I am the executor for my deceased family member’s estate. I want to sell their property. What is the process?
The first step is to receive a Grant of Probate. This Grant is required to authorize the executor to deal with the estate, including the sale of the property. A Grant of Probate can take anywhere from several weeks to several months. Our office can help you with the Probate process.
Once the Probate process is complete, you may sell the property.
In some cases, a Realtor will list the property without the Grant of Probate being complete. They may include a condition saying that the closing can be delayed until the Grant of Probate is completed.
While you may be able to list the property and enter into a contract to sell it prior to the Grant of Probate, the actual closing (transfer of land / payment of funds) cannot occur until the Grant of Probate is issued.
In some cases where there is some urgency, a Court application may be made to sell the property where probate has not been completed.
Is it necessary to transfer the title from the deceased person to the Estate prior to the sale?
It is not necessary to transfer the title from the estate to the Estate prior to the sale where the Grant of Probate has been provided. On the closing date of the sale of the property, we would register 2 transfers concurrently – one called a “Transmission of Land” from the deceased to the estate, and two, a “Transfer of Land” from the estate to the buyer.
