The checklist
nobody wants
When an owner dies, the property continues — bills, tenants, weather — while authority pauses. This is the practical sequence for families, especially those managing from abroad.
Before you read on
- General information as of August 2026. Estate matters need counsel in every relevant country — this checklist organizes, it does not replace advice.
- Companion to our inherited-property guide, which covers the tax architecture.
- The don'ts in Section 4 prevent the expensive improvisations.
Point 1The first two weeks
Secure the physical asset: confirm locks and access-holder lists with the building, stop autopayments only after mapping them (insurance and utilities must continue), notify the managing agent and — through counsel where possible — the insurer (unoccupancy clauses activate on vacancy; estates need the coverage conversation immediately), and inventory what needs weather-watching: terraces, pipes in winter, tenants in place.
Locate the documents that decide everything: the will and any trust instruments, the deed or stock certificate, loan statements, insurance policies, the tax returns, and — often forgotten — the closing binder with its basis history. Families who know where the folder lives skip weeks of reconstruction; this is why our handover guide begins the folder at purchase.
Point 2Authority: who can act
Nobody manages or sells until authority exists: executors named in wills need court appointment (probate — and for foreign decedents, ancillary probate in the property's state); trust-held property empowers successor trustees by the instrument itself, immediately; survivorship-titled property vests in the survivor by operation of law, paperwork following. Until then, even well-meaning family actions (moving funds, signing for the estate) can create liability.
The interim gap is bridgeable: courts issue preliminary or temporary letters for urgent matters, buildings accept counsel's direction pending appointment for emergencies, and tenants' rent can be directed to escrow. The sequence — counsel engaged, authority path chosen, interim measures papered — belongs in week one even though its fruits take months.
Point 3The filings and the certificate
Calendar reality: ancillary probate runs months, transfer certificates for non-resident estates historically run many months more, and sales cannot close cleanly until the chain completes. Families planning a quick sale should plan a realistic one instead — and let the interim management (tenants, insurance, maintenance) be run properly rather than provisionally.
| Item | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Death certificates (many copies) | Every institution wants an original |
| Probate / ancillary petition | Creates the authority to act |
| Estate tax return (706-NA for non-residents) | Calculates the US estate tax |
| IRS transfer certificate | Releases the property for clean title transfer |
| Date-of-death appraisal | Fixes the stepped-up basis |
| Home-country filings | The parallel estate process |
The transfer certificate is the chokepoint — title effectively waits on it for non-resident estates.
Point 4What not to do
The expensive improvisations, catalogued: transferring money from the deceased's accounts (freezes and liability), signing sale contracts before authority (unenforceable and worse), letting insurance lapse on the now-vacant apartment (the classic loss), informal family agreements about who gets what (they collide with wills and both countries' laws), and DIY-ing the US filings from abroad (the transfer-certificate stage punishes improvisation with months).
And the one thing to do that families skip: the date-of-death appraisal, ordered promptly while evidence is fresh — the document that fixes the stepped-up basis our inheritance guide values so highly. Grief has no calendar, but estates unfortunately do; the families who move through this best are the ones where someone — often the adviser engaged years earlier — simply runs the checklist.
Secure the property, keep insurance and essential utilities alive, notify the building and insurer through counsel, and locate the will, deed, and document folder. Authority comes next; preservation comes first.
Formally, no one — until courts appoint executors or trust succession activates. Urgent matters bridge through preliminary letters and counsel-directed measures, papered properly.
Realistically: months for ancillary probate plus the IRS transfer certificate for non-resident estates — often a year-plus end to end. Plan management for the interim, not a sprint to closing.
The IRS's confirmation that estate tax obligations are resolved, releasing US assets for clean transfer. For non-resident estates it is the timeline's chokepoint.
The date-of-death value fixes the stepped-up basis that erases prior capital gains — best documented while evidence is fresh. It is the single most valuable errand of the first month.
Leases continue; rent flows to the estate once authority exists (escrowed meanwhile), and management duties continue uninterrupted. A property manager bridges the gap well.
RELATED GUIDES
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Facing this now, or planning so your family never improvises it? We will coordinate counsel, the certificate path, and the interim management.
Important notice
The figures on this page are general information as of August 2026 and do not represent an offer, a quote, or a guarantee of any transaction terms. Reinvent NY does not provide legal, tax, or investment advice. Confirm anything material with an attorney and a CPA before you act on it. Nothing here is a solicitation to invest, and no return is promised. Real estate brokerage services are provided through R New York.