Only the executor named in the will, or an administrator appointed by the Supreme Court of NSW, can sell a loved one’s home. You can start planning the sale early, but the title can’t pass to a buyer until the court has made a grant of probate or letters of administration, so the order you do things in matters.
That’s the short version. The rest of this guide covers selling a deceased estate in Green Valley and Busby step by step, from checking you have the authority to sell through to the day the buyer collects the keys. It’s written by us at Gregory Property Agents. BJ Gregory, our director, is a licensed real estate agent, not a lawyer. Where law or tax comes up, we name the official source and suggest you check your own situation with a solicitor, and with an accountant for tax.
How do you sell a deceased estate in NSW?
To sell a deceased estate in NSW, the executor (or court-appointed administrator) applies to the Supreme Court for probate or letters of administration, gets the property appraised, agrees a sale plan with beneficiaries, and lists it. The title is transferred to the executor by transmission application, and settlement happens only after the grant.
Who has the right to sell the house?
Not the eldest child. Not whoever holds the spare key.
If there’s a will, the person it names as executor has that job. If there’s no will, a family member applies to the court for letters of administration and becomes the administrator. Legal Aid NSW says an executor must apply for probate if real estate is held in the deceased’s sole name or as tenants in common with someone else (Legal Aid NSW).
There’s one common exception. If Mum and Dad owned the home as joint tenants and one has passed, Legal Aid NSW notes a grant may not be needed when the estate only holds jointly owned real estate and property (Legal Aid NSW). Your solicitor will confirm which applies.
If the executor can’t or won’t act, NSW Trustee & Guardian can administer an estate for a fee (same Legal Aid NSW page). Either way, the person with the grant is the one who signs the agency agreement and, later, the contract. Family members can help, but they can’t instruct the sale.
How does probate affect when you can list, exchange and settle?
It helps to think of the sale in three stages.
Getting ready. Appraisals, choosing an agent, talking with beneficiaries and deciding on a method of sale can all happen while the probate application is with the court. Nothing here transfers the property.
Exchange. This is where contracts become binding. Whether contracts can be exchanged before the grant, with a special condition making the sale subject to probate, is a question for your solicitor or conveyancer. It depends on the estate, and the answer shapes when we’d want to launch the campaign.
Settlement. This one is firm. To transfer the property, the executor first has to be registered on the title. NSW Land Registry Services’ transmission application form asks for the probate or letters of administration number and the date it was granted (NSW LRS, form 03AE). No grant, no settlement. Legal Aid NSW also notes that the deceased’s property can’t be distributed until probate is granted (Legal Aid NSW).
A sensible approach is to plan the campaign so the settlement date sits comfortably after the grant is expected, and to check that timing with your solicitor before the property goes to market. A buyer left waiting on a settlement date the estate can’t meet is a buyer you can lose.
What happens to the title?
When someone owned a property in their sole name or as a tenant in common, a transmission application under section 93 of the Real Property Act 1900 registers the executor or administrator as the owner (NSW LRS guidelines). From there, the executor can sell to a buyer or transfer the property to a beneficiary. Revenue NSW describes that two-step path in its deceased estates guide (Revenue NSW).
You won’t lodge this yourself. Your solicitor or conveyancer prepares it. It’s still worth knowing the step exists, because it explains why settlement can’t happen until the grant is in hand.
Getting a price you can explain to the family
An executor has to act in the interests of the estate and everyone who benefits from it. In practice, that means you need a price you can stand behind if a brother or sister later asks, “Did we sell too cheap?”
A written appraisal based on recent nearby sales is a good start, and you can book a free property appraisal with us at any stage. Ask your accountant whether you also need a formal valuation as at the date of death. For some inherited homes, the ATO treats the property’s market value on the day the person died as the starting point for capital gains tax (ATO). That’s a different number from the price an agent expects today, and families often mix the two up.
A common mistake is anchoring the price to an online estimate, to what the home was worth years ago, or to what keeps one beneficiary happy. A price backed by recent comparable sales nearby is far easier to defend to everyone.
Talk to the beneficiaries before the sign goes up
Most estate sale arguments aren’t about the law. They’re about someone feeling left out.
