Team Modern X hears regularly from someone who has just inherited a parent’s house in Nassau, Suffolk or Queens. One sibling wants to sell now, another wants to wait, and the “we buy houses” postcards have started. Here is the order of operations. We are agents, not attorneys or accountants; have yours confirm the legal and tax points.
Step 1: Find out who has the right to sell
In New York an inherited house usually cannot be sold until the Surrogate’s Court in the county where the person lived appoints someone to act for the estate: letters testamentary to the executor named in the will, or letters of administration to a family member when there is no will. Until then, nobody can sign a listing agreement or a contract of sale for the estate. The exception is a house that passed outside the estate (held jointly with right of survivorship, or in a trust), where the surviving owner or trustee can sell without probate. An estate attorney will tell you which case you are in; make that call first. Letters can take weeks or months; meanwhile keep the mortgage, taxes, insurance and utilities paid, and tell the insurer if the house is empty.
Step 2: Decide together: sell, keep or buy out
When several heirs share a house, the choices are to sell and split the proceeds, to have one heir buy the others out, or to keep it as a rental. We prepare a free market analysis for estates with two numbers, as-is and after basic preparation, so the family is discussing a number, not a feeling. Request it at How much is my home worth?
Step 3: List it or take a cash offer?
Estates are the most common reason people take a cash offer, and sometimes it is the right call for a house that needs major work and heirs who live far away. But investors build in a discount, commonly 15 to 30 percent below market value, a gap of tens of thousands of dollars split among the heirs. For an estate house in reasonable condition we usually recommend a clean-out, a light refresh, professional photos and a full-market launch. We lay out both numbers; see Cash Offer or List? Either way, sign nothing from a cash buyer before the letters are issued and the attorney has read it.
Step 4: Clear it out, but do not over-renovate
Buyers expect an older kitchen and price their renovation into the offer; a new kitchen rarely pays back on an estate sale. What does pay back: removing the contents, fixing anything that affects safety or financing, and a deep clean. Handle open permits early: finished basements, dormers and extensions without a certificate of occupancy are common, and the buyer’s attorney will find them.
Step 5: Contract and closing, New York style
New York closings are attorney-driven: the estate’s attorney drafts the contract, the buyer inspects before signing, and the down payment (commonly 10 percent) sits in escrow until closing. One point that surprises heirs: the Property Condition Disclosure Statement New York has required from most sellers of one-to-four family homes since March 2024 generally does not apply to a sale by an executor or administrator settling an estate; your attorney will confirm. Accepted offer to closing typically takes 60 to 90 days; details in Selling a Home in New York.
What it costs, and the tax rules that matter
- Selling costs are the same as any New York sale: commission, the attorney’s fee, New York State transfer tax of $2 per $500 of the price, and in the five boroughs the New York City transfer tax of 1 percent under $500,000 or 1.425 percent at or above. The 1 percent mansion tax at $1,000,000 and up is paid by the buyer.
- Capital gains and the stepped-up basis. For federal tax purposes an inherited house’s cost basis resets to its fair market value on the date of death, so gain is measured only on appreciation after that date, and a sale soon after usually produces little or no taxable gain. The $250,000/$500,000 primary-residence exclusion generally does not help heirs who never lived there. A date-of-death appraisal documents the new basis.
- Estate tax. New York and federal estate taxes apply only to larger estates; ask the estate attorney or accountant whether either is in play.
- Property tax exemptions end. Enhanced STAR, senior and veteran exemptions belonged to the late owner and do not transfer, so the buyer’s tax bill will be higher than the one in the kitchen drawer; see Long Island property taxes.
Confirm every tax point with an accountant; we are not tax advisors. Local market detail: Nassau County, Suffolk County and Queens and the Bronx.
Frequently asked questions
Can I list the house before probate is finished?
You can prepare: get the valuation, plan the clean-out, line up the attorney and the agent. But the listing agreement and the contract need a court-appointed executor or administrator to sign, so the listing waits for the letters unless the house passed outside probate.
Do all the heirs have to agree to sell?
If the will gives the executor the power to sell, the executor sells and distributes the proceeds as the will directs. If the house has been deeded to several heirs, each co-owner signs. Your attorney can explain the options if the family disagrees.
Do you help with estates in Spanish?
Yes. Richard is bilingual and works with families across Nassau and Queens in Spanish. Versión en español.
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Team Modern X, Jason Mitchell Real Estate NY. 45 Cherry Valley Ave, West Hempstead, NY 11552. Open Mon–Fri 9am–7pm, Sat 10am–5pm.