Sell Inherited Property in Washington

The fastest path to a sale depends on title: a community property agreement, a transfer on death deed, a trust, a valid survivorship title, probate, or another title-clearing path the title company will accept. This guide walks through each one, plus the Washington-specific tax and timing issues that decide what an heir can do next.

• Whether you need probate depends on how title was held. A community property agreement, a transfer on death deed, a valid survivorship title, or a trust can pass the home outside probate. A solely owned home or a tenancy-in-common share usually needs probate or another title-clearing path the title company will accept.
• Washington has no inheritance tax, but it does have a state estate tax. For 2026 deaths, the exclusion and top rate depend on whether the person died before or on or after July 1, 2026.
• Community property changes both inheritance and taxes. A surviving spouse or registered domestic partner already owns half of the community property, and community property can receive a full basis step-up at the first death, which often lowers the gain on a later sale.
• Washington has no elective share. A surviving spouse is protected by community-property ownership and, when appropriate, the Chapter 11.54 basic award, which a court can grant from the decedent’s community or separate property, including in some nonprobate situations. There is no UPC-style augmented-estate election here.
• A small-estate affidavit cannot transfer a house. Washington’s small-estate affidavit is for personal property only. Real estate almost always needs a different path.

Whether inherited property in Washington requires probate depends on how title was held and, for married couples, on whether the property is community or separate. Property that passed through a community property agreement, a valid survivorship title, a transfer on death deed, or a trust transfers outside probate. A solely owned home, or a deceased owner’s tenancy-in-common share, usually needs probate or another title-clearing path the title company will accept.

• Community property agreement (CPA): Usually no probate for covered property. A written agreement vests community property in the surviving spouse or partner at death (RCW 26.16.120).
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship: No probate, if it was validly created by a written instrument that expressly states a right of survivorship (RCW 64.28.010).
• Transfer on death deed (TODD): No probate. The property passes to the named beneficiary at death (Chapter 64.80 RCW), though the beneficiary takes subject to creditor claims and the basic award.
• Trust: No probate. The trustee transfers or sells under the trust terms.
• Sole ownership: Usually needs probate or another title-clearing path. A small-estate affidavit cannot clear real estate.
• Tenancy in common: The deceased owner’s share usually needs probate or another title-clearing path. There is no automatic survivorship.
• Community property without a CPA: Depends on title, the will, and the surviving spouse’s or partner’s rights. The survivor already owns half; the decedent’s half passes by will or by the intestacy rules below.

Washington is a community property state with no inheritance tax, but it does have a state estate tax paid by the estate. It has no elective share; a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner is protected mainly by existing community-property ownership and, when appropriate, the Chapter 11.54 basic award. Washington recognizes transfer on death deeds and community property agreements, and it has adopted the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act.

Probate is handled in county Superior Court and commonly uses nonintervention powers, which keeps most estates out of close court supervision. The defining feature for inherited real estate in 2026 is timing: the state estate tax is scheduled to change for deaths on or after July 1, 2026, so the date of death controls which rules apply.

Washington has four inherited-property rules heirs should understand first: community property as the threshold classification, a state estate tax that is unusually date-sensitive in 2026, a small-estate affidavit that cannot transfer real property, and both a Chapter 11.54 basic award and the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act that shape what a surviving spouse and co-heirs can do.

Community property is the threshold issue. Before any Washington inheritance question can be answered, the property has to be classified as community or separate. Property acquired during marriage with community funds is presumed community property, and the surviving spouse already owns half (RCW 26.16.030). This single classification drives who inherits, what the surviving spouse already owns, and how the property is taxed on a later sale.

The 2026 estate tax is date-of-death sensitive. Washington’s estate tax passed through several versions in a short span, and a scheduled change takes effect for deaths on or after July 1, 2026. A death in the first half of 2026 and a death in the second half are treated differently. This is an unusually time-sensitive estate-tax issue in 2026, and it is covered in detail in the tax section below. (Washington Department of Revenue)

The small-estate affidavit cannot transfer real estate. Washington’s small-estate affidavit reaches personal property only (RCW 11.62.010). There is no dollar-capped summary administration that transfers a house. This corrects one of the most common shortcuts heirs assume will work.

