Sell Inherited Property in Georgia

Selling inherited property in Georgia depends on how title was held, whether the estate needs probate or qualifies for a shortcut, whether a surviving spouse or minor child can claim Year’s Support, and whether Georgia-specific issues like the tenancy-in-common default, the new transfer-on-death deed rules, or the HB 581 property-tax reset affect the sale.

• Georgia has no estate tax and no inheritance tax, but a sale can still create tax. Selling the home creates no state-level death tax, though a sale above the stepped-up basis can still trigger federal and Georgia income-tax consequences (OCGA § 48-12-1).
• Georgia has no traditional elective share. Year’s Support is the substitute. A surviving spouse or minor child can petition to set aside part or all of the probate estate, ahead of unsecured creditors, within two years of death (OCGA § 53-3-1 et seq.).
• A will is not a deed in Georgia. Title usually has to pass by a recorded Assent to Devise, Executor’s Deed, Administrator’s Deed, court order, or other recordable instrument before a sale can close (OCGA § 53-8-15).
• Georgia’s No Administration Necessary procedure has no dollar cap. It can clear title on an intestate estate of any value, but only when the statutory conditions are met (OCGA § 53-2-40).
• Out-of-state executors may have powerful shortcuts. A foreign personal representative who is duly qualified in the home state may be able to sell Georgia real estate directly, and a foreign will may be recorded as a muniment of title, in both cases without opening Georgia probate (OCGA § 53-5-42, § 53-5-35).

In Georgia, inherited property usually needs probate if it was solely owned or held as tenancy in common, but it may avoid probate if it passed by joint tenancy with right of survivorship, a transfer-on-death deed, a life estate, or a trust. The deciding factor is almost always how title was held. Even when probate is avoided, the title company may still require death certificates, affidavits, trust authority, recorded documents, or other curative items before closing.

• Sole ownership: Usually probate or a Georgia alternative. Passes by will or intestacy and needs a title-clearing step before sale.
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS): Usually no probate, but only if the deed expressly created survivorship. Georgia’s default presumption is tenancy in common (OCGA § 44-6-120, § 44-6-190).
• Tenancy in common: Usually probate or an alternative. The deceased co-owner’s fractional share passes by will or intestacy. No survivorship.
• Transfer-on-death (TOD) deed: No probate if the statutory requirements are met, including the beneficiary recording an Affidavit of Acceptance within 9 months (OCGA § 44-17-3, § 44-17-6).
• Life estate: No probate. The remainder beneficiary takes at death (OCGA § 44-6-80 et seq.).
• Trust: No probate. The trustee distributes under the trust terms.
• Foreign will or foreign personal representative: May avoid Georgia probate when statutory conditions are met, as covered below.

Quick-answer table: Situation to Likely Path

Georgia is a common-law, separate-property state, not a community property state. It has no estate tax and no inheritance tax (OCGA § 48-12-1). It is the only state without a traditional elective share, relying instead on Year’s Support. Georgia also does not recognize tenancy by the entirety, so married couples hold title either as joint tenants with survivorship or as tenants in common. And unlike Florida, Georgia has no constitutional protection that restricts who can inherit the family home, so a primary residence is generally devisable like any other property, subject to Year’s Support, liens, survivorship, and title rules.

Georgia handles inherited real estate differently from most states in four ways that matter when you are trying to sell: it protects a surviving spouse through Year’s Support instead of an elective share, it offers an uncapped probate shortcut for intestate estates, it gives out-of-state executors unusual authority to sell, and it treats a will as something that still needs a separate deed to convey title.

Why Is Year’s Support So Important in Georgia?

Georgia is the only state without a traditional elective share, and Year’s Support is what replaces it (OCGA § 53-3-1 et seq.). Year’s Support lets a surviving spouse or minor child petition the probate court to set aside part or all of the probate estate for the family’s support. The petition has a two-year filing window, takes priority over unsecured creditors, and can override what the will says. Because it can reach the home itself, a pending or possible Year’s Support claim is one of the first things to confirm before counting on a clean sale. The mechanics are covered in the surviving spouse section below. For the general process of clearing an estate, see our guide to probate real estate.

