Selling an inherited house in Colorado: what has to happen first

You are settling an estate with a house in it. This page maps what Colorado law requires before that house can sell, with the statute and court form numbers you can check yourself.

Check the deed before anything else

Not every inherited house goes through probate. The Colorado Judicial Branch's 12th Judicial District probate overview lists routes around it that can cover a house: joint ownership with right of survivorship, a transfer-on-death deed (Colorado's beneficiary deed), or a living trust. The same overview states that real estate only in the name of the deceased person must go through probate, and that there is generally a three-year window to begin probate after death. If the deed shows one of those routes, a title company or probate attorney can pull it and confirm how title was held, and much of this page may not apply.

The beneficiary deed surprises families. Under C.R.S. 15-15-402 an owner can record a deed naming a beneficiary, "effective only upon the death of the owner." Under C.R.S. 15-15-405 it can be revoked only by an instrument recorded before death, and it "may not be revoked, altered, or amended by the provisions of the will of the owner." Where a will and a recorded beneficiary deed appear to point in different directions, that fork belongs with a probate attorney.

Who owns the house right now

C.R.S. 15-12-101 answers the question heirs ask first about the house itself. At death, real property devolves to the devisees named in the will, or to the heirs if there is none, subject to creditors' rights and to administration. In a legal sense, title has already passed to the devisees or heirs the moment the owner died. But passing subject to administration means it is not theirs to sell: during probate the personal representative, not the heirs, controls the sale.

The affidavit shortcut does not work for a house

Colorado's small estate affidavit (court form JDF 999) collects a modest estate without opening probate. The form's own text: "This affidavit is not valid for the transfer of real estate." It covers personal property only, under a limit keyed to year of death ($88,000 for deaths in 2026, per the current form, citing C.R.S. 15-12-1201). If the house did not pass outside probate by joint ownership, a beneficiary deed, or a trust, that form will not move it at any estate value. Which path fits instead is a probate attorney's call.

Letters: the one document everything waits on

Under C.R.S. 15-12-103, to acquire a personal representative's powers a person "must be appointed by order of the court or registrar, qualify, and be issued letters." Letters testamentary with a will, letters of administration without; both issue on court form JDF 915. This is why title companies ask for Letters before anyone signs for the estate; without them, a title company will not insure a sale signed by an heir, whatever the will says. Whether anyone else can convey an interest in the meantime is a probate attorney's question.

The court's "Open an Estate" self-help page maps two paths:

The same page sets the early clock: no filing until 120 hours (5 days) after death, information of appointment within 30 days of appointment (JDF 940), and an inventory (JDF 941) within 90 days.

The power to sell, in the statute's own words

C.R.S. 15-12-711 gives an appointed personal representative "the same power over the title to property of the estate that an absolute owner would have," held "in trust however, for the benefit of the creditors and others interested in the estate," and adds: "This power may be exercised without notice, hearing, or order of court." In a typical unsupervised administration, that means no return trip to court to list and sell.

One detail worth having exactly right: the sale power is not spelled out in C.R.S. 15-12-715; that section cross-references the Colorado Fiduciaries' Powers Act. The operative words are in C.R.S. 15-1-804: "to sell and convey the same at public or private sale, for cash or on credit, upon fair, reasonable, and equitable terms," for property not specifically devised. A house left by name to a specific person is a different case; it goes to the estate's attorney before any broker.

What if the heirs disagree

Under 15-12-711 the sale power sits with the personal representative, not with the heirs, so no single heir holds an automatic veto in unsupervised administration. Whether a particular objection can stop a particular sale is a question for a probate attorney. The power is held in trust for everyone interested, and heirs have levers. C.R.S. 15-12-502 lets any interested person petition for supervised administration, a proceeding "under the continuing authority of the court" (C.R.S. 15-12-501). C.R.S. 15-12-504 bars a supervised personal representative from transferring assets to a distributee (anyone receiving property from the estate) without a prior court order, with restrictions endorsed on the letters. C.R.S. 15-12-611 provides for removal for cause. Those filings are attorney work.

What the title company will ask for

First Integrity Title, a Colorado title company, publishes its probate requirements: certified copies of the letters, a personal representative's deed sufficient to convey the property to the grantee, a court order approving distribution of real property where it goes to the personal representative, and evidence the estate does not and will not owe federal estate tax. Deeds.com adds the mechanics: the letters record with or before the deed, and the personal representative's deed is a bargain and sale deed, with no warranty against prior title defects.