Washington has both a basic award and a heirs-property partition act. The Chapter 11.54 basic award is a court-requested family protection that can apply against a will, and the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (Chapter 7.54 RCW) governs what happens when co-owning heirs cannot agree. Both are explained below.

Washington recognizes several forms of ownership that determine whether inherited property passes through probate. Two rules matter most: survivorship is never assumed, it has to be created in writing, and Washington gives married couples a powerful probate-avoidance tool in the community property agreement that most other states do not have.

How title was held controls whether the home goes through probate and who signs to sell it:

• Sole ownership does not bypass probate. The home passes by will or intestacy and needs probate or another title-clearing path.
• Tenancy in common does not bypass probate. The deceased owner’s fractional share passes by will or intestacy, with no survivorship.
• Joint tenancy with survivorship bypasses probate if validly created. It must be made by a written instrument expressly stating a right of survivorship (RCW 64.28.010), and it passes to the surviving owner.
• Community property with no CPA does not fully bypass probate. The surviving spouse or partner keeps their own half, and the decedent’s half passes by will or intestacy.
• A community property agreement bypasses probate. It vests community property in the surviving spouse or partner at death (RCW 26.16.120).
• A transfer on death deed bypasses probate. It passes to the named beneficiary (Chapter 64.80 RCW), subject to creditor claims and the basic award.
• A trust bypasses probate. It is distributed by the trustee under the trust terms.

The community property agreement is one of the most important probate-avoidance tools for married Washington couples. It is a written agreement that vests community property in the surviving spouse or partner automatically at death, bypassing probate (RCW 26.16.120). To bind third parties and clear title, it should be recorded, which requires acknowledgment (RCW 64.08.010). It also delivers a full basis step-up on the community property, not just the decedent’s half, which can lower the gain on a later sale.

Transfer on death deeds are valid Washington law. A TODD lets an owner name a beneficiary who takes real property automatically at death, outside probate, and it stays fully revocable during the owner’s life (Chapter 64.80 RCW, in effect since 2014). To be valid, it must be recorded before death. Two details matter at sale time. First, a TODD beneficiary takes the property subject to allowed creditor claims and the Chapter 11.54 basic award (RCW 64.80.120), so a TODD avoids probate but does not automatically defeat the surviving spouse’s award or the decedent’s creditors. Second, a TODD transfers without any covenant or warranty of title, even if the deed says otherwise, so the beneficiary still needs a title review before selling.

For married owners or registered domestic partners, effectiveness can depend on whether the spouse or partner joined in the TOD deed and whether the transferor was the surviving spouse or partner. Where community property is involved, this nuance can change what actually passes at the first death, so married couples using a TODD should confirm how the deed was set up.

When someone dies without a will in Washington, the surviving spouse’s or registered domestic partner’s share depends on whether the property is community or separate and on which other relatives survive. Because Washington is a community property state, the intestacy rules split every estate into the net community estate and the net separate estate (RCW 11.04.015). Registered domestic partners are treated the same as spouses throughout.

The surviving spouse or partner keeps all of the community property (their own half plus the decedent’s half). On the separate estate, the share depends on who else survives.

A few Washington-specific rules sit on top of these formulas. An heir must survive the decedent by at least 120 hours (5 days) to inherit by intestacy (RCW 11.05A.020). Lifetime gifts can be charged against an heir’s share if they were intended as an advancement rather than a gift (RCW 11.04.041). The estate escheats to the state only if no taker exists anywhere in the scheme (RCW 11.08.140), which is rare by design.

Probate in Washington typically takes six to twelve months, though the timeline depends on the estate. Most Washington estates use nonintervention administration, the state’s signature procedure. Nonintervention probate means that once the court grants nonintervention powers, the personal representative can administer the estate, including selling estate real property, with much less ongoing court supervision (RCW 11.68.011). That is a large part of why Washington probate is generally faster and less expensive than it is in heavily supervised states.

