A probate home sale in California follows rules an ordinary sale doesn't. Depending on the estate, the house may be sold by a trustee, by a court-appointed personal representative with or without court confirmation, or passed to heirs through a small-estate procedure. Each path has its own notices and timing, and a court-confirmed sale ends in a hearing where other buyers can bid.
This guide walks through those paths using the Probate Code, the California Courts self-help pages, Judicial Council forms and the local probate rules of the Santa Clara County and Alameda County superior courts, all read on November 6, 2026. Dollar limits and local rules change, so confirm them with your county's superior court before you list.
Trust, probate or a small-estate procedure?
Start with how the house is titled and what the estate holds.
A trust. The Alameda County Superior Court's trust page says a trustee holds title for the benefit of the beneficiaries and has the powers in the trust document, subject to the law and court orders, which can include selling assets.
A primary residence worth $750,000 or less. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025 and before April 1, 2028, Judicial Council form DE-310 lets a successor petition the court to determine succession to the decedent's primary residence in California under Probate Code sections 13151 and 13152. At least 40 days must have passed since the death, a probate referee appraises the house, and the court sets a hearing. Section 13151 requires notice to each heir and devisee within five business days of filing. AB 2016 (Stats. 2024, ch. 331) raised this limit to $750,000 and limited the procedure to the primary residence.
Real property of small value. Under Probate Code section 13200 and form DE-305, if all of the decedent's California real property has a gross value of $69,625 or less (for deaths on or after April 1, 2025), a successor can use an affidavit once six months have passed since the death. The property needs an inventory and appraisal by a probate referee, the affidavit is notarized and filed with the court, a certified copy is recorded, and the person signing it can be personally liable for the decedent's unsecured debts up to the property's fair market value.
Formal probate in other cases, described below.
The Judicial Council adjusts these limits every three years on April 1 under Probate Code section 890, and the limit that applies depends on the date of death. Its table of adjusted amounts lists each period, and the next adjustment is April 1, 2028. One California Courts self-help page still described form DE-310 on November 6, 2026 as for estates worth $166,250 or less. On the current form, $166,250 applies only to deaths before April 1, 2022, so go by the form and the table.
How formal probate works before a sale
The California Courts formal probate self-help page describes three parts: opening the case, administering the estate and closing it. As of November 2026, the main steps are:
File a Petition for Probate (form DE-111) in the superior court of the county where the person lived. The page says the filing fee is typically $435, unless the court grants a fee waiver.
Give notice to heirs and beneficiaries, and publish notice in a newspaper.
At the hearing, the judge appoints a personal representative, called an executor or an administrator.
Prepare an Inventory and Appraisal (form DE-160). A probate referee values assets other than cash, including the house.
Give notice to creditors (form DE-157).
File a final report and account, and a petition for final distribution.
The self-help page says probate typically takes 9 to 18 months and can take longer. The Alameda County Superior Court's probate page says California law requires the personal representative to complete probate within one year of appointment, or 18 months when a federal estate tax return is filed. The house can be sold during administration, but how depends on the authority the court grants.
Selling under the Independent Administration of Estates Act
Under the Independent Administration of Estates Act (Probate Code section 10400 and following), the court can grant a personal representative full or limited authority. Santa Clara County's local probate rules say either can be requested in the petition for letters or separately, and that the date the letters were last issued sets the extent of the powers.
Judicial Council form DE-165 spells out the difference. With limited authority, the representative has no power, without court supervision, to sell or exchange real property, grant an option to buy it, or borrow money secured by it. With full authority, the representative can sell the house without a confirmation hearing after giving a Notice of Proposed Action under Probate Code section 10580 and following.
That notice states the proposed sale, its material terms including the price and commission, and a date on or after which the representative may act, and it must be delivered at least 15 days before that date (Probate Code section 10586). It carries a warning that a sale without court supervision will not be presented to the court for confirmation at a hearing where higher bids can be made. Anyone who receives it can object in writing or get a court order. The objection must arrive before the date in the notice or before the sale is made, whichever is later. A person who doesn't object is treated as having consented. If someone does object, the representative can sell only under court supervision.