Before listing, share the appraisal with every beneficiary. Agree on the method of sale, roughly what price you’d accept, and how you’ll keep everyone updated. Weekly emails work for some families. A group call works for others. Writing down what you agreed takes ten minutes and can save months of friction.
Auction or private sale for an estate home?
Both work. The question is which one suits this house and this family.
An auction sets a date, gives every buyer the same deadline and shows the family a transparent result. A private sale gives more flexibility on timing and conditions, which can matter if probate hasn’t come through yet. Whichever you choose, the settlement period has to fit around the grant, so your solicitor and agent should be talking from the start.
For older homes where buyer demand is hard to predict, an auction can show the family exactly what the market will pay on the day. Where probate timing is uncertain, a private sale with flexible settlement terms is often easier to manage. We’ll talk through both with you before you decide.
Does the house need to be cleared or fixed up first?
Usually it needs to be empty, or close to it, by settlement. Most homes don’t need a renovation. We’ve written our practical guide to clearing a deceased estate for the sorting, donating and Council clean-up side of things, so we won’t repeat that here.
For the sale itself, the useful question is whether a small fix will return more than it costs and delays. Often a tidy-up, a clean and a fixed leaking tap are enough. Buyers looking at an older estate home generally expect to put their own stamp on it.
Costs and tax questions to raise with your accountant
Expect the usual selling costs: agent’s commission and marketing, plus solicitor or conveyancer fees for the contract and the transmission application. There’s also the cost of applying for probate. All of these are normally paid from the estate, and your solicitor can confirm the details.
Capital gains tax is the bigger question. According to the ATO, CGT doesn’t usually apply when you inherit a home, but it can apply when the home is later sold unless an exemption applies (ATO). Whether an exemption applies turns on several facts:
- when the deceased bought the home
- whether it was their main residence and not earning income when they died
- whether the home is sold within 2 years of the death
The ATO says the 2-year limit can be extended in some circumstances outside your control (ATO extensions).
Renting the home out while the estate is sorted can change the result. The ATO’s own examples show a partial exemption where an inherited home was rented for years before sale. If renting is on the table, talk to your accountant before you call our property management team.
The ATO also flags recent CGT changes announced in the 2026–27 Federal Budget, so check what applies in the year you sell. Bring these questions to an accountant before you sign anything:
- Do we need a date-of-death valuation?
- Does the 2-year window apply to us, and when does it end?
- Who pays any tax, the estate or the beneficiaries?
One practical point while the house sits empty: ring the insurer and ask whether the existing policy still covers a vacant home.
How long does an estate sale take, from first call to settlement?
There’s no standard answer, because probate timing varies. The order of events is fairly predictable, though:
- First conversation and a walk-through of the property.
- Probate or letters of administration applied for (by you or your solicitor).
- Appraisal shared with beneficiaries, and a sale plan agreed.
- Light preparation, photos and marketing.
- Offers or auction day, then exchange (timing per your solicitor’s advice).
- Grant received, transmission application registered, and settlement.
Steps 1, 3 and 4 can run while you wait on step 2.
The biggest variable is usually how long probate takes. Other common delays are beneficiaries who need time to agree, contents that take longer than expected to clear, and repairs started before anyone has checked whether they’ll pay off.
Situations that make an estate sale harder
When beneficiaries don’t agree
Transparency helps more than anything: shared appraisals, written updates, and a clear record of offers. If someone believes the sale is being handled unfairly, they’re entitled to get their own legal advice. As the executor, so are you. Our job is to give everyone the same information at the same time.
When a family member is living in the home
This is more common than people think, and it needs a conversation before any marketing starts. Timing, rent and the will’s terms all come into it. For tax, the ATO notes the home’s use by someone with a right to occupy it under the will can affect the CGT exemption, so check with your accountant.
When there’s still a mortgage
Let the lender know about the death early. Generally the loan is paid out from the sale proceeds at settlement, but ask your solicitor how the lender will handle repayments in the meantime.
When the house needs repairs
Some repairs are worth doing before sale, and many aren’t. Safety issues and anything a buyer’s inspection will flag straight away are worth a look. Cosmetic work usually isn’t. Fixes that are often worth it: making the home safe, a thorough clean, a tidy lawn and garden, and obvious small issues like a leaking tap or a broken door handle. Kitchens, bathrooms and new flooring are usually best left to the buyer.
