Seller Situation
You inherited a house. Maybe your parents' rowhome, maybe an aunt's twin. Now you have keys, a tax bill, and decisions to make. Here are your real options — honestly described.
What You're Dealing With
Inheriting a house in Philly is rarely simple. Grief is still there. Family members disagree. The house might be empty, might have stuff in it going back 40 years, might need work you never noticed when you were visiting.
And the clock starts ticking. Property taxes keep coming. Water bills don't stop. Insurance has to stay paid. If the house is vacant, insurers often charge more — or cancel the policy after 60 days. So a decision has to get made. Here's how to think about it.
Your Real Options
If the house is in decent shape and you can wait 3-6 months, this nets the most money. You'll pay about 6% in commissions and probably need to clean it out, maybe paint or make small repairs. An agent will manage showings and negotiate. Pick this if the house is presentable, you can carry the costs for a few months, and you want maximum dollar.
You list it online (Zillow, FSBO.com), show it yourself, negotiate yourself, and pay for your own title/legal work. You save the agent commission but take on all the work. Pick this if you have time, patience, and some real estate knowledge. Most inherited-house sellers don't have the bandwidth for it.
You get a written cash offer, you don't fix anything, you don't clean anything out, you close in 30-60 days. The offer is below retail — usually 25% to 55% of what the house would sell for fixed up. Pick this if the house needs work, you're out of state, the family wants it done fast, or you just want the keys out of your life.
When Covenant Fits
Philly Specifics
In Pennsylvania, you can't sell an inherited house until probate assigns someone the legal authority to sign. That person is called an 'executor' (if there was a will) or an 'administrator' (if there wasn't).
The Philadelphia Register of Wills (Room 185, City Hall) issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. Once you have those Letters, you can sign to sell. It typically takes 4-8 weeks to get them after submitting the paperwork. A probate lawyer can speed things up if the estate is complicated.
Pennsylvania also has an inheritance tax (not a federal estate tax — a state tax). For children inheriting from a parent, the rate is 4.5% of the estate value. The estate usually owes this within 9 months. Your probate lawyer will walk you through it.
Where
Related
Situation Questions
You can sign a contract and start the process, but you can't actually close until the Register of Wills has issued Letters and the sale is approved. A good probate lawyer can get this done in 6-10 weeks.
Every heir with an ownership share has to sign. If one heir refuses, you can sometimes buy out their share, or you may need to file a partition action in court. It's harder, but it's not unusual.
No. Leave anything you don't want. We'll handle the cleanout after closing. Take what matters to you and leave the rest.
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