Selling an inherited house in Delaware
When someone dies owning a Delaware house in their name alone, the house almost never passes without the Register of Wills. Someone has to open an estate, list the property in an inventory, and sort out who has the authority to sign a deed. None of that has to be done fast, but taxes, insurance and upkeep keep coming due while it is. This page covers the Delaware process, the county offices, and how families usually weigh keeping it against selling.
The deadline that matters: the inventory, three months after lettersWithin three months of being granted letters, the executor or administrator must file an inventory with the Register of Wills that lists every Delaware parcel by parcel number and values it as of the date of death (12 Del. C. § 1905). That number matters later for taxes, so a written opinion of value from that time is worth keeping.
How an inherited house moves through Delaware probate
Delaware handles estates through the Register of Wills in each county, not through a separate probate court. The office in the county where the person lived opens the estate, and it decides who will serve as personal representative: an executor if there is a will, an administrator if there is not. Once appointed, that person receives letters, the document that banks, title companies and settlement attorneys ask to see.
Real estate is what pushes most families into a full estate. Delaware offers a short-form affidavit for small estates, but the statute bars it whenever the decedent owned Delaware real estate alone or as a tenant in common. A house titled only in a parent’s name therefore means opening an estate, even when there is little else.
Two things can keep a house out of probate. A house owned jointly with right of survivorship passes to the surviving owner. And under chapter 2 of Title 25, a Delaware owner can sign a transfer on death deed that names who inherits; if it was properly witnessed, notarized and recorded before the death, the house goes straight to the named beneficiary. The deed records office for the house’s county, the Recorder of Deeds, can confirm whether one was filed.
One quirk catches families off guard. Delaware law does not hand the executor control of the house just because letters were issued; the executor has no automatic right of possession of real estate. Who can sell depends on the will. Many Delaware wills grant the executor authority to sell real estate, and then the executor signs the deed. Without that power, the heirs or devisees who now own the house generally sign together, or the personal representative asks the Court of Chancery for an order to sell the property to pay the estate’s debts.
From the funeral to the settlement table
The statute fixes only a few of these dates. Everything else depends on the family, the will, and how busy the Register of Wills is.
- Right away
Find the will and the deed
The original will goes to the Register of Wills. The deed shows how the house was titled: alone, jointly, or with a transfer on death deed.
- When you are ready
Open the estate
Appointments are required in Sussex. Letters (testamentary with a will, of administration without one) are issued by the Register of Wills.
- Within 3 months of letters
File the inventory
Every Delaware parcel, its parcel number and its value on the date of death (§ 1905).
- Once authority is clear
Agreement of sale
Signed by the executor under a power of sale, or by all the heirs or devisees together.
- Settlement day
Deed and payoffs
A Delaware attorney conducts settlement, pays any mortgage, taxes and liens, and records the deed.
- About a year in
Estate closes
New Castle County’s Register of Wills says an estate is usually open for around a year. The sale proceeds are distributed through the estate’s accounting.
The Register of Wills in each county
File where the person lived. If the house is in another Delaware county, the executor also files a copy of the inventory there.
| County | Office | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| New Castle | Register of Wills, Louis L. Redding City/County Building, 800 N. French St. in Wilmington; call 302-395-7800 | Posts its forms online, including the inventory and a list of documents needed to open an estate; refers people to the bar’s Lawyer Referral Service at 302-478-8850. |
| Kent | Register of Wills, 555 Bay Road, Room 214, Dover, 302-744-2330 | In the same Levy Court complex as the county’s Recorder of Deeds and tax office. |
| Sussex | Register of Wills, Courthouse Annex, 5 E. Pine St. in Georgetown; call (302) 855-7875 | Opening or closing a probated estate requires an appointment; walk-ins are fit in around them. |
Staff at these offices explain the paperwork but cannot give legal advice. An estate with a house, more than one heir, or debts that might exceed the assets is worth an hour with an estate attorney before anyone signs a contract.
Three Delaware rules that change the math
Seller disclosure
Delaware’s Buyer Property Protection Act normally makes a seller hand over a written report of known defects before the buyer’s offer. Sales made by an executor or administrator while settling the estate are exempt, and so are transfers the Court of Chancery orders. Heirs who sell after the house has been deeded to them personally may not be, and the lead-based paint notice that federal law requires for most houses built before 1978 follows separate exemptions.
Transfer tax
Passing the house by will or by transfer on death deed is not a taxable transfer. Selling it is: the realty transfer tax totals 4 percent in most of the state and is split evenly between seller and buyer, and when the estate sells to us, it pays half and we pay half. Heirs who live outside Delaware should also ask about the state’s withholding on sales by nonresidents.
The third rule is the one families feel most: the tax bills keep arriving after a death. Delaware law lets a county keep collecting against the personal representative and give notice to the heirs, and a monition sale is still possible on an inherited house. If bills have gone unpaid since the death, read behind on property taxes.