When the executor lives interstate or overseas
This can be done. Legal Aid NSW notes that an executor living outside NSW can appoint an attorney in NSW under a power of attorney, or ask a NSW lawyer to apply for probate for them. A grant made outside NSW has to be resealed by the Supreme Court of NSW before it can be used to deal with NSW property (Legal Aid NSW). BJ can speak with authorised family members by phone or video call, so you won’t need to fly in for every step.
Selling a deceased estate in Green Valley and Busby
A lot of the homes we’re asked to sell here belong to people who bought decades ago and stayed. Many sit in the streets laid out when the original estate was built in the 1960s, on blocks that today’s buyers value as much as the house itself.
Green Valley and Busby began largely as Housing Commission estates. Plenty of families bought their homes, raised children here and built strong community ties, and that history deserves respect when the house is presented to buyers. If you’re from out of the area, here’s what Green Valley is like today.
Land matters here. Recent Green Valley sales listed in our Green Valley suburb guide sit on blocks of roughly 520 to 780 m², and one was a two-bedroom home on 700 m² that sold for $1.6M in July 2026. On blocks like these, the land and what can be built on it often drive the price as much as the house.
Older homes on larger blocks usually interest three kinds of buyers: renovators looking for a solid home to update, families who want more space than they can find in newer estates, and investors or builders weighing up a granny flat or a second dwelling. Presenting the home with all three in mind widens the pool.
How BJ handles deceased estate sales
BJ is a second-generation agent with more than 20 years working across Green Valley, Liverpool, Fairfield and South-West Sydney. He holds a Class 1 licence (NSW Licence #20435105). Gregory Property Agents is a small independent agency, working as a real estate agent in Green Valley and a real estate agent in Busby. BJ handles the first conversation and the property review himself, and you won’t be passed from person to person.
As we put it on our homepage: “If you’ve been appointed executor of a loved one’s estate, selling their home can feel overwhelming. BJ handles probate timelines, multiple beneficiaries, and clearing the property with care and patience.”
When there are several beneficiaries, we suggest agreeing one way of sharing updates at the start, whether that’s a regular email to everyone or a group call, so every beneficiary hears the same news at the same time.
With your permission, we’d rather speak with your solicitor or conveyancer early, so the campaign timing, the contract and the settlement date all line up with the grant.
Documents to have ready before you list
You don’t need every item on day one. Your solicitor or conveyancer will need most of them for the contract.
- The will, or details of who is applying for letters of administration
- The grant of probate or letters of administration, or where the application is up to
- The death certificate
- Your solicitor’s or conveyancer’s contact details
- The property’s title details and the most recent council rates and water notices
- Mortgage details and lender contact, if there’s a loan
- Home insurance policy details
- Contact details for every beneficiary
- Any building approvals, warranties or renovation paperwork you can find
- Keys, garage remotes and alarm codes
Questions executors ask us about selling
Can you sell a house before probate in NSW?
You can prepare for the sale, get appraisals and plan the campaign before probate. Settlement can’t happen until the grant has been made, because the executor needs it to be registered on the title. Ask your solicitor whether contracts can be exchanged before the grant in your case.
Do all beneficiaries have to agree to sell?
The decision sits with the executor or administrator, within the terms of the will and their duties to the estate. In practice, a sale goes far better when beneficiaries are kept informed. If there’s a serious disagreement, everyone involved should get legal advice.
Can a beneficiary buy the house from the estate?
Often, yes, but it needs care. The price has to be fair to the other beneficiaries, and the executor needs to be able to show that. Speak to your solicitor before agreeing to anything.
What if probate hasn’t been applied for yet?
That’s fine. Many families call us before the application is lodged. A property review now helps you understand the likely price range and timing, with no obligation.
How is the sale money paid out?
Sale proceeds go to the estate, not to the executor personally. The executor pays the estate’s debts and costs, then distributes what’s left according to the will or the grant. Your solicitor will guide that part.
A calm first step
You don’t need to have cleared the house, finished probate or even decided to sell before you talk to us. A no-obligation property review with BJ will give you a clear picture of the home’s value, the likely timing and what to do next, at whatever pace suits your family.
Call BJ on 0422 333 333, email bj@gregory.agency, or get in touch here.
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