Selling your home is an emotional period of time; time that affects all members of the family. There are steps we can take together to ease the burden of estate sales so you and your family can focus on your time together:
Meet with the lawyer to initiate the probate process. The probate process, initiated by your lawyer, is when the court confirms that the will is valid. Often is the case, your lawyer will work from the existing will. If a will doesn’t exist your lawyer can help with this, but it this could add additional weeks to the overall process, and/or increase your lawyer fees. In most cases the will is already crafted and the lawyer can execute the 3-4 month process of probate. You may want to budget approximate costs of 1-1.5% deemed from the value of the will. These probate fees are due at the time of probate, so upfront costs will incur. Don’t forget to get in touch with the home insurance company at this time as rates and packages may change.
Contact your realtor to continue the home selling process. Once the probate process has initiated, your realtor can assist with the sale of the house. They can provide insight on the current market and average sale prices within the neighbourhood, as well as guidance on how to prepare your home for sale. A solid plan of how to prepare the property for sale is crucial at this time because the preparation phase can often take weeks, if not months, depending on the contents in the home and how to allocate accordingly.
So, estate sales isn’t an easy time. It’s emotional to plan the next steps for the home you’ve spend countless family time in. Your lawyer and realtor will help walk you through it though, so reach out to them and build the plan together.
