How do I sell a house I inherited?
First make sure you have the legal right to sell it, which usually means a probate court has appointed you executor or administrator, or the house has already passed into your name. Then agree with any other heirs, keep the loan, taxes and insurance paid until closing, and sell it as-is or after repairs; tax is usually owed only on any gain above the house's value on the date of death.
By Andy Rong
Published
This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Laws change and every situation is different, so check yours with a professional.
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Who has the right to sell an inherited house?
Only the person with legal authority over the house can sign the deed. While an estate is open, that's usually the executor named in the will or the administrator the court appoints when there's no will, once the court gives them letters testamentary or letters of administration. After the estate is settled, it's whoever the house was passed to.
Some houses skip probate. Texas, Georgia, Indiana, Missouri and Kansas let an owner record a transfer-on-death or beneficiary deed that passes the house to a named person at death without probate (Tex. Est. Code ch. 114, Georgia SB 420, Ind. Code § 32-17-14, RSMo § 461.025, K.S.A. 59-3501). In Georgia, the beneficiary has to record an affidavit and the death certificate within nine months of the death, or the house goes back into the estate. A house owned jointly with a right of survivorship passes to the surviving owner. A title company can tell you whose signatures it will need once it searches the title, so ask one early.
If the estate is still in probate, selling a house during probate explains when the court has to approve the sale in each state.
Do I have to pay taxes when I sell an inherited house?
Often little or none. The inheritance itself isn't income to you (IRS Publication 525). When you sell, your gain is the sale price minus the house's basis, and the basis of inherited property is generally its fair market value on the date of death (IRS Publication 551), so if you sell soon for about what it was worth then, there may be little or no gain to tax. Any gain is treated as long-term, however long you owned the house (IRS Publication 550).
Estate tax is a separate question, and it reaches only large estates: the federal exclusion is $15,000,000 for 2026 (IRS), and none of the states where Covent buys has a state estate or inheritance tax in 2026 (Tax Foundation).
Tax rules depend on how the house passed to you and what you do with it, so talk to a CPA or tax preparer before you sell. This is general information, not tax advice.
What happens to the mortgage on an inherited house?
It stays in place until it's paid off. Tell the servicer about the death, and expect to show proof of your right to the home (CFPB). If the house is already in your name, federal rules don't require the servicer to check your ability to repay before you take over the loan (CFPB), and federal law generally keeps a lender from calling a home loan due just because it passed to a relative at the borrower's death, at least when that relative lives in the house (12 U.S.C. § 1701j-3).
Keep paying the mortgage, property taxes and insurance until the sale closes if you can, and keep the receipts; the estate's attorney can tell you how they're paid back. At closing, the title company pays the loan off in full from the sale price.
What should I do with the house before I sell?
- Call the homeowners insurance company. Many policies limit coverage once a house has been empty for a while, typically 30 to 60 days in a row (Insurance Information Institute), and in Texas most companies stop coverage once it has been vacant for 60 days (Texas Department of Insurance).
- Change the locks, and keep the utilities on so the pipes don't freeze and a buyer's inspector can test the systems.
- Take out the papers, photos and valuables the family wants to keep. Most cash buyers will take the house with the rest still inside, so you don't have to clear it out.
- Find the deed, the latest tax bill and the mortgage statement, so the title company can order the payoff.
What if the heirs don't agree about selling?
When several heirs own a house together, each one usually has to sign the sale. If one wants to keep it, the others can offer to buy that heir's share, or the heir can buy theirs. When co-owners can't agree, any of them can ask a court to divide or sell the property, called a partition, but that takes time and money, so a mediator or a probate attorney is often a better first call.
Selling to Covent Homes
An inherited house is often far away, full of belongings or in need of repairs. Covent Homes buys it as-is, so the family doesn't have to clean it out or fix it first.
No repairs or cleaning. You don't repair, paint or clean up for us. We buy the house in the condition it's in.
No showings before you sign. Nobody walks through your house before we have a signed contract, so there are no strangers in your home while you decide.
You pick the day. Choose a closing day 14 to 60 days out, and you get paid at closing.
Closing costs paid. Covent pays the closing costs, including title and escrow fees. You pay off your own mortgage or liens.
Stay 10 days free. After closing, you can stay in the house up to 10 days at no cost, so there's no rush to move.
Cash, no financing. We pay cash, with no lender and no financing contingency, so a buyer's loan can't fall through.
Questions homeowners ask
Can I sell an inherited house before probate is finished?
Often, yes, if the court has appointed an executor or administrator with the power to sell, but some states need a judge's approval for the sale. Selling a house during probate goes through each state.
Can I sell an inherited house that still has a mortgage?
Yes. The loan is paid off from the sale price at closing, like any other sale. If the house is worth less than the loan, the lender has to approve a short sale.
Do I have to clean out an inherited house before selling it?
Not if the buyer takes it as-is. Take what the family wants to keep, and ask the buyer in writing what you can leave behind.
Do I have to make repairs or clean out the house?
No. Covent buys the house as it is today. Leave behind anything you don't want to take with you.
Read more about your situation
Sources
The public pages this guide's facts and figures come from.
- Texas Legislature: Texas Estates Code, Chapter 114
- Office of the Governor of Georgia: SB 420 (2024), transfer on death deeds
- Indiana General Assembly: Indiana Code, Title 32
- Missouri Revisor of Statutes: Missouri Revised Statutes § 461.025: Deeds effective on death of owner
- Kansas Revisor of Statutes: Kansas Statutes 59-3501
- Internal Revenue Service: Publication 525: Taxable and Nontaxable Income
- Internal Revenue Service: Publication 551: Basis of Assets
- Internal Revenue Service: Publication 550: Investment Income and Expenses
- Internal Revenue Service: What's new: Estate and gift tax
- Tax Foundation: Estate and Inheritance Taxes by State, 2026
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: How do I get mortgage information about a home I inherited?
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: I recently inherited a house. Does the lender have to determine my ability to repay before I take over the loan?
- Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School: 12 U.S. Code § 1701j-3: Preemption of due-on-sale prohibitions
- Insurance Information Institute: When No One's Home: Understanding the Role of Vacancy Insurance
- Texas Department of Insurance: Home insurance guide
About the author
Andy Rong leads Covent Homes, which buys houses for cash, as-is, from homeowners in Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, and North Carolina.
Andy writes these guides to answer the questions homeowners ask before they sell, in plain words, with a public source for every fact and number.
Andy isn't a lawyer, an accountant or a financial adviser. The guides give general information, and each one says when it's time to talk to one.