Santa Clara County's local rules also require a copy of the notice, with proof of service, to be filed with the court.
Court-confirmed sales and overbids
When the representative has limited authority, or someone objects to a proposed sale, the sale goes to the court for confirmation. In the courts we checked:
Notice of sale. Santa Clara County's rules require published notice of intention to sell unless the will gives a power of sale, and say the notice is a solicitation for offers: no offer can be accepted before the notice period ends.
The contract. The representative accepts an offer subject to court confirmation. Santa Clara County expects the petition to confirm within 30 days after the contract is accepted, with a copy of the contract filed. Form DE-260 notes that a buyer may file the petition once 30 days have passed since the sale.
Price and appraisal. On form DE-265, the court finds for a private sale that the bid is 90% or more of the appraised value, as appraised within one year of the hearing. If the hearing is more than a year after the date of death, DE-260 requires a reappraisal, and Alameda County's rules say the probate referee does it unless the court waived the referee.
Notice of hearing. Alameda County requires notice of the confirmation hearing to be mailed at least 15 days before the hearing to all heirs and beneficiaries who may have an interest in the property.
At the hearing, other buyers can overbid. Form DE-260 sets the minimum overbid as the original bid plus 10% of the first $10,000 of that bid plus 5% of the rest. On a $1,000,000 bid, that is $1,000 plus $49,500, for a minimum overbid of $1,050,500. Alameda County requires bidders to appear at the hearing, and a buyer who overbids in court must bring cash, a money order or a certified check for 10% of the minimum overbid. Santa Clara County does not allow telephone appearances on petitions to confirm a sale of real property.
Before confirming, the court finds on DE-265 that notice was given, that the sale was legally made and fairly conducted, that the price isn't disproportionate to the value, and that the representative made reasonable efforts to get the highest price reasonably attainable. The order states any commission it approves, or that none is payable, and directs the representative to sign the conveyance once the price is received.
Selling a house held in a trust
When the house is in a trust, the trustee sells under the powers in the trust document. Alameda County's trust page notes two deadlines that affect timing. If the trust is irrevocable when the person who made it dies, the trustee has 60 days after becoming trustee, or after the death if that is later, to give written notice to all beneficiaries of the trust and each heir (Probate Code section 16061.7, which the page cites). A beneficiary then has 120 days after getting that notice, or 60 days after a copy of the trust is mailed or served, whichever is later, to start a legal action to contest the trust. The page also says the trustee must give beneficiaries periodic reports.
Ask the trust's attorney whether to list before the contest period ends.
Preparing the house and the paperwork
Disclosure rules for sales by an executor or trustee are covered in our guide to selling a house as is in California. Pull the house's records using our guide to checking permit history, and plan for the probate referee's appraisal to be the number the court compares bids against. If an heir may keep the house instead, read our guide to Prop 19 and inherited homes.
This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Probate and trust sales turn on the documents and the court's local rules, so work with a probate or trust attorney and a tax advisor, and check your county superior court's rules.
Frequently asked questions
How long does a probate home sale take in California?
The California Courts self-help page says formal probate typically takes 9 to 18 months, sometimes longer. A sale can happen during that time once the representative has authority.
Can another buyer outbid me at a probate confirmation hearing?
In a court-confirmed sale, yes, if the overbid meets the minimum on form DE-260. A sale under full IAEA authority with a Notice of Proposed Action and no objection doesn't go to a confirmation hearing.
What is the small-estate limit for an inherited house?
For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, it is $750,000 for the primary residence procedure and $69,625 for the small-value affidavit, under the current forms. Earlier deaths use the limits in effect at the time.
Related reading
Selling a Mid-Century Modern Home: What to Fix and What to Leave
Mid-Century Home Inspection Checklist: What to Check, System by System
Staging a Mid-Century Modern Home: Scale, Sightlines and Restraint
Transfer a House to a Living Trust in California: Deed and Taxes
More guides on this topic: Buying & Selling a Mid-Century Modern Home
Handling a parent's mid-century house through probate or a trust? Call or text the Boyenga Team at Compass at (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or contact the Boyenga Team to plan the listing around the court's or the trust's timeline.
