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why a probate appraisal?
Whether or not you plan on selling a property in the estate...
At some point, whether or not you are selling property in the estate, at some point,
your attorney will order the services of a probate referee. It will be required when you file the Inventory and Appraisal form (Form DE160) within 120 days from the Administrator/Executor receiving "official" Letters from the court.
The probate referee will appraise the property. They will do everything that a normal appraiser would do to come up with the appraisal value. However, the one thing that the probate referee does not do is go inside the property and perform any interior inspection. They do perform a drive by to look at the outside of the property. What if the property has 30 years of deferred maintenance, a roof that needs to be replaced, termite damage, mold?
How could the probate referee come up with an accurate appraisal value?
Let's use a real scenario, a probate referee values a property at $650,000 based on the comparable homes recently sold and their drive by assessment. However, the property has 30 years of deferred maintenance, a damaged roof, termite damage, and mold. The highest offer received on this property is $475,000, and this is after many open houses and many buyers coming by to tour the property. The court will question why this property sold for $475,000 when the probate referee valued it for $650,000.
An experienced Realtor who understands the probate process, will know what to do before any problems come up. So when you, your attorney and the Realtor moves along the process and the court sees how much the property sold for versus how much it was appraised by the probate referee, the court will have no question that the property sold for market value or maybe more.
If you do not plan on selling a property in the estate, it is still a good idea to order the probate appraisal since it may affect estate taxes and the cost basis.
Order your PROBATE APPRAISAL now.
