If your parent is living
Your parent signs the listing and sale documents, or an agent under a valid power of attorney signs for them. The title company will review the power of attorney before closing, so get a copy to us early. If your parent is moving to assisted living or memory care, we can time the sale around the move.
If your parent has passed away
- Transfer-on-death deed: Minnesota allows these (Minn. Stat. § 507.071). The named beneficiary records an affidavit of survivorship and can then sell without probate.
- Joint tenancy: the surviving owner usually becomes the sole owner.
- Trust: the trustee sells under the trust's terms.
- Probate: otherwise, the court appoints a personal representative who can sell the home. Minnesota's small-estate affidavit (Minn. Stat. § 524.3-1201) is for personal property and can't be used to transfer real estate.
A probate attorney tells you which applies; we work alongside them.
Cleanout, repairs and selling as-is
Many families sell a parent's home as-is rather than coordinating repairs from a distance. We can coordinate estate-sale companies, cleanout crews and contractors, handle showings when family lives out of state, and compare an as-is listing with a cash offer.
Taxes for heirs
Heirs generally receive a "stepped-up" basis equal to the home's value at the date of death, so a prompt sale often has little taxable gain. See taxes when you sell, and confirm with the estate's CPA.