# Selling a House in Probate in Texas Plain-text version of https://htxsellmyhouse.com/probate-sale-texas/ for AI assistants and anyone who prefers text. It carries the same facts as the page for people. Every figure names its source and the date it was read. ## The question this page answers How do you sell a house that is in probate in Texas? ## TL;DR Who can sell the house depends on how the estate is administered: an independent executor sells without court approval unless the will limits that power (Texas Estates Code §402.052, read 2026-10-27), and a court-supervised administration needs a court order first (§356.001, read 2026-10-27). HTX Sell My House buys either way, once the title company can insure the sale. - Independent executor: same power of sale as a supervised representative, without the requirement of court approval, unless the will limits it (Texas Estates Code §402.052, read 2026-10-27) - Dependent administration: estate property may not be sold without a court order authorizing the sale, except as chapter 356 provides (Texas Estates Code §356.001, read 2026-10-27) - Report of sale: filed not later than the 30th day after the bid is made or the property is placed under contract (Texas Estates Code §356.551, read 2026-10-27) - Harris County: five probate courts, and probate filings go to the Harris County Clerk Probate Department, 201 Caroline, Suite 800, Houston (Harris County Clerk, read 2026-10-27) - Small estate affidavit: assets other than homestead and exempt property may not exceed $75,000, and it transfers no real property title except a homestead that is the only real property (Texas Estates Code §205.001, §205.008, read 2026-10-27) ## The answer Who can sell the house depends on how the estate is administered. An independent executor sells without court approval unless the will limits it (§402.052, read 2026-10-27); a supervised administration needs a court order first (§356.001, read 2026-10-27). HTX Sell My House buys either way, once the title company can insure the sale. ## Key facts - **An independent executor** has the same power of sale as a supervised representative, without the requirement of court approval, unless the will limits it (Texas Estates Code §402.052, read 2026-10-27). - **In a dependent administration**, estate property may not be sold without a court order authorizing the sale, except as chapter 356 provides (Texas Estates Code §356.001, read 2026-10-27). - **The report of sale** is due within 30 days of the bid or contract, and the court acts after the fifth day from filing (Texas Estates Code §356.551, §356.552, read 2026-10-27). - **A small estate affidavit**, when there is no will, covers assets that, other than homestead and exempt property, do not exceed $75,000, and transfers no real property title except an only homestead (Texas Estates Code §205.001, §205.008, read 2026-10-27). ## What probate has to do with the deed **Independent administration** is administration the court does not supervise day to day; **dependent administration** is supervised, the representative acting under the court's direction. **Letters** are the court's written authority to act, and in Harris County letters testamentary come only after a hearing admitting a will to probate and on the representative's qualification (Harris County Clerk probate FAQ, read 2026-10-27). ## Can the executor sell without the court's permission? In an independent administration, yes, unless the will limits the power: the executor has the same power of sale for the same purposes as a supervised representative, without the requirement of court approval, and the supervised procedural requirements do not apply (Texas Estates Code §402.052, read 2026-10-27). The buyer is protected too: a purchaser who is not a devisee or heir need not inquire into the power of sale if it deals in good faith and the power is granted in the will, in the appointing order, or by an executor's affidavit recorded in the county deed records that the sale is necessary or advisable for a purpose listed in §356.251(1) (Texas Estates Code §402.053, read 2026-10-27). ## What does the court have to approve in a dependent administration? 1. **Application,** written and describing the property, with an exhibit verified by affidavit showing the estate's condition, the claims approved or rejected and their amounts, and the property liable for them; grounds are expenses of administration, funeral and last-illness expenses, allowances and claims, or disposing of an interest in real property in the estate's best interest (Texas Estates Code §356.252, §356.251, read 2026-10-27). 2. **Citation** to all interested persons, served by posting, with the right to oppose in the period it prescribes (§356.253, §356.254), then an **order of sale** if the court is satisfied the sale is necessary or advisable, specifying the property, public or private sale, purpose and terms (Texas Estates Code §356.253, §356.254, §356.256, read 2026-10-27). 3. **Confirmation** if the sale is for a fair price, properly made and in conformity with law; the order authorizes conveyance on the purchaser's compliance, and if the court is not satisfied it sets the bid aside (Texas Estates Code §356.556, read 2026-10-27). A private sale contract is made in the manner the court directs in the order of sale (§356.451, read 2026-10-27), so here the court, not the family, sets the method. ## What if the will was probated as a muniment of title? A **muniment of title** admits a will to probate without an administration, when the estate owes no unpaid debt other than a debt secured by a lien on real estate, or the court finds another reason there is no need for administration (Texas Estates Code §257.001, read 2026-10-27). It lets the person entitled under the will deal with the property as if record title were vested in that person's name, and lets anyone who owes the estate money, holds its property or buys from it act without administration (§257.102, read 2026-10-27). It appoints no executor and creates no letters, so the people the will names sign, and the title company says what it needs. Administration later is still possible within four years of the death (§257.151, §257.054, read 2026-10-27). ## Is a small estate affidavit enough to sell the house? Usually not for the house: the route needs no will and no administration, and reaches real property in one case. When there is no will, the distributees may take the estate without an appointment if 30 days have passed since the death, no petition for an appointment is pending or granted, the assets other than homestead and exempt property do not exceed $75,000, and