Does Georgia’s No Administration Necessary Procedure Have a Dollar Limit?

No. According to OCGA § 53-2-40, there is no dollar cap, so the No Administration Necessary procedure can be used for real estate of any value. It lets heirs obtain a probate court order that can vest estate property without a full administration. The catch is that the statutory conditions have to be met: the estate must be intestate, all heirs must agree, and the debts must be paid, consented to, or noticed by publication without objection. One missing heir, a disputed heirship, a creditor objection, or a will being probated can push the estate into formal administration. Several competing sites get the dollar figure wrong, and we correct that below.

Can an Out-of-State Executor Sell Georgia Property Without Georgia Probate?

Often yes, with conditions. When a personal representative is duly qualified in the deceased person’s home state and no Georgia ancillary proceeding is pending, that foreign personal representative has direct statutory authority to sell and convey the decedent’s Georgia real estate (OCGA § 53-5-42). Separately, a will probated in another state can be recorded as a muniment of title, with properly authenticated copies of the foreign probate record recorded in the deed records of the Georgia county where the land sits (OCGA § 53-5-35). The intestate situation works differently, and we explain it in the out-of-state section. For the general mechanics of probating an estate across state lines, see our guide to ancillary probate.

Why Is a Will Not Enough to Sell Georgia Real Estate?

A will does not by itself transfer Georgia real estate. Admitting the will to probate confirms who inherits, but a separate recorded instrument, usually an Assent to Devise from the executor or an estate deed, is what actually conveys marketable title to a buyer (OCGA § 53-8-15). Skipping that step is the most common reason a sale that should be simple stalls at the closing table.

Georgia recognizes several forms of ownership, and the form on the deed decides whether the property passes through probate and who has the right to sell it. The single most important habit here is simple: pull the deed before assuming who owns the house. Georgia’s default presumption for co-owners is tenancy in common, which surprises many families who assumed the survivor automatically took everything.

Sole ownership. The property passes by will or intestacy and needs a title-clearing step before sale.

Joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS). This passes to the surviving owner outside probate, but only when the deed expressly created survivorship (OCGA § 44-6-120, § 44-6-190). Without that language, the default is tenancy in common.

Tenancy in common. Each co-owner’s fractional share passes through that owner’s estate or by will. This is the default for many married and unmarried co-owners and is the seedbed of the heirs-property issues covered below.

Tenancy by the entirety. Georgia does not recognize it. Because tenancy in common is the default, one spouse’s half-interest frequently passes to children rather than to the surviving spouse unless the deed expressly created survivorship. This is why pulling the deed matters so much for married couples.

Transfer-on-death (TOD) deed. Authorized by Senate Bill 420, effective July 1, 2024 (OCGA § 44-17-1 through § 44-17-7), a TOD deed names a beneficiary who takes the property at the owner’s death. The owner stays the full legal and equitable owner until death, the beneficiary takes subject to all recorded liens and encumbrances, and a TOD deed cannot be revoked by a will. The named beneficiary must record an Affidavit of Acceptance, with the death certificate attached, within 9 months of the owner’s death (OCGA § 44-17-3, § 44-17-6). If that deadline is missed, the TOD transfer can fail and the property may have to be handled through the probate estate. Because Georgia’s TOD deed is new and title companies are still developing their underwriting standards, confirm the requirements with the title company early.

Life estate. Recognized in Georgia (OCGA § 44-6-80 et seq.), a life estate lets the remainder beneficiary take at death. Georgia historically did not recognize Lady Bird, or enhanced life estate, deeds; the TOD deed now fills that role.

Trust. Property held in a trust is distributed by the trustee under the trust terms, outside probate. For how that sale works, see our guide to selling a house in a trust after death.

One more point that helps inherited sales: under the federal Garn-St. Germain Act (12 U.S.C. § 1701j-3), a lender generally cannot call a mortgage due simply because residential property passed to an heir. That protects the heir from automatic acceleration, but it does not pause the loan. The payments, taxes, and insurance still have to be kept current while the family decides what to do, covered in our guide to inheriting a house with a mortgage. For ways owners avoid probate before death, see our guide to how to avoid probate on inherited property.

