With the guidance of Estate Attorney Michael Wakefield, Ingrid Barrett with the FOCUS on NoVA Real Estate team, goes through pertinent items that need to be addressed when one finds themselves selling the estate of a loved one.

Since we are not attorneys, we contacted Michael Wakefield from Wakefield Law to respond to this. His response is: The documents that you should have when selling a property, that is an estate, after a descendant passes away and the probate process is necessary are the original will, if one exists, and a certified death certificate. This is based on a singular will.

There are state and local taxes when you open probate, so be prepared to provide a check when you open probate.

It may be advisable for the beneficiaries to sign a limited power of attorney authorizing one beneficiary to act on behalf of and for the benefit of the other beneficiaries.

For a will versus probate, oftentimes people think that your will is all that you need, but you will your will is the ticket to probate. When a person passes away, a will executor will need to provide the will to the court after the person passes away and handle the court proceedings, which can be complicated and last six months or years.

If someone dies without a will, they will have died intestate, but their will still needs to be a protect probate proceeding. The only way to avoid probate altogether is to make sure all your assets are non-probatable assets and must have officially designated such as the title transfers immediately upon death. Or, you can go into a trust.

If you have any questions about Northern Virginia real estate, reach out as we are happy to help.