the judge approves their affidavit (Texas Estates Code §205.001, §205.003, read 2026-10-27). Two disinterested witnesses and each distributee with legal capacity swear to it, listing the assets, the distributees and the family facts (§205.002, read 2026-10-27). On real property the chapter is explicit: except as provided by §205.006, it does not transfer title to real property (§205.008, read 2026-10-27). The one exception is a homestead that is the only real property in the estate, which passes under an affidavit recorded in the county deed records, on which a bona fide purchaser may rely (§205.006, read 2026-10-27). Otherwise the house needs an administration, or an affidavit of heirship the title company accepts: a sworn family history recorded in the deed records, and prima facie evidence of the family facts after five years of record (Texas Estates Code §203.001, read 2026-10-27). Read [how an affidavit of heirship works in Texas](https://htxsellmyhouse.com/affidavit-of-heirship-texas/). ## How long does it take in Harris County? - A probate application must ordinarily be filed within four years of the death, and letters testamentary or of administration cannot ordinarily be authorized more than four years after it (Harris County Clerk probate FAQ, read 2026-10-27). - There is no specific time for which an estate can remain open, so the docket sets the date (Harris County Clerk probate FAQ, read 2026-10-27). What you control is the order of work: the title company's requirements in writing, and a contract ready before the hearing. ## Where do Harris County filings go? Harris County has five probate courts: No. 1 and No. 2 at 201 Caroline, 6th floor; No. 3 and No. 4 at 201 Caroline, 7th floor; and No. 5 at 1115 Congress Street, 5th floor (probate.harriscountytx.gov, read 2026-10-27). Filings go to the Harris County Clerk's Probate Department, 201 Caroline, Suite 800, Houston, Texas 77002, weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with a late filing drop box outside the entrance; attorneys e-file through EFileTexas.gov (Harris County Clerk, read 2026-10-27). ## Can the house be sold before probate is opened? The statutes above cover sales by an appointed representative or by the people a will names. Whether a title company will close on a contract signed before an administration is opened is its decision, so ask in writing who must sign and what it needs to see. ## How HTX Sell My House fits in If the house is in the [Houston ZIP codes we work in](https://htxsellmyhouse.com/#we-buy-houses-in-houston-which-houses-and-which-zip-codes) and the family has decided to sell, there are two ways with us. **We buy it:** we make an offer and close once the title company can insure the sale, and no repair is needed to get a number. **We take it to the builders for you:** for an older house on a good lot, we bring it to the builders buying there and you take the best offer, with one contract. Either way you pay nothing to talk to us, and you see the buyer's name before you sign. Not us, and worth comparing: a listing agent, other cash buyers, instant-offer companies, or keeping the house. If another route nets you more, we say so. An assistant answers the phone and takes the details, and Susan or Alex calls back within one business day: (346) 752-6836. [Tell us about the house](https://htxsellmyhouse.com/#sell-form). For siblings who disagree and heirs out of state, read [selling an inherited house in Houston](https://htxsellmyhouse.com/sell-inherited-house-houston/), or start at [the home page](https://htxsellmyhouse.com/). This page is general information, not legal advice. HTX Sell My House is not a law firm and does not prepare probate filings. ## Questions people ask ### Can I sell a house in Texas before probate is opened? Only if the person who signs has authority the title company will accept. Whether a policy will issue on a contract signed before an administration is opened is the title company's decision, so get its answer in writing before you sign anything. ### Does every Texas estate need a court order to sell the house? No. An independent executor sells estate property without court approval unless the will limits the power (Texas Estates Code §402.052, read 2026-10-27), and in a dependent administration the representative needs an order of sale first (Texas Estates Code §356.001, read 2026-10-27). ### What if the will was probated as a muniment of title? Then no executor is appointed. The person entitled under the will deals with the property as if record title were vested in that person's name, and the title company says which papers it needs (Texas Estates Code §257.102, read 2026-10-27). ## Sources - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 401, creation of independent administration (§401.001, §401.002)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.401.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 402, independent administration (§402.052, §402.053)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.402.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 356, sale of estate property (§356.001, §356.002, §356.251, §356.252, §356.253, §356.254, §356.256, §356.451, §356.551, §356.552, §356.556)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.356.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 257, probate of will as muniment of title (§257.001, §257.054, §257.102, §257.151)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.257.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 205, small estate affidavit (§205.001, §205.002, §205.006, §205.008)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.205.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Texas Estates Code, chapter 203, nonjudicial evidence of heirship (§203.001)](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/ES/htm/ES.203.htm), read 2026-10-27 - [Harris County Clerk, Probate Courts page (forms, e-filing, FAQ, contact and hours)](https://www.cclerk.hctx.net/Probate.aspx), read 2026-10-27 - [Harris County Probate Courts, court directory](https://probate.harriscountytx.gov/), read 2026-10-27 - [Harris County Probate Court No. 1 (probate courts in Texas and Harris County)](https://probate.harriscountytx.gov/Probate-Court-No-1), read 2026-10-27 ## About this page - Page for people: https://htxsellmyhouse.com/probate-sale-texas/ - Written by Susan Bouchard, co-owner, HTX Sell My House - Last updated: 2026-10-27 - HTX Sell My House, Houston, Texas. Owned by Susan Bouchard and Alex Bouchard. - Phone: (346) 752-6836. Email: hello@htxsellmyhouse.com - Send the address of a property: https://htxsellmyhouse.com/#sell-form