When someone dies without a will in Georgia, the surviving spouse shares with the children but never receives less than one-third, no matter how many children there are (OCGA § 53-2-1). That one-third floor is the rule that catches most families off guard, because it does not shrink as the number of children grows. Here is how the shares work:

• Spouse alone, no descendants: The spouse takes 100 percent.
• Spouse plus descendants: The spouse and children share equally, except that the spouse never takes less than one-third. A spouse with five children does not receive one-sixth. The spouse takes one-third, and the five children divide the remaining two-thirds.
• No spouse: The estate passes in order to children and their descendants, then to parents equally, then to siblings and their descendants, then to grandparents, and then to more remote relatives.
• No relatives at all: The estate escheats to the county board of education where probate was filed, not to the state treasury.

A few Georgia-specific rules sit on top of these formulas. Anyone who feloniously and intentionally kills the decedent is barred under the slayer statute (OCGA § 53-1-5). Stepchildren and unmarried partners inherit nothing under intestacy unless they legally qualify in another way, while adopted children inherit fully. Georgia abolished common-law marriage prospectively effective January 1, 1997 (OCGA § 19-3-1.1), though a common-law marriage that met all the requirements before that date remains valid, which matters when an unmarried partner claims spousal status.

Probate in Georgia can run from a couple of months for the simplest situations to a year or more for contested or court-supervised estates. The right path depends on whether there is a will, whether the heirs agree, and whether the estate has debts to resolve. Georgia is not a Uniform Probate Code state, so its options do not map neatly onto the summary-administration labels used in other states.

The main paths heirs encounter, including the non-probate routes, are these:

• No Administration Necessary (OCGA § 53-2-40): For intestate estates where all heirs agree by notarized signature and debts are paid, consented to, or noticed by four-week publication without objection. No dollar cap. Realistic timeline is roughly two to four months when publication is required, faster with full upfront agreement. The order vests title in the heirs and is recorded in the superior court deed records of every county where the realty sits.
• Common Form probate (OCGA § 53-5-15 through § 53-5-19): A testate process that is faster and cheaper and does not require notice to heirs. The tradeoff is that it remains open to challenge for four years (or four years after a minor heir reaches adulthood).
• Solemn Form probate (OCGA § 53-5-20 through § 53-5-24): A testate process with notice to all heirs that becomes conclusive after six months as to the parties served. Most Georgia estate attorneys recommend it because of that finality. Typical timeline is six months to a year or more.
• Temporary Letters of Administration (OCGA § 53-6-30 et seq.): For urgent situations, such as securing a vacant home or halting a foreclosure, before permanent administration is granted. A temporary administrator can collect and preserve estate property but cannot distribute it or convey title to a buyer.
• Year’s Support as a bypass: When a Year’s Support petition consumes the entire estate, no formal administration is needed. This is a common shortcut for smaller estates with a surviving spouse or minor children.
• Banking affidavit (OCGA § 7-1-239): Releases funds in a single financial institution under 15,000 dollars for an intestate decedent. It does not transfer real estate.

Most Georgia estates that involve real estate move through these steps: file the petition in the county Probate Court; obtain Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration, or the relevant order; handle notices, creditor claims, and any objections; record the title-clearing instrument in the Superior Court deed records of the county where the property sits; then coordinate the title company, the PT-61 transfer-tax filing, recording, and closing.

Because Common Form probate stays contestable for four years, many Georgia title insurers will not insure a clean sale until the estate converts to Solemn Form probate, obtains a waiver, provides curative documentation, or waits out the contest period. If selling is the goal, ask the title company which route it prefers before choosing Common Form.

Probate is handled at the county level, and filing practices vary. Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, and Gwinnett counties each run probate a little differently despite identical state law, and some metro counties offer electronic filing while others remain paper-only. The county also matters because property records and the PT-61 transfer-tax filing run through the Superior Court Clerk in the county where the property sits, and after HB 581 the homestead and assessment consequences differ from one county, city, and school district to the next. Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett, Chatham, Forsyth, Cherokee, and Hall counties are among the busiest for inherited-property activity.

