Probate Process in California

In California when real estate of a deceased person goes into probate, the sale of that property becomes subject to certain legal requirements and regulations.

In most cases the executor of the estate has the authority to sell the property through powers granted by the Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA). This can also be done without a court confirmation hearing. The only way this is not allowed is by objections by other invested members of the estate. The executor can still have this confirmed in court. If there are no objections, the sale can proceed as a normal property sale.

If a court does need to be involved, they can confirm the sale to an over bidder rather than the original buyer in which case the original buyer’s deposit shall be refunded.  If the buyer defaults after a court confirmed sale, the buyer may lose his/her deposit.

Any person who bids in court must make an unconditional offer (i.e., obtaining financing and approving inspections should not be a condition of the offer) and if confirmed must present a cashier’s check deposit for 10% of the purchase price as described above, or as determined by the court.

During the court confirmation of probate in California, there is open, competitive bidding and the minimum first overbid price shall be an amount equal to the accepted purchase price of the accepted offer, plus five percent of that amount, plus $500. In the event of such an overbid, the court shall determine any further incremental overbidding amounts – for example, $1,000 or $2,000. The bidding stops with the final bid. The buyer needs to deposit 10% of the purchase price prior to or on the date of the court confirmation hearing. Once the petition is in place for the sale it is typically 20-40 days to the court hearing.

In California the sale, together with the accepted offering price, is advertised for a statutory period in a local newspaper. Feel free to call or email me at Deepak@ProbateInSoCal.com anytime for more information on specific of Probate in California.