Expert legal representation for selling house in probate

If you are selling a probate house as an executor or administrator, you will need to obtain a Grant of Probate or a Grant of Letters of Administration to give you the legal authority to sign the paperwork. This can make the process slightly more complicated than a usual house sale, but provided you start work early and deal with certain important points, there is no reason why a probate property sale cannot go through without undue delay.

At Lockings Solicitors, we represent clients who are dealing with the estate of a loved one, to include the sale of their property. We can apply for the Grant of Probate on your behalf if you need us to and we can also deal with the conveyancing once a buyer has been found.

We understand that this is likely to be a very difficult time for you and your family and you will find our team to be considerate and understanding. We will guide you through the process and make sure that you can contact us easily if you need to.

We are always happy to communicate with you in the way that works best for you. We have a conveyancing portal that many clients use which allows you to follow the progress of the transaction closely and that will alert you to anything that needs your attention. If you prefer, we always welcome clients to our offices and we can also deal with issues by phone and email.

If you need to sell a house in probate and you have any questions you would like answered, please feel free to ring us for a FREE initial chat on 01482 300 200, email us at welcome@lockings.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will call you back promptly. We have offices in Beverley, Hull and York and deal with probate house sales across East Yorkshire and beyond.

Our services to sell house probate and conveyancing

We offer a full range of estate administration and conveyancing services for those needing to sell a property after a death, to include:

• Calculating whether Inheritance Tax is payable, which must be done and any tax paid before application is made for a Grant
• Applying for a Grant of Probate; or
• Applying for a Grant of Letters of Administration (where the deceased did not leave a Will)
• Drafting a contract for sale
• Sending the contract package to the buyer’s solicitor
• Dealing with the buyer’s enquiries
• Exchanging contracts and completing the sale
• Estate administration

We always make sure that we deal promptly with all correspondence and enquiries when carrying out the sale of a probate property to ensure that there are no avoidable delays. Our conveyancing team have a high level of experience, meaning we can deal efficiently with any issues that may arise.

We will let you have a full breakdown of the likely costs before we start work. If you would like to have a quote for the sale of a property, please feel free to call us or download our free guide to conveyancing fees.

Obtaining a Grant for probate selling house

If you are selling a house probate is needed to enable you to sign the transfer document completing the sale. Depending on whether or not the deceased left a Will, you need to apply to the Probate Registry for a Grant of Probate or, if there is no Will, a Grant of Letters of Administration.

Before you can apply to the Probate Registry, you need to work out whether Inheritance Tax is due and, if it is, you will need to pay it. This involves valuing the estate to see whether it exceeds the Inheritance Tax threshold and calculating the amount that should be paid.

Once Inheritance Tax has been accounted for, HM Revenue & Customs will provide a receipt that can be sent to the Probate Registry together with the application for a Grant of Probate or Grant of Letters of Administration.

This process can take several months from the valuation of the estate through to receiving the Grant, with the Probate Registry taking several weeks to deal with applications when they are busy. It is open to you to market the property in the meantime if you wish to go ahead and find a buyer, but you will not be able to complete the sale until the Grant has been received.

The legal process to sell probate house

Once you put the property on the market, you can also contact a solicitor and ask them to represent you. If you instruct us to deal with your sale, we will start by verifying your identity as we are required to do, opening a file and letting you have property information and fixtures and fittings forms to complete.

When a buyer is found, we will then be ready to send out contract papers straightaway. The buyer’s solicitor will request searches and raise enquiries. We will work with you to answer these and then liaise as to a completion date once they are ready to exchange contracts.

Sell house in probate – completion

The property will need to be cleared in time for completion which can be a big undertaking. We will keep you updated as to the progress of the sale so that you have some idea of the likely timescale. A date for completion is set when contracts are exchanged, so you will be able to notify the utility companies at this stage. Meter readings should ideally be taken on the day of completion.

Once the property is empty, you can leave the keys with the estate agent. We will notify them once the purchase money has been received from the buyer’s solicitor and they will release the keys at that point.

Selling house in probate – what comes next

Once the sale has been completed, we will pay the estate agent and account to you for the net sale proceeds. If you have asked us to deal with the administration of the estate, we will be able to proceed with that. It is sometimes the case that property is the last asset to be dealt with, so we may be able to wind up the estate and draw up final accounts at this point.

Contact our solicitors for selling a probate house in East Yorkshire

At Lockings Solicitors, we represent clients who need to obtain a Grant of Probate and who are selling a house in probate. We offer a full service and will work proactively to ensure there are no avoidable delays.

If you would like to speak to one of our East Yorkshire conveyancing solicitors about probate selling a house, please feel free to ring us for a FREE initial chat on 01482 300 200, email us at welcome@lockings.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will call you back promptly.