dept. A22)
Common questions: Do I need probate to sell an inherited house? · Probate in Fresno County · Probate in Kern County · Probate in the Antelope Valley
This page is general information about California probate, not legal advice. Dollar limits and deadlines change; the court or a California probate attorney can tell you what applies to your estate.
How We Help
Selling an inherited house through traditional channels is rarely worth the headache. Listing with an agent means cleaning, repairs, showings, and waiting months for a buyer. Estate sales mean strangers in the home and pennies on the dollar for items. We offer a different path.
We buy with everything still inside. Take whatever has sentimental or financial value to you. Leave the rest. We handle clean-out at our cost.
We work with all heirs. If multiple family members have a share, we coordinate with everyone and the title company to make sure the closing is clean and proceeds are split correctly.
We work with probate timelines. If the estate is still in probate, we’ll wait. We’ve closed hundreds of deals on inherited properties at every stage of the probate process.
We work with out-of-state heirs. You don’t need to fly in. Everything can be handled remotely through the title company. We’ve closed sales for sellers across the country who never had to leave home.
We close on your timeline. Need 90 days to finalize probate? Fine. Need to close in 10 days because you’re tired of paying the mortgage on an empty house? We can do that too.
You inherited a problem you didn’t ask for. We solve it. No emotional toll. No physical labor. No financial drain.
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