Inheriting a House in Georgia: Probate, Taxes, and Selling

You inherited a house in Georgia - here’s what actually happens

First: nothing has to happen this week. The house is not going anywhere, and the mortgage company cannot demand immediate payoff just because the owner died.

Georgia probate runs through the probate court of the county where the person lived, and the state offers a wider menu of paths than most - from full administration down to a shortcut where the court simply declares that no administration is needed at all. Since July 2024, Georgia also has a transfer on death deed, so newer estates may skip probate for the house entirely.

Which path applies depends on whether there is a will, whether the estate has debts, and how the family gets along. And if you live out of state - common with inherited Georgia property, especially around fast-growing Atlanta - all of it can be handled remotely with the right local help.

Does it go through probate?

Run the exceptions first:

• Transfer on death deed - new since July 1, 2024. Georgia now allows TOD deeds. If the owner recorded one, the house passes outside probate - but with a deadline that catches people: the beneficiary must record an acceptance affidavit (with the death certificate) within nine months of the death, or the property falls back into the estate. If you find a TOD deed in the county records, act on it promptly.
• Living trust. A house titled to a revocable living trust passes outside probate; the successor trustee handles or sells it.
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship. Passes automatically to the surviving co-owner. (Note Georgia deeds must say this explicitly - co-ownership without survivorship language means the deceased owner’s share goes through their estate.)
• Heirs can take title without administration. Georgia law vests title in the heirs when a person dies without a will and no administration is opened. If there are no debts and all heirs agree, the family can petition the probate court for an order declaring no administration necessary - a genuine shortcut that clears title without appointing anyone.
• Year’s support. A Georgia specialty: a surviving spouse or minor children can petition for “year’s support,” which can transfer the house to them directly - and it can even wipe out certain liens and claims. Powerful in the right situation; needs a lawyer’s judgment.

With a valid will, the normal course is probating it in “solemn form” and appointing the executor. Most Georgia wills waive bond, inventories, and reports, making administration relatively light. Without a will and with debts or family friction, the court appoints an administrator - a more supervised path.

The Georgia probate timeline

For a routine estate with a will, plan on roughly eight months to a year:

1. Filing (weeks 1-4). The will and petition are filed in the decedent’s county. Heirs must be notified; if everyone acknowledges service, things move quickly - chasing scattered relatives is the classic early delay.
2. Letters issued (months 1-3). The court admits the will and issues letters testamentary (or letters of administration without a will).
3. Notice to creditors (months 2-5). Publication starts a three-month window for claims; creditors’ rights shape when distributions are safe.
4. Administration (months 3-10). Debts and taxes paid, the house maintained, rented, or sold.
5. Closing (month 8+). Many executors are excused from formal reporting by the will; otherwise a petition for discharge wraps things up.

No-administration-necessary orders and year’s support petitions can resolve simple situations in a few months. Will contests or missing heirs push past a year.

Taxes when you inherit

The essentials are friendly: Georgia has no inheritance tax and no estate tax (its old estate tax has been dead since the federal credit that fed it disappeared two decades ago). You owe Georgia nothing for inheriting.

Federal estate tax only applies to estates above $15 million per person (2026) - not a concern for nearly all families.

The fact worth the most money is the stepped-up basis. When you inherit, the house’s cost basis for capital gains purposes resets to fair market value at the date of death. A house bought for $85,000 in the 1990s that is worth $430,000 today gives you a $430,000 basis - sell around that price soon after, and there is little or no capital gains tax. Decades of metro-Atlanta appreciation, never income-taxed. Federal law, applies everywhere. If you keep the house, only growth after the date of death is taxable when you eventually sell - so document the date-of-death value now.

Property taxes continue as normal. Any homestead exemption or senior school-tax exemption the owner had falls off when the home stops being an owner’s primary residence - budget for a higher bill if you keep it as a rental.

Can you sell during probate in Georgia?

Usually yes, with the mechanics depending on the path:

• Will with a power of sale (the common case). Most Georgia wills grant the executor an express power of sale. The executor can list and sell the house without a court order - an executor’s deed at closing, proceeds to the estate. Title companies will want the letters testamentary.
• No power of sale, or no will. An administrator (or an executor without the power) generally needs leave to sell from the probate court - a petition with notice to heirs, routine but slower.
• Heirs after title vests. If the house passed by TOD deed, no-administration order, or year’s support, the new owners sell as ordinary sellers - all owners sign.
• A practical note on timing. Georgia title practice cares about debts and the creditor window; selling very early in an administration is possible, but expect the closing attorney (Georgia closings run through attorneys) to verify the estate paperwork carefully.

If you live out of state

Georgia handles out-of-state heirs and executors constantly:

• Non-residents can serve as executor under a will. For intestate administrations, an out-of-state administrator will typically need to post bond and appoint a Georgia agent - your attorney arranges both.
• Nearly everything legal can run remotely: Georgia probate courts widely accept e-filing, and acknowledgments of service can be signed wherever the heirs live.
• The house needs local hands - summer growth that draws HOA or code letters fast, humidity working on a closed-up house, insurance on a vacant property (call the insurer early), and clearing out belongings.
• A local agent experienced with estate sales is your presence on the ground: property checks, cleanout crews, contractor bids, an honest read on selling as-is versus updating, and running the sale while you stay home.

What’s the house worth?

Every decision - keep, rent, sell as-is, or renovate first - starts with a real number. Automated estimates are weakest exactly where inherited houses live: original-condition homes in metro-Atlanta neighborhoods where flipped comps distort the algorithm, or small-town and rural properties with acreage the models handle poorly.

Get the fair market value at the date of death documented (it sets your stepped-up basis), plus a current as-is value and a fixed-up value. The spread between those last two tells you whether repairs are worth managing from out of state. A local agent can pull all three numbers for free.

Frequently asked questions

How long does probate take in Georgia? A routine estate with a will: commonly eight months to a year. Simple no-administration or year’s support cases: a few months. TOD deed and trust property transfer outside probate in weeks.

Does Georgia have an inheritance or estate tax? No, neither. Federal estate tax applies only above $15 million (2026). With the stepped-up basis, capital gains tax generally applies only to appreciation after the date of death.

We found a transfer on death deed. What’s the deadline? Record the beneficiary’s acceptance affidavit with the death certificate within nine months of the death in the county’s superior court clerk records - miss it and the property reverts to the estate.

Can the executor sell the house without court permission? If the will grants a power of sale, generally yes. Without one - or without a will - the fiduciary petitions the probate court for leave to sell.

Nobody opened an estate and there’s no will. Can we sell the house? Title vests in the heirs, and if the estate has no debts and all heirs agree, a no-administration-necessary order (or simply establishing heirship to the closing attorney’s satisfaction) can clear the way. Expect the closing attorney to require solid proof of who the heirs are.