Inherited a House in Maryland? What Are the Probate Basics?

What are the basics of probate if I inherit a house in Maryland?
Probate is the legal process of collecting a person's property, paying debts, and passing the rest to the people entitled to it. In Maryland you start at the Register of Wills in the county where the person lived. This is general information, not legal advice. Talk with an estate attorney, and check the rules with the Register of Wills.

The Mike Webb Team (Mike and Claudia Webb, RE/MAX Allegiance) helps homeowners in Arlington, Northern Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, DC get their homes ready to sell and sold.

The Register of Wills in each county appoints personal representatives and oversees estates. The office helps with forms for administrative probate, but it cannot give legal advice. The Orphans' Court steps in when an estate cannot be handled administratively, such as when a will is questioned. Source: Registers of Wills, Administering Estates in Maryland.

Probate covers property owned only by the person, or as a tenant in common. A home held in joint tenancy passes to the surviving owner automatically. Check the deed and ask an attorney how it is titled.

The Maryland Register of Wills says an estate opens as a small estate when the probate assets are worth $50,000 or less, or $100,000 or less when the surviving spouse is the only heir. Value is fair market value less debts of record on the property, such as a mortgage. A small estate has fewer requirements, and the Register says almost all are handled administratively under the Register's guidance. For estates opened on or after October 1, 2022, a small estate has no required fee to the Register. For small estates, the tax assessment value may be used instead of a formal appraisal. Sources: Register of Wills, Small Estates and Opening an Estate.

A regular estate is one above those amounts. The Register says a regular estate needs either a nominal bond or a personal representative bond, and newspaper publication, in every case.

If there is a will, the original must be filed with the Register of Wills promptly after death, even if it is not going to be offered for probate. Then a petition is filed, and the Register issues Letters of Administration to the personal representative. If that person lives outside Maryland, a resident agent form is also needed.

If there was no will, call the Register of Wills for the steps. The Register says it will explain the procedure for an estate with no will or with only a copy of the will.

The Register's list of what you may need to open an estate includes:

• The death certificate, or other proof of death if the certificate is not ready
• The original will, unless it cannot be found
• Consents to appointment from interested persons, if the named personal representative cannot serve or there is no will
• Documentation for funeral expenses
• The value of assets in the person's name alone
• Names and addresses of the heirs and others who inherit
• Any filing fee that applies

The Register calls this a partial list and says to call the Register of Wills in the county where the person lived to learn which forms apply to you.

In a regular estate, the inventory is due within three months of appointment and the first account within nine months. A creditor's claim must come in by the earlier of six months after death or 30 days after notice. Ask your attorney or the Register about your dates.

The booklet lists selling property among a personal representative's powers, under the will and the law. Ask an attorney before you list. After that, we help get the home ready. Through The White Glove Home Sale Method, we handle painting, repairs, staging and deep cleaning at no additional cost to you. Read Selling an Inherited Home: Cleanout, Repairs, Staging.

Each place has its own court, its own forms, and its own deadlines, so a Maryland answer does not carry over. In Maryland the Register of Wills handles the opening of the estate. For a home in Virginia, see Inherited a House in Virginia? What to Do First and Probate in Virginia: How Long It Takes, First Steps.

• Inherited a House in Virginia? What to Do First
• Probate in Virginia: How Long It Takes, First Steps
• Selling an Inherited Home: Cleanout, Repairs, Staging
• Inherited Property in Arlington, VA: First Steps
• Sell or Keep Inherited Home in Arlington, VA?

Does Maryland have an inheritance tax?
The Register's booklet has a section on it. Whether it applies depends on who inherits. Ask the Register or a tax professional.

Are Virginia's rules the same?
No. Each state has its own. See Inherited a House in Virginia? What to Do First.

Do I need an attorney?
The Register's staff cannot give legal advice, so for anything unclear, ask an estate attorney.

Call or text Claudia at 703-350-3884 or visit claudiawebb.com.

The Mike Webb Team, RE/MAX Allegiance. Arlington, Virginia. Equal Housing Opportunity.