How to Sell a Home that is in Probate

Let’s imagine that a person has contacted you. They are a friend of a friend, and they tell you that their mother passed away last month and now they are thinking about selling her home. What would you say to this person? Would you take the listing or refer it to a more senior agent? What first steps would you take?

In most real estate offices, only a few real estate agents would feel totally comfortable handing a probate or trust real estate sale. Also, there are times when an agent is searching for a home for their buyer, but when they notice that it is a listing that is subject to probate court, they shy away from it. So, by lacking an understanding of probate, you may be missing out on some good commission opportunities.

The goal of this course is to provide you with the knowledge and insight that will give you the confidence to take that listing and be an excellent agent for your client. This course has been designed so that you will gain a general understanding of the probate legal process and have more confidence when taking a listing for a home that is in probate. Ultimately, with the information that is covered in this course you will:

• Have knowledge so you can help someone who has been affected by a death,

• Have knowledge so that you go into a listing appointment with confidence,

• Have knowledge so you can give the right advice or recommendations to a client,

• Have knowledge so that you can predict and avoid problems in a probate transaction that may delay closing and/or affect the value of the sale.

To accomplish this, we will start by taking a look at the probate process and make sure we have a general understanding of it. After that, we will dive into what it means to list a home that is in probate and consider many aspects that will help you and the client prepare the home for sale. Finally, we will consider some potential problems that you may encounter during the real estate transaction and how to avoid them.

Course Content

This course is approximately two hours of video and reading materials. A continuing education course completion certificate for Oregon REA continuing education will be issued after completing the mandatory course seat time.