Inherited a house

Selling an inherited house

Settling an estate is hard enough. Leave the house to us. We buy inherited houses as they sit, on the timeline that works for the family.

What selling an inherited house in Arkansas usually looks like

An inherited house usually comes with everything else: a lifetime of belongings, a yard that needs mowing, taxes and insurance that keep billing, and family members who live in three different cities. Nobody planned to become a property manager this month.

Fixing it up to sell means months of coordinating from a distance and money out of the estate before anyone sees a dollar back. Most families we work with just want one clean number and a finish line.

How we handle it

Take what matters, leave the rest

Keep the photo albums and the things that mean something. We handle everything that stays behind, from furniture to the garage shelves.

One number for the family

A written cash offer is easy to share and easy to split. Everyone sees the same figure, and it does not change at closing.

Your timeline, not ours

Every estate is different. Tell us where things stand and we will schedule the closing around it.

How an inherited house moves in Arkansas

Most people who inherit a house in Arkansas have never dealt with probate before. Here is what the law actually requires, in the order you will usually meet it. Knowing the path makes it easier to decide what you want to do with the house.

Title passes at the death

In Arkansas the house passes to the heirs, or to whoever the will names, the moment the owner dies. Under Arkansas Code 28-9-206 that comes subject to a surviving spouse's dower or curtesy, homestead rights, statutory allowances, and any administration of the estate. If two or more people inherit, 28-9-207 makes them tenants in common. A will proves nothing about title until a court admits it to probate.
Where it gets filed, and how long you have

Estate matters go to the probate division of the circuit court in the county where the person lived. In some counties the county clerk handles probate filings, so call the courthouse and ask. Arkansas sets a $150 fee to start a case in circuit court. Under 28-40-103 no will may be admitted to probate and no administration granted more than five years after the death, with a few exceptions.
The small estate path

Arkansas allows collection of a small estate by a distributee under 28-41-101. It is open when nobody has petitioned for a personal representative, 45 days have passed since the death, and the property, less what is owed on it, is worth $100,000 or less. The homestead and any statutory allowances for a spouse or minor children are left out of that math. Filing costs $25, plus $5 per certified copy.
Notice, then a deed

When a small estate includes real property, notice must be published within 30 days after the affidavit is filed, and creditors then get three months from that first publication. Under 28-41-102, once those three months pass with no unsatisfied claim, the person receiving the property may issue a deed of distribution and must tell the county assessor. If a claim comes in that cannot be paid another way, a full administration has to be opened.
Full administration and a court-approved sale

In a full administration the court appoints a personal representative who publishes notice to creditors, and claims must be presented within six months of the first publication under 28-50-101. Real property does not land in that person's hands automatically; under 28-49-101 that happens when the will directs it or the court finds it should be sold. Selling then takes a court order, a sworn valuation, and the court's confirmation before a deed is delivered.
Rights that can hold up a deed

If someone dies leaving a spouse and children, 28-11-301 generally gives that spouse a life estate in one third of the land. Under 28-11-201 a deed signed by one spouse alone does not pass the other's dower or curtesy, so that signature can matter even when the spouse is not an heir. Under 28-51-104 the homestead cannot be sold to pay the decedent's debts while the surviving spouse or minor children still live there.

Your options for the house

Selling to a cash buyer is one path, and it is not right for every family. Here is a plain look at the usual choices, including the ones that have nothing to do with us.

Sell on the open market

Once title is clear and everyone with a share signs, you can sell the traditional way, which often brings the highest price. That usually means repairs, cleaning the house out, showings, and waiting on a buyer's financing. Someone has to carry the taxes, insurance, and utilities the whole time.

Keep it, or buy the other heirs out

Some families rent the house, or let one heir stay and buy out the other shares. That keeps the property in the family and skips a sale. It does mean agreeing on a value, finding the cash, and splitting taxes, insurance, and repairs until it is settled.

Ask a court to divide or sell it

If the owners cannot agree, any one of them can file a partition case under 18-60-401. When it is heirs property, the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act gives the other cotenants 45 days after notice to buy out whoever asked for a sale, at a price based on the court's determination of value. If nobody does, the court favors dividing the land in kind. Either way it costs time and legal fees.

Sell the house to us as-is

We buy houses in Central Arkansas in any condition. You get a guaranteed cash offer within 24 hours, and once the estate can convey, we close in less than 10 days with no showings, no open houses, and no repairs. The tradeoff is honest: an as-is cash price is usually below what a fully repaired house brings on the open market.

If the estate has an attorney, we are glad to work directly with them. It usually makes things faster for everyone.

Same promise as every house we buy.

A guaranteed cash offer within 24 hours. No repairs, no showings, no fees. Close in less than 10 days, or on your timeline. See the whole process.

Get my cash offer

Questions sellers ask us

Can I sell an inherited house in Arkansas before probate is finished?

You can usually sign a contract, because the property passed to the heirs at the death under 28-9-206. Closing depends on how title is being cleared. On the small estate path, a deed of distribution can issue once the three month claims window under 28-41-102 runs with no unsatisfied claim. In an administration, a sale needs a court order and confirmation first.

Do all the heirs have to agree to sell the house?

If two or more people inherited it, 28-9-207 makes them tenants in common, so every owner signs to convey the whole property. One owner can convey only that owner's own share, which most buyers will not take. When owners cannot agree, any one of them can file a partition case under 18-60-401.

Does an affidavit of heirship transfer an inherited house in Arkansas?

Arkansas has no statute that lets an affidavit of heirship transfer title to real property on its own. Arkansas does have a scrivener's affidavit under 18-12-108, which may state facts about heirship and is admissible as evidence, but it records facts rather than conveying anything. Title still moves by a deed from the owners, a small estate deed of distribution, a confirmed sale, or a court order.

Do I pay capital gains tax when I sell an inherited house in Arkansas?

Usually little or none, thanks to the stepped-up basis. Federal law at 26 U.S.C. 1014 generally gives inherited property a basis equal to its fair market value on the date of death, so you owe tax only on gain above that value. Arkansas has no estate or inheritance tax. It does charge a real property transfer tax of $3.30 per $1,000 of consideration on deals over $100, split half and half unless you agree otherwise.

What happens to the mortgage on an inherited house?

The loan does not disappear. Under 28-50-101 the six month claims bar does not stop a lender from enforcing a mortgage or other lien, so payments, taxes, and insurance still matter. Federal law at 12 U.S.C. 1701j-3(d) bars a lender from calling the loan due just because the property passed to a relative on the borrower's death, for homes with fewer than five units.

Do I need to clean out the house?

No. Take what you want and leave the rest. We handle everything that stays behind.

Do you really buy houses in any condition?

Yes. We buy houses with bad roofs, foundation problems, fire or water damage, and houses full of belongings. You do not need to repair, clean, or clear anything out.

Is the offer really guaranteed?

Yes. You get a written cash offer with no financing contingency. If you accept it, that is the amount you are paid at closing.

We buy houses and we are not attorneys, so please have a lawyer review anything specific to your family, your title, and your county.

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Prefer to talk now? Call (501) 251-9330.