Probate paths table

Georgia offers several paths to transfer inherited real property, from the fastest, a pre-death TOD deed or survivorship that avoids probate entirely, to the slowest, a full Solemn Form administration. The right path depends on whether there is a will, whether the heirs agree, the estate’s debts, and whether the owner lived out of state.

• TOD deed or JTWROS set up before death: Instant, no probate, when validly in place.
• No Administration Necessary: Intestate estates with full heir agreement and debts handled. No dollar cap. Roughly two to four months.
• Year’s Support as a bypass: Can transfer the home directly to a surviving spouse or minor children, and when it consumes the estate, no administration is needed.
• Common Form or Solemn Form probate: For testate estates, with Solemn Form giving the clean-title finality most title companies prefer.

The right choice usually comes down to whether there is a will, whether every heir agrees, and how the estate’s debts will be handled. For a home that several relatives inherited together, see our guide to partition actions on inherited property.

Georgia protects a surviving spouse differently from every other state. Instead of an elective share, it uses Year’s Support, which lets a surviving spouse or minor child petition to set aside part or all of the probate estate (OCGA § 53-3-1 et seq.). This is a claim that can be made against the will and ahead of most creditors, which is separate from what a spouse inherits when there is no will.

Here is how it works in practice:

• Eligibility: A surviving spouse qualifies, and so do minor children under 18. A spouse loses eligibility by remarrying before filing, and a child’s eligibility ends on marriage, death, or reaching majority before filing (OCGA § 53-3-1, § 53-3-5). Equitably adopted children have been awarded Year’s Support in Georgia case law.
• Deadline: The petition must be filed in the probate court of the decedent’s county of domicile within two years of the date of death.
• Scope: The award is property sufficient to maintain the family’s accustomed standard of living for 12 months, and there is no statutory dollar cap (OCGA § 53-3-1(c), § 53-3-7). The court weighs the family’s other available support, the estate’s solvency, and other equitable factors. If no one objects within the 30-day window after notice, the entire estate can be set aside, and practitioners routinely petition for the whole estate.
• Priority: Year’s Support is treated as a necessary expense of administration. It takes priority over almost everything except the costs of administration, certain capped funeral expenses, and perfected security interests such as mortgages and security deeds. It beats unsecured creditors like credit cards, medical bills, and most judgments, and it can override the will.
• Real-estate mechanics: Title to property awarded as Year’s Support vests directly in the surviving spouse and minor children, share and share alike (OCGA § 53-3-9). A certificate of the award has to be filed with the superior court clerk in any county where awarded real property sits, within 30 days of the order (OCGA § 53-3-12). The award remains subject to a purchase-money mortgage, and the lender can still foreclose (OCGA § 53-3-16).

For inherited-property sales, the key point is that Year’s Support generally affects the probate estate. If the home passed outside probate through a trust, survivorship, a TOD deed, or another non-probate transfer, the title company and estate attorney may analyze a Year’s Support claim differently. A buyer, broker, or title company may need to know whether the two-year window has passed, whether a petition was filed, or whether the right was waived, so confirming this early matters when an estate sale involves a recently deceased owner with a surviving spouse or minor children. For a surviving spouse weighing a sale, see our guide to selling a house after the death of a spouse.

Does Georgia Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?

Georgia has no estate tax and no inheritance tax (OCGA § 48-12-1, enacted in 2014). Heirs selling inherited property face no state-level death tax. The only death tax that can reach an estate is the federal estate tax, which applies only to estates above the federal exemption in effect for the year of death and reaches very few estates. Confirm the current federal exemption for the relevant tax year before relying on it. For context, only five states impose an inheritance tax (Kentucky, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania), and Georgia is not one of them.

What Is the Capital Gains Tax on Inherited Property in Georgia?