The deadline that actually drives the timeline is the creditor-claim period. When the personal representative publishes notice to creditors, it starts a four-month window for claims (Chapter 11.40 RCW). That four-month period is the mechanical reason many Washington probates run in the six-to-twelve-month range, because estates often wait for the claim period to expire before final distribution or closing.

At a high level, a Washington probate moves through these steps:

1. File the petition to admit the will and appoint a personal representative.
2. Letters issued. The court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, which prove the personal representative’s authority.
3. Publish notice to creditors, which starts the clock.
4. Four-month creditor window runs; the estate handles valid claims.
5. Sale, distribution, and closing, often with the home sold during administration under nonintervention powers.

A few practical points round out the process:

1. Personal representative priority (RCW 11.28.120). The surviving spouse or registered domestic partner has first priority, then the next of kin, then certain other fiduciaries and beneficiaries.
2. Bond is often waived where the will provides for it, or where the personal representative is the surviving spouse and the estate passes to that spouse (RCW 11.28.185).
3. Supervised probate is used instead for contested, insolvent, or otherwise complicated estates, and it runs slower and costs more.

Probate is handled in Superior Court at the county level. King County (Seattle), Pierce County (Tacoma), Snohomish County (Everett), and Spokane County handle a large share of Washington’s probate filings, and local court practice can affect how quickly a case moves.

Helpful to know: A sale can often be prepared or even completed before the estate formally closes, as long as the personal representative has authority and the title company is willing to insure the transaction. A broker who has handled inherited sales in Washington can line up the listing so it is ready to move the moment authority is in place.

The fastest ways to transfer inherited Washington property are the vehicles an owner sets up before death, a community property agreement, a transfer on death deed, a joint tenancy with survivorship, or a trust. After death, the main paths for real estate are nonintervention probate or, for complex estates, supervised probate, because the small-estate affidavit cannot transfer a house.

The small-estate affidavit is the most common point of confusion. It is available when the decedent’s probate estate, excluding the surviving spouse’s or partner’s community property interest and less liens, does not exceed $100,000 (RCW 11.62.010). It is also limited to estates where the decedent was a Washington resident at death, and it requires that 40 days have passed since death, that no personal representative is pending or appointed, that debts are paid or provided for, and, where other successors exist, 10 days’ advance notice to them. But it reaches personal property only. For a probate estate that includes a home, the real-estate equity still counts toward the $100,000 ceiling, even though the affidavit could never transfer the house itself, so most estates with a house end up needing probate instead.

Washington has no elective share and no automatic spousal life estate. A surviving spouse or registered domestic partner is protected instead by their existing community-property ownership and, when appropriate, by the Chapter 11.54 basic award, which a court can grant from the estate. If you are the surviving spouse and weighing whether to sell, our guide to selling a house after the death of a spouse walks through the practical steps.

No elective share, and no augmented estate. As a community property state, Washington already vests half of all community property in the surviving spouse by operation of law, independent of the will. There is no augmented estate, no one-third or one-half election, and no short-marriage reduction. Those belong to the Uniform Probate Code model used in common-law states, not Washington. A Washington decedent can leave away only their own half of the community property plus their separate property; they cannot reach the survivor’s vested half.

No automatic life estate. Washington does not give a surviving spouse an automatic life estate in the home, and it does not recognize common-law dower or curtesy. Any life estate has to be created by the decedent’s will or trust.

The basic award (Chapter 11.54 RCW) is the real protection at death. A surviving spouse, registered domestic partner, or dependent child may petition a court for an award from the decedent’s community or separate property (RCW 11.54.010). It is a court-requested family-protection remedy, not an automatic elective share, and the court grants what is equitable and appropriate. A few features make it powerful:

