Serving Executors, Administrators & Trustees

First, please accept our condolences for your loss. One of the first steps is to order certified death certificates. Request at least 10 to 15 certified copies through the funeral home or the county's Vital Records office. You will need them for banks, insurance, Social Security, the DMV, and later for probate court filings. Then try to locate a will or trust. This determines your whole path forward.

When someone dies without a will or trust in California, their estate passes through intestate succession, meaning state law, not the family, decides who inherits. Generally, a surviving spouse receives all community property and a share of separate property, with the rest split among children or other relatives depending on who survives. The estate still typically goes through probate, and the court appoints an administrator, usually the closest relative who petitions for the role, to manage and eventually sell or distribute the property, including any Bay Area real estate.

In the Bay Area, probate involving real estate generally takes 9 to 18 months from filing to final distribution. Simple estates without a home to sell or disputes among heirs tend to close on the faster end, while cases involving a court-confirmed property sale or multiple heirs often run closer to 12 to 18 months. San Francisco and Alameda County courts tend to run busier dockets, so estates filed there may take longer than this range. More complex cases, such as contested wills, can take longer still.

An executor or administrator gains legal authority once the court issues Letters Testamentary (if there's a will) or Letters of Administration (if there isn't one), typically after the initial hearing appointing them. Until those Letters are issued, they can't sign contracts, access estate accounts, or sell property on the estate's behalf. Whether they can act alone after that or need court approval for certain steps like selling a house, depends on whether the court granted them Full Authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act (IAEA).

Not necessarily. If the personal representative has Full Authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act, they can generally decide to sell without unanimous heir consent, though all heirs must be notified in writing and typically have 15 days to object. If an objection can't be resolved, or if the representative doesn't have full authority, the sale usually needs to go through a court confirmation hearing, where a judge has final say regardless of heir agreement.

Yes, in most cases. Once the court issues Letters and the personal representative has authority to act, the property can typically be listed and sold while probate is still open, since the sale is often part of settling the estate rather than something that waits until the end. What you can't do is sell before those Letters are issued, since no one yet has the legal authority to sign a binding contract. Depending on whether the representative has Full Authority, the sale may close on its own or require a court confirmation hearing before it's final.

These ongoing costs are typically paid from the estate, not out of pocket by individual heirs, as long as there are sufficient funds available. The personal representative is responsible for keeping the mortgage current, maintaining insurance, and covering property taxes and utilities while the home is part of the estate. If the estate doesn't have enough liquid funds to cover these costs, heirs sometimes step in temporarily, but they aren't legally obligated to unless they've agreed to.

The personal representative is responsible for securing and maintaining both the house and its contents while probate is open, which means keeping the property insured, the utilities on, and the home reasonably protected from damage or unauthorized access. Personal belongings generally stay in the house until the representative sorts through them, distributes specific items named in the will (if applicable), or clears the home ahead of a sale. Heirs typically shouldn't remove items on their own without the representative's approval, since everything in the estate is subject to the court process until it's formally distributed.

There is no one-size-fits-all answer. Some inherited properties are best sold As-Is, while others may benefit from a few carefully chosen improvements before going on the market.

The right decision depends on the property's condition, the estate's timeline and available funds, local buyer expectations, carrying costs, and most importantly, which option is likely to produce the best net result.

We help evaluate the property and compare the options with realistic numbers. That may mean selling completely As-Is, making a few strategic improvements through an As-Is Plus approach, or preparing the home more traditionally for the market.

The goal is not to spend money simply to make the house look better. It is to determine which improvements, if any, are likely to add enough value to justify the cost, time, and effort. This allows the person managing the estate to make an informed decision based on the property and the family's priorities, not guesswork.

In California, attorney and executor fees are set by a statutory percentage of the estate's value, so costs scale with what the estate is worth. For example, for a Bay Area home valued around $800,000, combined statutory fees often run in the $30,000 to $40,000 range, and can climb higher for larger estates given local home values. On top of those fees, expect court filing fees, probate referee appraisal costs, and any expenses tied to maintaining the property while the case is open.

Living outside California does not necessarily prevent you from handling a California probate or inherited property. Many executors, administrators, trustees, and heirs manage the process from another state.

If you are serving as a personal representative, the probate court may have additional requirements for a nonresident, including the possibility of requiring a bond, so it is important to confirm your specific situation with your attorney.

The bigger challenge is often managing the property from a distance. We can serve as your local eyes and hands, helping coordinate property access, maintenance, personal belongings, vendors, showings, documents, and closing details so you do not have to travel back and forth for every step.

You can manage the estate from wherever you are, while we help manage the property here.

If someone is living in the property, one of the first steps is to understand who is occupying the home and what rights they may have. The occupant could be a tenant, family member, beneficiary, co-owner, caregiver, or someone with another claim to possession.

This is especially important in the San Francisco Bay Area, where some cities have additional tenant protections and local requirements beyond California law. Before changing locks, removing belongings, requesting that someone leave, or making plans to sell the property, confirm the appropriate legal steps with the estate attorney and, when necessary, a local landlord-tenant professional.

On the property side, we help evaluate how occupancy may affect access, maintenance, preparation, showings, and the timing of a potential sale so you can plan the next steps with fewer surprises.

Not necessarily. In California, some assets may pass outside of formal probate, depending on how they are owned and whether a beneficiary has already been designated. Property held in a living trust, certain jointly owned property with survivorship rights, life insurance, retirement accounts, and some payable-on-death accounts may transfer directly to the appropriate beneficiary. California also provides simplified procedures for certain smaller estates.

The key is determining which assets are actually subject to probate and which are not. A probate attorney can review the estate, title, trust documents, and beneficiary designations and confirm the correct process before important decisions are made.

In California, probate is generally handled by the Superior Court in the county where the person who passed away lived. If they lived outside California but owned property here, the proper court may depend on where that property is located. Always confirm the correct filing court with your probate attorney.

The court-appointed executor or administrator signs on behalf of the estate. It is generally best to wait until the appointment and Letters are issued before signing contracts, since documents signed earlier may need to be signed again once legal authority is established. Always confirm signing authority with the probate attorney.