Georgia does not have a separate capital-gains tax rate. For the relevant tax year, Georgia taxes capital gains as regular Georgia income, so the figure that applies is the state’s flat individual income-tax rate in effect that year. For the 2025 tax year, the Georgia Department of Revenue lists that flat rate as 5.19 percent, with scheduled reductions in later years subject to current law. Confirm the current year’s rate before relying on a specific number.

The number that matters most to heirs is the federal stepped-up basis. When you inherit property, its cost basis is generally reset to the fair market value on the date of death, so gain on a later sale is usually measured only from that stepped-up figure, not from what the original owner paid. For example, if a parent bought a home for 70,000 dollars and it was worth 300,000 dollars on the date of death, and the heirs sell it for 310,000 dollars, the taxable gain is generally measured against the 300,000-dollar stepped-up basis, so roughly 10,000 dollars of gain is in play rather than 240,000 dollars. The numbers here are only an illustration. For how the federal stepped-up basis works and how to calculate gain, see our guide to capital gains tax on inherited property. The decedent’s final Georgia income-tax return (Form 500) is still required for the year of death.

Does Inheriting Property in Georgia Trigger a Property Tax Increase?

It can, and in metro Atlanta it often does. The prior owner’s homestead exemption does not transfer to an heir, so the heir has to re-apply (OCGA § 48-5-40). HB 581, effective January 1, 2025, created a statewide floating homestead exemption that caps assessment growth at the rate of inflation, but the cap base resets to current market value on transfer, including inheritance, when the new owner re-establishes homestead. So a long-held home that was capped well below market value can be reassessed closer to market value after it is inherited, raising the annual property tax bill compared to what the prior owner paid.

HB 581 also let counties, cities, and school districts opt out for tax years 2026 through 2029. Many metro school systems and some local governments opted out, including, based on prior reporting, the Fulton, Gwinnett, Cobb, DeKalb, and Chatham school systems and the general governments of Gwinnett and Cobb. Because the opt-out roster can change, confirm the current status for the specific county and school district. HB 92, signed April 1, 2025, lets late-arriving owners, including heirs who just took title, apply for the homestead exemption during the 45-day assessment-appeal window, which helps heirs who close mid-year. An heir who lives in the inherited home before the estate is distributed can also qualify for the standard homestead exemption even while title is still in the administrator or executor (OCGA § 48-5-40).

Can Debts, Liens, or a Mortgage Stop the Sale?

Usually they slow a sale down rather than stop it, but they have to be handled. Mortgages and security deeds generally have to be paid off or otherwise resolved at closing, and the sale proceeds typically cover the payoff first. Secured liens follow the property, so a recorded lien, a code-enforcement lien, an HOA lien, or a judgment against the property usually has to be cleared before a title company will insure a clean sale, as our guide to debts and liens on inherited property explains. A Year’s Support award can defeat unsecured debt like credit cards and medical bills, but it does not wipe out a valid mortgage or security deed. The No Administration Necessary route depends on the estate’s debts being paid, consented to, or noticed by publication without objection, so unresolved debts can push the estate into formal administration. Past-due property taxes are typically settled at or before closing.

What Closing Costs Are Specific to Georgia?

Georgia charges a real estate transfer tax of 1.00 dollar per 1,000 dollars of consideration (OCGA § 48-6-1), paid at closing through Form PT-61, the Real Estate Transfer Tax Declaration, filed with the Superior Court Clerk in the county where the property sits. This is a closing-day line item, not an inheritance tax, and it is something many heirs do not see coming because competing guides rarely mention it.

To sell inherited property in Georgia, the title company needs proof of who has legal authority to sign the deed. Because a will is not a deed in Georgia, that proof comes from a recorded Assent to Devise, an Executor’s Deed, or an Administrator’s Deed, depending on how the property is passing.

• Assent to Devise (OCGA § 53-8-15). To pass real estate from the estate to a beneficiary under a will, the executor signs a written Deed of Assent, recorded in the superior court deed records of the county where the property sits. The Assent ends the estate’s right of administration over that property and perfects the beneficiary’s title so it can be sold.
• Executor’s Deed. When the executor sells estate real estate directly to a buyer instead of distributing it, the conveyance is by Executor’s Deed, which requires either an explicit power of sale in the will or a separate court order (OCGA § 53-8-13).
• Administrator’s Deed. In intestate estates, the administrator conveys by Administrator’s Deed, generally with court authorization (OCGA § 53-8-13) unless all heirs consent in writing.