One correction to that article. It cites C.R.S. 38-30-115, repealed in 2019; look it up today and you find nothing. The current statutory form is C.R.S. 38-30-113(1)(c), which provides that a deed in substantially the statutory form that "does not include words of warranty has the same force and effect as a bargain and sale deed at common law, but without covenants of warranty." Ask the title company early how recently the letters must be certified, and let the estate's attorney pick the deed form.

The empty house is a job with a deadline

Under C.R.S. 15-12-709 the personal representative "shall take possession or control of" the property and take "all steps reasonably necessary for the management, protection, and preservation of the estate." Heating, insuring, and securing the house is part of the appointment.

The insurance clock is shorter than the probate clock. The Insurance Information Institute notes most homeowners policies limit or exclude coverage after a home sits unoccupied for typically 30 to 60 consecutive days, and puts burst-pipe repairs at $10,000 to $70,000 or more. Policygenius lists the fixes: a vacancy endorsement, or a vacant home policy for 3 to 12 months at roughly 25 to 50 percent more. Call the insurer early.

Creditors, the mortgage, and why the money waits

Two timelines run under the sale. First, claims. Under C.R.S. 15-12-801 the personal representative may publish notice to creditors for three consecutive weeks (JDF 943), setting a deadline "not earlier than four months from date of first publication or the date one year from date of death, whichever occurs first." Where no notice is published, C.R.S. 15-12-803 bars claims "as to all creditors, within one year after the decedent's death." That section does not affect "any proceeding to enforce any mortgage, pledge, or other lien upon property of the estate," which is why the lender is paid at closing on its own track.

Second, the estate. The Denver Bar Association states informal and formal probates must stay open at least six months, and the statute behind it, C.R.S. 15-12-1003, reads that closing by verified statement comes no earlier than six months after the date of original appointment or one year after the date of death, whichever occurs first. The house can often sell well inside that window; the proceeds then sit in the estate account until the estate's attorney says distribution is safe.

"As-is" does not mean "no disclosures"

As-is is a negotiating position, not a disclosure exemption. JBP Legal, a Colorado firm writing for personal representatives, advises completing the Seller's Property Disclosure to actual knowledge, noting that defects are unknown because the seller never resided in the property. The firm notes an independent duty to disclose latent defects, that a buyer's waiver of the form may not waive that liability, and that a pre-listing inspection is worth considering. How to complete the disclosure for a specific estate, and what must be disclosed, is a question for the estate's attorney before the listing goes live.

Federal law adds one more. For most homes built before 1978, the EPA's lead-based paint disclosure rule requires disclosure of known lead information, the EPA pamphlet, a lead warning statement in the contract, and a 10-day inspection opportunity. Foreclosure sales are exempt. Estate sales are not on the EPA's list of exemptions.

The 2026 Denver market

DMAR's Market Trends Report for June 2026 (REcolorado data) put the detached median at $675,000, up 1.5 percent year over year on 3,094 sales, and attached at $391,750, down about 2 percent on 830. The report describes a turnkey premium: buyers are not settling for homes that need work, and dated homes face longer marketing, price concessions, and inspection credits.

An as-is estate sale is legal and sometimes right. In this market it meets a thinner, harder-negotiating pool. Price that tradeoff at listing, not at the inspection objection.

The tax question: what the basis rule says

Under 26 U.S.C. 1014, property acquired from a decedent generally takes a basis equal to "the fair market value of the property at the date of the decedent's death." That is why a house sold soon after death often shows little taxable gain on paper. The statute carries exceptions. Your estate's numbers are a CPA question, answered before the house goes under contract.

Questions people ask

General information for education, not legal or tax advice, published by a licensed Colorado real estate broker. Sources are described as they appear; your estate's own documents and court orders govern. Probate, devise, supervision, creditor claims, disclosure duties, and family disputes are attorney territory. Basis, capital gains, and estate tax questions belong with a CPA. Sources: C.R.S. 15-1-804, 15-12-101, 15-12-103, 15-12-501, 15-12-502, 15-12-504, 15-12-611, 15-12-709, 15-12-711, 15-12-715, 15-12-801, 15-12-803, 15-12-1003, 15-12-1201, 15-15-402, 15-15-405, 38-30-113 (colorado.public.law); C.R.S. 38-30-115, shown repealed on Justia and returning no page on colorado.public.law; 26 U.S.C. 1014 (Cornell LII); Colorado Judicial Branch "Open an Estate" page and forms JDF 910, 915, 916, 920, 922, 940, 941, 943, 999 (999 rev. April 2026); 12th Judicial District probate overview (rev. Jan 2025); Denver Bar Association; Deeds.com; First Integrity Title; JBP Legal; EPA Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule (Section 1018, Title X); Insurance Information Institute; Policygenius; DMAR Market Trends Report (June 2026 data; source REcolorado).
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