Often, yes. If the will gives the executor a power of sale, or the court grants authority, the estate can sell the house before probate closes and the proceeds are held by the estate until distribution. If the house has already passed to the heirs by a certificate of transfer, a transfer on death affidavit, or a survivorship deed, the heirs sell it directly. Your attorney confirms which path applies.

Whoever holds authority over the property. During probate that is the executor or administrator named in the court's Letters of Authority. After a certificate of transfer, it is the heirs who now hold title, and every heir on the deed must sign. If a house passed by transfer on death or survivorship, the named beneficiary or surviving owner signs.

If title has passed to the heirs, every person on the deed must sign the purchase agreement and closing documents. Heirs do not have to be in the same room - Ohio allows remote and online notarization, so out-of-state family members can sign where they live. If one heir refuses, an attorney can advise on a partition action, but that is a last resort.

No. Ohio has no inheritance tax and repealed its estate tax for deaths on or after January 1, 2013. The federal estate tax applies only to very large estates. What matters more for most families is the federal stepped-up basis: the home's tax basis resets to its fair market value on the date of death, so a sale near that value usually produces little or no capital gain.

A straightforward estate often runs six to twelve months. Ohio gives creditors six months from the date of death to present claims, and the inventory is due within three months of the executor's appointment, so those two clocks set the floor. Contested wills, missing heirs, or title problems stretch it. The house itself can often be sold inside that window.

Yes. The loan does not disappear at death, but it is paid from the sale proceeds at closing, the same as any other sale. Federal rules generally allow a surviving family member who inherits the home to keep the existing loan, but if you plan to sell, the title company simply orders a payoff and clears it at the closing table.

Take what the family wants and leave the rest. We buy inherited houses as-is, including homes that have not been cleaned out, homes that need major repairs, and homes that have sat vacant for years. You do not need to hire a cleanout crew, make repairs, or stage anything before we make an offer.

It is the document the probate court issues to move real estate from the decedent's name to the heirs or beneficiaries. Once it is recorded with the county recorder, the heirs hold title and can sell. It is a common step when the estate is not selling the house itself.

It depends on the home's condition, the repairs it needs, and recent sales nearby. A cash offer is below what a fully renovated, listed home might bring, because the buyer takes on the repairs, the cleanout, the holding costs, and the risk. Against that you save agent commissions, repair costs, months of carrying costs, and the work of managing a listing from a distance. We put the number in writing so you can compare it honestly.

Typically the death certificate, the will if there is one, the Letters of Authority from the probate court, and the deed. If the property passed outside probate, the transfer on death affidavit or survivorship affidavit takes the place of the letters. We work alongside your estate attorney and the title company to gather whatever else the specific situation requires.