What a personal representative can do with estate real estate without further court approval is defined by Georgia law (OCGA § 53-7-1), and our guide to what a personal representative needs to do to sell inherited property walks through the role. The practical chain of title for a sale usually runs in this order: the court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, the right instrument is prepared and recorded, the deed is recorded, and the sale closes. Title companies will not insure without these pieces in place. Most online guides stop before connecting the probate documents to the actual listing, title, recording, and closing workflow, and that gap is where heirs get stuck.

A Georgia title company will usually ask for a combination of the death certificate, the current recorded deed, the will if there is one, Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, an Assent to Devise or estate deed, a Year’s Support order or waiver if relevant, a No Administration Necessary order if that route was used, the foreign probate record if the owner lived out of state, payoff statements for any mortgage or liens, and the PT-61 transfer-tax filing at closing. Our guide to the documents you need to sell inherited property covers the full checklist.

An inherited Georgia property can frequently be listed or sold before the estate is fully closed, as long as the person signing the deed has authority and the title company is willing to insure the sale. Without both, a buyer’s lender and title company will not move forward. Having the will, even a clear one that leaves you the house, does not let you sign a deed to a buyer; the executor still has to record an Assent to Devise or an estate deed to convey marketable title.

Who signs the deed table

Out-of-state families can often sell a Georgia house without opening a full Georgia probate, because Georgia gives an out-of-state executor unusual authority to act and recognizes foreign wills as title-clearing documents. The right path depends on whether the owner left a will and whether anyone has qualified as the personal representative. If you are simply an heir, your options run through the estate; if you are the executor qualified in the home state, Georgia gives you direct tools.

• Foreign personal representative selling directly (OCGA § 53-5-42). When a personal representative is duly qualified in the decedent’s home state and no Georgia ancillary proceeding is pending, that foreign PR has direct statutory authority in Georgia to take possession of property, sell and convey the decedent’s Georgia real estate, transfer accounts, and sue in Georgia courts. In practice, this can let an out-of-state executor sell a Georgia property without ever opening Georgia probate.
• Foreign will as a muniment of title (OCGA § 53-5-35). A will probated in another state can be recorded as a muniment of title, with properly authenticated copies of the foreign probate record recorded in the deed records of the Georgia county where the land sits, conveying the property to the devisees without a Georgia probate proceeding. Title companies may still require authenticated copies, recording in the correct county, and sometimes an executor’s assent or additional curative documents, so confirm their requirements early.
• Ancillary probate in Solemn Form (OCGA § 53-5-33). When the muniment path or direct sale does not fit, a certified copy of the will and authenticated proceedings can be filed in Georgia, and the will may be admitted, subject to caveat on the same grounds as any will.
• Will validity (OCGA § 53-4-20). The will must have been validly executed under the law of the place where it was signed or the testator’s domicile at the time, and a self-proving affidavit that is valid under the home state’s law is generally accepted.

The intestate situation is the exception. When an out-of-state owner died without a will, Georgia law governs the descent of Georgia real property because real estate is controlled by the law of the state where it sits, and the Georgia probate court in that county must appoint an administrator on petition (OCGA § 53-5-38). In that scenario, Georgia ancillary administration is generally required. In short, an out-of-state owner who died with a will probated elsewhere may be handled through the foreign PR’s authority or a recorded muniment with no Georgia probate, while an out-of-state owner who died intestate with no home-state administration generally needs Georgia ancillary administration. For more on selling property in a state where you do not live, see our guide to selling inherited property out of state.

