Q: House Deed, home Appraisal, avoid probate, personal property, which order do I do these things in?
So my father passed away almost 40 days ago. The estate including personal property should be less than 150k (California) so not going through probate. I need to get the deed of the house transfered to my name. My father also had a bank account with about 10k. I'm wanting to use an affidavit to transfer ownership of the account. I heard that I need to get an appraisal done of the house before I can get the account. So my question is, which order do I do this all in? Do I need the deed transfered to my name first before I can get an appraisal done to ultimately transfer the account?
A:
Dear La Puente:
You will need to get your appraisal done first, as it will set the date of death value from which you will calculate the total value of the estate. You do not need the property transferred to you first.
I would suggest using a California Probate Referee, as they do the date of death appraisals for probate matters.
You can locate one here: http://probatereferees.net/
Once you get the home appraised, you can complete the rest of the inventory and appraisal listing all other assets. If the estate is still under $150,000, exclusive of encumbrances, then you can proceed to use an affidavit to transfer the account, and the Petition to Determine Succession to Real Property simultaneously.
If you have any further questions, I would enlist the help of an attorney. Your local county bar association can refer you to an attorney for a low or no cost consultation.
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