Keep it, rent it, or sell it
| Route | What happens | Fits when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Move in | An heir takes the house, often buying out the others through the estate. | One heir wants to live there and can afford it. | Any mortgage still has to be paid, and the others need a fair, agreed value. |
| Lease it | A tenant moves in and the heirs split the rent. | It is ready for a tenant and one heir will act as landlord. | Delaware’s Landlord-Tenant Code applies, and repairs and vacancies come out of everyone’s share. |
| Fix it up and list it | The family pays for repairs and lists it with an agent. | There is cash for the work, time, and agreement on the budget. | Contractors, carrying costs and commission all come before anyone is paid. |
| List it as it is | An agent sells it in its current condition. | The house is in decent shape and buyers with loans can close on it. | Lender appraisals and inspections can stall a dated or damaged house. |
| Sell to a cash buyer like us | We buy as-is, contents and all, and settle when the estate is ready. | Heirs live far away, the house needs work, or nobody wants to manage a sale. | You get less than a renovated house would sell for on the open market. |
An overview only. An estate attorney can tell you who holds the authority to sell and how the proceeds must be divided.
If one heir wants the house and can carry it, keeping it in the family is often the right call. A cash sale fits when the house is a burden nobody wants: an aging place two states away, a full basement, a roof that needs replacing, and siblings who would rather divide money than manage a renovation.
What to gather
- Death certificate and the original will. The Register of Wills needs both to open the estate.
- The deed. It shows whether the house was titled alone, jointly or under a transfer on death deed. Each county’s Recorder of Deeds keeps copies.
- Letters testamentary or of administration. Proof of who speaks for the estate.
- Tax bills and any mortgage statement. Unpaid balances come off the sale proceeds at settlement.
- Contact details for every heir. Each one who must sign has to be reachable, including those living outside Delaware.
Selling an inherited house to us
- We can walk through with you or with a relative who has a key, and nobody has to clean first.
- You get a written cash number, usually within 24 hours, that the executor can share with the heirs.
- The settlement date is set around the estate: after letters are issued, and once the attorney confirms who signs.
- A Delaware attorney prepares the deed, pays off what is owed and collects the transfer tax; the net goes to the estate or the heirs.
Keep the photographs and papers that matter; the furniture can stay. See also vacant houses and houses that need repairs, or the county pages for New Castle, Kent and Sussex.
Free and low-cost helpEach Register of Wills answers process questions by phone. For an estate attorney, the Delaware State Bar Association’s Lawyer Referral Service is at 302-478-8850. When the family wants a cash figure for the house as it stands, call us at (856) 226-4289.
Related situations
- Vacant houseAn empty house during probate still needs insurance, heat in winter and someone checking on it.
- Behind on property taxesTaxes keep accruing after a death, and the county can still pursue a monition.
- House needs repairsDated kitchens, old roofs and failing systems in a house nobody has updated in decades.
- DownsizingHelping a surviving parent move to something smaller before the estate question even comes up.
Delaware inherited-house questions
Is probate required before an inherited Delaware house can be sold?
Usually yes. If the person who died owned Delaware real estate in their name alone, or as a tenant in common, an estate has to be opened with the county Register of Wills for the place they lived. The main exceptions are a house held jointly with survivorship rights and a house covered by a recorded transfer on death deed.
Can I use Delaware’s small estate affidavit for a house?
No. Under 12 Del. C. § 2306, the small estate affidavit is only available when the decedent did not own Delaware real estate solely or as a tenant in common, and the personal estate is $50,000 or less. A house in the decedent’s name alone means a full estate.
Which Register of Wills handles the estate?
The one in the county where the person lived. New Castle County’s office is at 800 N. French Street in Wilmington, Kent’s is at 555 Bay Road in Dover, and Sussex’s is at 5 E. Pine Street in Georgetown. If the house is in a different county, a copy of the inventory also goes to that county’s Register of Wills.
How long does probate take in Delaware?
The New Castle County Register of Wills says an estate typically stays open about a year. The executor has three months after letters are granted to file the inventory, and the sale of a house can happen before the estate closes once the authority to sell is clear.
Who signs the deed when an inherited Delaware house is sold?
It depends on the will and the title. If the will gives the executor a power of sale, the executor signs; if not, the heirs or devisees who now own the house usually all sign together. The settlement attorney will confirm who must sign after reading the will and the letters.
Does an executor have to fill out Delaware’s seller disclosure form?
No. The Buyer Property Protection Act, 6 Del. C. § 2577(5), exempts a transfer made by a personal representative while administering the estate of someone who has died. Heirs who sell in their own names after the estate has deeded the house to them may not fall under that exemption, and the federal lead-based paint notice for most houses built before 1978 has its own, narrower exemptions.
Is there transfer tax when a house passes by will or transfer on death deed?
No. Delaware’s realty transfer tax law excludes a will and a transfer on death deed from the documents it taxes. The tax applies when the house is later sold, split equally between seller and buyer; on a sale to Northbound, we pay our half.
What is a transfer on death deed in Delaware?
It is a deed that names who gets the house when the owner dies, without probate. Under 25 Del. C. chapter 2 it must be notarized, signed before two witnesses (one of whom is not a beneficiary) and recorded with the Recorder of Deeds before the owner’s death. The owner can revoke it at any time.
Who pays the property taxes while the estate is open?
The estate does, from its funds, and the taxes keep accruing. Delaware law lets a county keep collecting after an owner dies by proceeding against the personal representative and notifying the heirs, so an unpaid bill on an inherited house can still lead to a monition sale.
Can we sell the house with my parent’s belongings still inside?
Yes, if you sell to us. Pull out the photographs, papers and heirlooms that matter; whatever stays behind, we haul away after settlement. Check the will first in case it gives particular items to particular people.
What if one heir does not want to sell?
Then a sale usually waits until the heirs agree, because each owner has to sign. When there is no agreement, the options run through an estate attorney and, in hard cases, the Court of Chancery. We would rather hear from the heirs once they are on the same page.