When several people inherit the same Georgia property and disagree about selling, Georgia gives co-owners a clear ladder of options, from a voluntary sale to a court-ordered partition as a last resort. A forced court sale is the last rung, not the first. When all the heirs agree, the cleanest outcome is a normal sale with everyone signing. If one heir wants to keep the property, that heir can buy out the others, with the practical hurdles being an agreed value, usually by appraisal, and the funding. Disputes often arise when one heir occupies the property while others want their share, and who pays the taxes, insurance, and upkeep during that time is worth resolving in writing early. If the co-owners cannot agree, any owner can file a partition action asking a court to divide or sell the property. How the proceeds are split is not always equal, since it follows the will, the intestacy shares, the recorded title percentages, any reimbursement claims, or a buyout agreement.

Heirs property is real estate held by relatives as tenants in common with no agreement governing partition. Georgia adopted the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act in 2012 (OCGA § 44-6-180 through § 44-6-189.1), which adds real protections when the property qualifies. Under the Act, a court must first determine whether the property qualifies as heirs property, and that determination is mandatory (Faison v. Faison, 344 Ga. App. 600 (2018), holding that failure to do so is reversible error). The court must order an independent appraisal (Morton v. Pitts, 357 Ga. App. 513 (2020)), and any cotenant who did not request the sale gets the right to buy out the requesting cotenant’s share at the appraised value before any sale happens. The court prefers dividing the property over selling it, weighing factors like sentimental and ancestral value, and if a sale is ordered, the default is an open-market sale through a licensed broker rather than a courthouse-steps auction. The practical takeaway is that buying one heir’s fractional interest and trying to force a sale is slow, expensive, and uncertain under the Act, so all-heir agreement is almost always the cleanest path. For how a forced sale works and how co-owners navigate one, see our guide to whether a sibling can force the sale of inherited property.

These are the Georgia inherited-property mistakes most likely to delay a sale or mislead heirs. Each correction is stated against current Georgia law and is worth verifying independently before you rely on it.

• Assuming No Administration Necessary has a 100,000-dollar cap. There is no dollar cap. OCGA § 53-2-40 can be used for intestate estates of any value when the heirs agree and the debts are handled.
• Believing a banking affidavit can transfer an inherited house. It cannot. Georgia’s small bank-account affidavit (OCGA § 7-1-239) releases limited funds from a single financial institution and does not transfer real estate.
• Treating a will as a deed. A will does not convey Georgia real estate by itself. A recorded Assent to Devise or estate deed is required (OCGA § 53-8-15).
• Assuming Georgia has an elective share. It does not. Georgia is the only state without a traditional elective share, and Year’s Support is the substitute (OCGA § 53-3-1 et seq.).
• Citing a 2026 bill, often called HB 899, as having overhauled Georgia’s transfer-on-death deeds. HB 899 was introduced but has not been enacted, so it changed nothing. Georgia’s TOD framework comes from Senate Bill 420 in 2024 (OCGA § 44-17-1 through § 44-17-7), and the real 9-month affidavit deadline lives in that 2024 statute (OCGA § 44-17-3, § 44-17-6).
• Publishing a stale Georgia capital-gains figure. Georgia has no separate capital-gains rate. Gain is taxed as ordinary Georgia income at the flat rate in effect for the relevant tax year.

• Senate Bill 420, effective July 1, 2024: created Georgia’s transfer-on-death deed framework (OCGA § 44-17-1 through § 44-17-7). It remains in early implementation as title companies continue to develop their underwriting standards.
• HB 581, effective January 1, 2025: created the statewide floating homestead exemption that caps assessment growth at inflation, with the cap base resetting on transfer, including inheritance, and local opt-outs available through tax year 2029 that many metro school systems and some local governments took.
• HB 92, signed April 1, 2025: revised HB 581 to allow opt-out rescissions through April 30, 2025, allow homestead applications during the 45-day assessment-appeal window for late-arriving owners, and extend the annual opt-out renewal mechanism through 2029.
• Georgia’s flat individual income-tax rate continues to move under current law, with scheduled annual reductions. The rate affects the income tax on a decedent’s final-year return and on gain from a sale. Confirm the current rate with the Georgia Department of Revenue.
• HB 899 (introduced, not enacted): a bill to modify the transfer-on-death deed provisions has been introduced but has not passed. Despite claims circulating online, it has not changed Georgia law, and the 2024 Senate Bill 420 framework still controls.