• It can apply against a will. When the statutory conditions are met and the court grants the award, it can reduce or redirect what would otherwise pass under the will. Washington courts have described the award as favored and liberally construed.
• The amount has an inflation-adjusted statutory minimum. Under RCW 11.54.020, the award is at least $125,000 adjusted by an inflation factor (October Seattle-area CPI over October 2021) and rounded to the nearest $1,000, and it can be larger where exempt property is worth more. Homestead and other exempt property are folded into the award calculation, but the award itself is a separate court remedy under Chapter 11.54 RCW. Because the figure is indexed, the current amount should be confirmed for the specific situation rather than assumed.
• It can reach nonprobate assets. Chapter 11.54 applies to both probate and nonprobate assets, and an award may be sought whether or not a probate has been opened.
• A filing deadline applies. Under RCW 11.54.015, the petition must be filed before the earliest of: 18 months from the date of death, if within 12 months a personal representative was appointed or a notice agent filed the required declaration and oath; the termination of all proceedings relating to the decedent’s probate or nonprobate assets; or six years from the date of death. The court also cannot make an award until administration expenses, funeral expenses, last-sickness expenses, and certain recent wages are paid or provided for.

Keep two different protections separate. The homestead exemption and the basic award are often confused, but they do different jobs:

• Homestead exemption (RCW 6.13.030) is creditor protection. It protects home equity from certain creditors, in the greater of $125,000 or the county median sale price of a single-family home in the prior year, so in high-cost counties the protected equity can be substantial. It does not, by itself, give a surviving spouse a right to inherit the home or to occupy it for life.
• The basic award (Chapter 11.54 RCW) is a court-requested family-support award. It uses the RCW 11.54 formula and, unlike the homestead exemption, can actually shift value to the surviving spouse or dependent children, including against the will.

Who inherits or occupies the home is a separate question answered by title, the will, and the intestacy rules above.

To keep the four spouse-related concepts straight:

• Community property ownership gives the survivor their existing half of the community property by law. It does not, by itself, give them the decedent’s half or any separate property.
• The basic award is a court-requested family-support award that can shift value to the survivor or dependent children, even against the will. It does not apply automatically; someone has to petition.
• The homestead exemption protects home equity from certain creditors. It does not give a right to inherit or occupy the home.
• A life estate gives a right to use the home for life, but only if the decedent created one by will or trust. Washington does not grant one automatically.

No portability. Unlike the federal system, Washington does not let a surviving spouse carry over a deceased spouse’s unused estate-tax exclusion. Unused exclusion is simply lost without planning, which is why the “two exclusions combined” assumption does not hold in Washington (more on this in the tax section).

Does Washington Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?

Washington has no inheritance tax. It has a state estate tax, paid by the estate, and for 2026 the rules depend on the date of death. A scheduled change takes effect for deaths on or after July 1, 2026. Heirs do not pay an inheritance tax personally, but the estate tax can still affect heirs, because it can reduce sale proceeds, delay distribution, or force the estate to sell real estate to cover the bill.

For deaths in the first half of 2026, the exclusion is $3,076,000 and the top rate is 35%. For deaths on or after July 1, 2026, the exclusion is scheduled to be $3,000,000 and the top rate 20% under ESB 6347 (Chapter 209, Laws of 2026), restoring the graduated schedule that was in place before 2025. Future-year figures should be checked against the Washington Department of Revenue before relying on them, because the post-2026 inflation-adjustment mechanics have been the subject of competing readings. (Washington Department of Revenue)

These are top marginal rates, not flat rates. Washington estate tax is calculated using graduated brackets on the Washington taxable estate, not by applying the top rate to the entire estate. Two thresholds also work differently: the filing threshold is based on the gross estate, so a return is required once the gross estate reaches the exclusion amount, while the tax is calculated on the Washington taxable estate after allowable deductions and the exclusion.

A few more points matter for heirs with real estate:

• Filing threshold and tax calculation. The filing threshold is based on the gross estate, so a return is required once the gross estate reaches the exclusion amount. The tax itself is then calculated on the Washington taxable estate after allowable deductions and the exclusion, not on the gross figure.
• No portability. A married couple cannot simply combine two exclusions in Washington without planning, such as a credit-shelter or bypass trust. The “two exclusions combined” figure some pages cite is not how Washington works.
• Family-business and farm relief. Washington provides a qualified family-owned business interest deduction and farm relief, with the deduction amount raised under the 2025 legislation. The general relief exists; the specific parameters should be confirmed for a given estate.
• Liquidity is the real-estate pain point. An estate that is mostly a paid-off house can cross the exclusion on the real estate alone, which sometimes forces a sale to pay the tax. That is one of the situations where having a broker ready to move matters.
• Filing timing. The Washington estate tax return is generally due nine months after death, with an automatic six-month filing extension (the extension is to file, not to pay).
• Nonresident owners. For a nonresident who owned Washington real estate, the tax is calculated on the share of the estate that is Washington property (Chapter 83.100 RCW).

