Every week we talk to families in Jonesboro, Paragould, Northwest Arkansas, and Central Arkansas who inherited a house and aren’t sure what they’re allowed to do with it. Here’s the plain-English version of how Arkansas handles it.
Probate is the court process that moves property out of a deceased person’s name. You can skip it entirely when the house was set up to pass automatically:
If none of those apply and the deed is still in your parent’s or relative’s name alone, a title company will not insure a sale until either probate or the small-estate process has cleared the title.
Arkansas allows heirs to collect and transfer an estate — including real estate — with an affidavit instead of full probate when the value of the estate, after subtracting what’s owed on it (and not counting the homestead and statutory allowances), is $100,000 or less. The affidavit can be filed with the circuit clerk no sooner than 45 days after the death, and no personal representative is appointed. For a modest house with a mortgage on it, this route is often available and takes weeks rather than months. An attorney can prepare it for a flat fee.
You don’t have to wait for probate to end. Once appointed, the personal representative can sell the house under a power of sale in the will, or by petitioning the court for approval (some courts want an appraisal and will confirm the sale). The buyer’s title company handles the paperwork at closing, the proceeds go into the estate account, and the heirs are paid after the creditor period. We buy inherited houses during probate regularly: we sign the contract now and close on the day the court allows.
Two things make this easier: keep the house insured (a vacant-house policy if nobody lives there), and don’t start clearing out belongings until the heirs agree on what stays. A buyer like us will take the house as-is, furniture and all.
For the full breakdown — including what to do about a house full of belongings, back taxes, and heirs who disagree — see Selling an Inherited House in Arkansas.
Sometimes. If the house passed automatically — through a joint owner with survivorship, a beneficiary (transfer-on-death) deed, or a living trust — no probate is needed. If the estate’s value (after debts, and not counting the homestead and statutory allowances) is $100,000 or less, the heirs can use Arkansas’s small-estate affidavit instead of full probate. Otherwise, someone has to be appointed by the court before the house can be sold.
A straightforward estate usually takes six months to a year. The main reason is the creditor period: creditors have roughly six months from the first published notice to file claims, and the estate normally can’t close before that. Contested wills or missing heirs take longer. The house can often be sold well before the estate closes.
Yes. The personal representative (executor or administrator) can sell estate real estate once appointed — either under a power of sale in the will or with the court’s approval. The sale proceeds go into the estate account and are distributed to the heirs after debts and expenses are paid.
No. Arkansas has no inheritance tax and no state estate tax, and the federal estate tax only touches very large estates. When you sell, your cost basis is generally ‘stepped up’ to the value at the date of death, so a sale soon after inheriting usually creates little or no capital-gains tax. Confirm with a CPA.
The estate does — which in practice means the heirs, out of the estate’s cash or their own pockets, until the house is sold or transferred. Payments, property taxes, insurance (which often needs to be switched to a vacant-home policy), and utilities all continue. That carrying cost is the most common reason families decide to sell rather than hold.
Free, confidential, no pressure. Tell us the situation and we’ll tell you which option we’d pick — and give you a written cash offer within 24 hours if selling is it.
(870) 729-8704Call or text Justin directly, or tap “Get Offer” on this page.
Best Flipping Friends LLC buys houses with our own funds; a cash offer from us is not a listing. Justin Taylor is a licensed Arkansas real estate agent with Dustin White Realty. This article is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Deadlines and rules change and every situation is different, so please talk to an Arkansas attorney (or a HUD-approved housing counselor) about your specific case.
