How do I handle my parent’s property when they pass away and I’m living in another state? This is a common issue that happens for a lot of families, and especially when there is not a plan put in place.
The first item that any surviving family member needs to know is if a will or trust account was set up from the deceased family member. A will won’t necessarily make selling a family member’s property completely simple, but it will help the process of probate. For a family member whose property was in a revocable trust the process becomes much smoother. So what does a will or trust do that will ease the process for surviving family members? When the property is in a trust account and the Trustee passes away then the property will automatically pass to the beneficiaries of the trust. Typically one family member is designated as an executor and will handle every aspect of the estate. At this point, an executor will only need the trust paperwork and death certificate to be able to sell the house. However, when a parent passes and the house is not in a trust, but there is a will, then the house must go through probate. Probate is not as scary as it sounds though! The state will designate a surviving family member, or it may be designated in a will, and that family member will be responsible for the sale of the house. Typically the surviving family member will work with a probate attorney to handle the articles of testament, and then a Realtor to sell the house.
Now that you have determined whether the house is in a trust, or if there is or isn’t a will, then you can start moving forward with the next steps to selling the property. Choosing a Realtor who has the ability to communicate properly when you live out of Utah is important. You’re not only working through grief as a surviving family member, but you’re also trying to continue moving through your daily life. That can be a challenge for most people who don’t have the time to spend weeks in another state and having to empty out your loved ones house.
This exact scenario happened when I received a call from Sally. Her father was moving into assisted living. Sally and her siblings all live outside of the state of Utah. Sally called and we met at her dad’s condo as they were working on moving him into his assisted living space. There was so much to do and her dad’s condo was quite dated. Sally and I were able to meet and come up with a plan on how to tackle all of the items that were not going to be able to make it to the assisted living center. There was leftover food, furniture, dishes, linens and a lot more. Through my network of professionals I was able to help Sally and her siblings with removing the items the family didn’t want so we could sell her dad’s condo.
I told Sally to leave behind whatever the family didn’t want and I will take care of it for them. I was able to work with my network to get nonperishable food items donated to the local food bank, and move furniture items to second hand stores. Finally, for the rest of the items that were going to be thrown away I was able to bring in a junk removal specialist to finish with the miscellaneous items that were going to be trashed. Once everything was removed from the condo then a cleaning crew came through and made sure the condo was ready to hit the market.
Sally and her siblings were able to go back to their respective homes and not have to worry about having to take more time off of work and their lives to come back to Utah and handle the items left at their dad’s condo. Once the condo was on the MLS then I was informing Sally of the updates every week on what was happening with the sale of the property – even working with the Title company to send a mobile notary to Sally’s house and sign the closing documents making everything as smooth and stress free as possible.
Many people will find themselves in the situation where they don’t know where to turn and how to handle selling a loved ones property when they live outside of the state of Utah. Remember, the first thing to understand is if there is a will or if the house is in a trust account. From there you’ll be able to better navigate the process of selling your family members property. Working with a Realtor who is a specialist in these matters will help make the process even smoother.
Do you have a question about how to sell a loved one’s property when you live outside of Utah? Contact me at Michael@Mansellrealtors.com with your questions and I’m happy to provide you the information to be as educated as possible.
