Probate is the legal term for when someone is given permission by the court to manage a deceased person’s estate by way of a Grant of Probate. This includes collecting their assets, paying off any debts and the distribution of the remaining assets to the beneficiaries, who are either named in a will or are next-of-kin.
Sadly, dealing with probate is something few of us are particularly prepared for or really know the ins and outs of until we are forced to when someone near to us passes away. As probate often includes dealing with the deceased person’s home, the term ‘probate property’ has found its way into common use.
When a loved one passes away, their will usually names a person to deal with their estate, which might be a family member or a solicitor or other professional. This person is called the executor and assumes responsibility by way of obtaining probate which allows them to act on the deceased person’s behalf as a personal representative (abbreviated to PR).
What happens next to the probate property depends on any stipulations in the will or what the beneficiaries plan on doing with it. In some cases, the personal representative will assent the property to the person who is inheriting it, or they will need to deal with selling the probate property.
If the decision is made to sell the probate property, there are a number of things that the personal representative will need to manage whilst the property is being prepared for sale and during the sales process. Unfortunately, if you have no experience of managing probate property you can underestimate the amount of work in administrating it, including protecting the property until it is sold, obtaining the right valuation and achieving a sale.
That’s why we established The Probate Property Shop. We are a specialist probate estate agency that makes the management and sale of probate property simpler and less stressful for our clients at what is already a difficult time. We offer a range of probate property services including open market valuation, property inspection, property management and of course, property sales.
In the first instance, we strongly recommend that you talk to a professional solicitor who will be able to help you with the legal aspects of probate. As property experts, we’ve had many years of dealing with probate solicitors and are happy to recommend one to you.
For more information about how we can help with managing and selling probate property, contact us on 020 3758 7650 or e-mail enquiries@theprobatepropertyshop.com.