Buying and selling
Probate property sale
Selling the home of someone who has died, carried out for the executors or administrators once the grant is available.
Every cost on its own line: the law firm's legal fee, VAT, the searches and other third-party costs, and any property tax. Your quote opens as soon as you send the form.
Personal representatives have legal duties to the beneficiaries, so keep a record of valuations, offers received and why you accepted one. Your conveyancer handles the sale, not the wider administration of the estate.
When someone dies, their home becomes part of their estate. The people dealing with the estate are called personal representatives: executors if there is a will, or administrators if there is not. Only they can sell the property, and the sale cannot be completed without proof of their authority.
That proof is the grant of probate, or letters of administration where there is no will. In practice, contracts are not exchanged until the grant has been issued, because the buyer's conveyancer and lender need to see it. This service covers the sale itself; applying for the grant and administering the rest of the estate is separate work.
Your instant quote shows the legal fee for the sale, any admin fees and the third-party costs. If you go ahead, Keyfolio introduces you to a regulated law firm that can act for all the personal representatives. Executors often live in different places, so it helps to agree early who will sign documents and how decisions will be made.
What is involved
A probate sale follows the usual steps of a sale, with extra checks on who has authority to sell:
- Confirming authority: your conveyancer checks the will, the grant and the identity of each personal representative, because those named on the grant usually all need to sign.
- Checking the title: if the person who died owned the home jointly, they check whether the share passed automatically to the co-owner or forms part of the estate.
- Preparing the contract pack: executors often know little about the property's history, so the forms are completed as fully as possible and the contract usually limits the promises made about its condition.
- Looking after an empty house: they will remind you to tell the insurer the property is unoccupied and to keep it secure.
- Answering the buyer's enquiries and agreeing a completion date once the grant is available.
- Exchange and completion: the sale money comes to your conveyancer, who repays any mortgage or equity release loan secured on the property.
- Paying the proceeds: the balance goes to the estate account or the probate practitioner, to be shared out under the will or the intestacy rules.
If the price achieved is very different from the value used for Inheritance Tax, tell whoever is handling the estate's tax, because it can affect what the estate owes.
What the legal fee covers
- Checking the grant of probate or letters of administration and each representative's identity
- Investigating the title, including how the person who died owned the property
- Preparing the contract and contract pack with wording suited to an estate sale
- Answering the buyer's legal enquiries
- Coordinating signatures from all the executors or administrators
- Exchanging contracts and completing the sale
- Repaying any mortgage or loan secured on the property
- Sending a completion statement and the proceeds to the estate
Costs you may see on top
- Official copies of the title from HM Land Registry
- Identity checks for each executor or administrator, and bank transfer charges
- A fee for repaying a mortgage or equity release loan on completion
- Indemnity insurance where the executors cannot answer questions about the property's history
- An admin fee if the title is unregistered, which is common for homes owned for many decades
- The probate application, estate administration and Inheritance Tax work, which are separate from the sale
- Capital Gains Tax if the property has risen in value since the date of death
What to have ready
- The grant of probate or letters of administration, or the date you applied for it
- A copy of the will and the death certificate
- Photo identification and proof of address for every executor or administrator
- Details of any mortgage, equity release plan or secured loan on the property
- Any deeds, guarantees and certificates found among the person's papers
- The buildings insurance policy, updated to show the property is empty
- Contact details for whoever is handling the probate application and estate accounts
How long it takes
Once the grant has been issued, a probate sale commonly takes 10 to 16 weeks from instruction to completion for a freehold home, or 12 to 20 weeks for a leasehold one. The time it takes to obtain the grant varies and is outside the conveyancer's control. Estate sales can move quickly because there is usually no onward purchase, but they slow down when executors are hard to reach for signatures, when old deeds have to be traced for an unregistered property, or when the house needs clearing before completion.
Things to watch for
- Government guidance suggests not putting the property on the market until you have the grant. If you market it earlier, be clear with buyers that exchange cannot happen until the grant is issued.
- Tell the buildings insurer as soon as the property becomes empty. Many policies limit cover for unoccupied homes, and a claim for a burst pipe or a break-in could be refused.
- Personal representatives must act in the interests of the estate and its beneficiaries. A proper valuation and open marketing help show that you achieved a fair price.
- If an executor or a relative wants to buy the house, take advice first. A sale to someone connected with the estate needs extra care and usually the other beneficiaries' agreement.
- Check the fittings and contents form before arranging a house clearance, so you do not remove items the buyer has been promised.
Questions people ask
Can we sell before probate is granted?
You can prepare: obtain valuations, gather the deeds and instruct a conveyancer so the paperwork is ready. Government guidance suggests waiting until you have the grant before putting the property on the market, and in practice exchange of contracts does not happen until the grant has been issued. Marketing too early can leave a buyer waiting for months and then pulling out. See the GOV.UK probate guidance.
Do all the executors have to sign?
Usually yes. Each personal representative named on the grant who is acting normally needs to sign the contract and the transfer deed, and each one has to pass identity checks. If an executor lives abroad, is unwell or does not want to be involved, tell your conveyancer at the start so they can explain the options and arrange signing in good time.
What if the house sells for less than the probate value?
If Inheritance Tax was paid and the property is sold for less than the value used for the tax, the estate may be able to claim relief, as long as the sale happens within 4 years of the death. The claim is made to HMRC on form IHT38 by whoever is responsible for the estate's tax. Your conveyancer does not make the claim, but can supply the completion statement and sale figures you need.
Is there tax to pay on a probate sale?
Stamp duty is a tax on buying, so the estate does not pay it on the sale. If the property has risen in value between the date of death and the sale, the estate may owe Capital Gains Tax on the increase, after allowable costs. Gains on UK residential property usually have to be reported and paid within 60 days of completion, so the personal representatives or their adviser should plan for this before the sale completes.
Who does the work
Your matter is handled by a law firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers or CILEx Regulation, or in Northern Ireland by a solicitor regulated by the Law Society of Northern Ireland. At the moment the law firms on our panel act for property in England and Wales, so for property in Northern Ireland we tell you whether a firm can act for you before we pass your details to anyone. The firm confirms who will work on your file, their experience and its terms before you instruct it. How we choose our firms.
Helpful guides
The other costs of your move
- Moving costs calculator: the other costs of the move, from the survey to removals