Probate is supposed to settle an estate. In real life, it stalls the sale of the house for 6 to 18 months — sometimes longer. Five things cause most of the delays: missing heirs, sibling disagreement, the wrong executor, DIY paperwork, and untouched tax debt. Here is what each one looks like and what to do about it.
By Nancy Lerma · ARV Venture Group · Last updated: 2026-05-20
Probate is the court process that legally transfers a deceased person's property to the heirs. In Texas, probate runs 6 to 12 months on average. In South Carolina, 8 to 12 months. When probate stalls, the house sits — paying property taxes, insurance, possibly a mortgage — while the family waits.
Most buyers will not wait. Realtors usually cannot list.
The 5 problems below cause most of those delays.
The parent died. The will says four kids inherit. Three are in town. One has not spoken to the family in 10 years and nobody knows where they are. Probate cannot close until that fourth heir is located, served, and given the chance to sign or contest. This can take 6 months on its own.
What to do: Hire a probate attorney with a private investigator network — they find missing heirs faster than you can. Or call us — we have done this and we know the playbook.
Some heirs want to sell. Some want to keep it as a rental. Some want to live in it. One refuses to sign anything. The estate stalls because no decision can be made.
What to do: Mediation often does NOT work because feelings are involved. A cleaner path: one heir can buy out the others' interests, OR the executor can petition the court for partition (forced sale). We have closed both versions. Call us — we can walk you through which path makes sense.
The will named someone who has since died, moved out of state, or is themselves estranged. Or there is no will and no one has filed to be administrator. Probate cannot open until an executor or administrator is formally appointed.
What to do: File a petition with the probate court to appoint a new executor or administrator. Any adult heir can do this — they do not have to be the original named person. A probate attorney can file in days.
Someone in the family tried to "save money" and filed papers without an attorney. They put the deed in their own name without proper authority. They used the wrong form. They missed a required notice period. Now the title is more clouded than it was before. This is one of the most common stalls we see.
What to do: Do not file ANY more paperwork yourself until a real-estate attorney has reviewed what is already filed. If the bad filing is recent, sometimes it can be unwound. If it is old, it has to be cured through a quiet-title action.
While probate dragged on, nobody paid the property taxes. After 3 years in Texas (or 1 year in some SC counties), the county can start the tax-foreclosure process. Now you are racing two clocks — probate AND tax foreclosure.
What to do: Pay the county BEFORE they file the tax suit, even if probate is not done. Most counties will accept payment from any party. If you cannot afford it, call us — we pay the county direct at closing and you do not have to come up with the cash first.
If probate is dragging, the family is in disagreement, the taxes are stacking up, and you do not want to spend another 12 months waiting — a cash buyer who knows probate (us) can sometimes close DURING the open probate process.
We coordinate with your attorney to time the close correctly.
6 to 12 months for clean probate (will exists, heirs agree, no disputes). 12 to 24 months if any of the 5 stalls above apply.
8 to 12 months for clean. 12 to 30 months if there are heir disputes or missing parties.
Yes — in many cases. We have closed during open probate in both Texas and South Carolina. Your probate attorney coordinates timing with us.
A probate attorney typically charges $3,000 to $8,000 for a complete representation. Quiet-title actions add another $2,500 to $5,000. Court fees on top. Our team often absorbs these costs when we buy the property.
Call us. We have referred many families to attorneys who work on a contingency basis (paid out of sale proceeds), and we have sometimes paid the attorney directly when we close.
Call Nancy at (210) 761-3033 or email [email protected].
No pressure. No obligation. If a cash buyer is not the right answer, we will tell you that too.
Last updated: 2026-05-20. This page is part of ARV Venture Group's resource library for families dealing with probate property situations.