Does Washington Capital Gains Tax Apply When You Sell an Inherited House?

No. Washington’s capital gains tax does not apply to the sale of real estate. The Washington Department of Revenue states this directly: the capital gains tax does not apply to the sale or exchange of real estate, regardless of how long it was owned, whether the seller lived in it, where it is located, what type of property it is, or who owns it. So selling an inherited Washington house does not trigger Washington capital gains tax. (Washington Department of Revenue)

Two things still matter when you sell:

• Federal capital gains rules still apply, and they are measured from your stepped-up basis, generally the property’s value on the date of death. For a detailed walkthrough of how the federal step-up works, see our guide to capital gains tax on inherited property.
• Community property can give a full step-up. Because Washington is a community property state, both halves of community property generally step up at the first spouse’s death, not just the decedent’s half. That often erases most or all of the gain on a near-term sale, which can make selling sooner the more tax-efficient choice. It is a genuine advantage worth weighing when you decide whether to sell.

Washington’s capital gains tax can apply to gains on non-real-estate assets an heir sells, such as certain stocks held more than a year, but it is not the tax on selling the inherited house.

Are Inherited Real Estate Transfers Subject to Property Tax Reassessment or REET?

Washington does not have a California-style reassessment that is triggered specifically by inheriting a home. Washington property is assessed at fair market value, so the assessed value and tax can change over time through the normal assessment process, but inheriting the property is not itself a special reassessment event.

Two transfer-tax points are worth knowing, because they affect the sale rather than the inheritance:

• Inheriting is generally exempt from real estate excise tax (REET). A transfer of real property by inheritance or devise is generally not subject to Washington’s real estate excise tax. (Washington Administrative Code 458-61A-202)
• A later sale by the heir is generally subject to REET. When the heir sells the home to a buyer, that sale is a normal taxable transfer for REET purposes, and a co-heir buyout can also raise REET on the amount paid. The title company will need the correct REET affidavit and supporting documents at closing.

To sell inherited Washington property, the title company needs proof of who has the legal authority to sign the deed, and that proof depends on how the property is passing. The signer is the personal representative for estate property, the surviving owner for survivorship or community-property-agreement property, the trustee for trust property, and the named beneficiary for a transfer on death deed.

Who Can Sign the Deed for Inherited Washington Property?

• Estate with a personal representative: the personal representative signs, using Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. Under nonintervention powers, the personal representative can sell during administration. For a full walkthrough of the role, see our guide to what a personal representative needs to do to sell inherited property.
• Community property agreement or survivorship title: the surviving owner signs, with the recorded agreement or survivorship instrument and the death certificate.
• Trust: the trustee signs, with a trust certificate or the relevant trust pages showing authority.
• Transfer on death deed: the beneficiary takes title by recording the required death and title documents per Chapter 64.80 RCW, then signs as owner.
• Life estate or remainder interest: when the life tenant dies, the remainder beneficiary generally takes under the recorded deed, but the title company will still review the deed and the REET documentation before a sale.
• Intestate, no probate yet: heirs generally need probate, a lack-of-probate affidavit, or another path the title company will accept before they can convey.

What Documents Does a Washington Title Company Need?

Washington title companies usually need proof of death, proof of signing authority, the deed history, and the correct REET affidavit; the exact documents depend on whether the property passed by probate, CPA, TOD deed, trust, survivorship title, or intestacy. For a general checklist of what heirs typically need to gather, see our guide to documents you need to sell inherited property.

Can You Sell Inherited Property Before Washington Probate Closes?

Often, yes. In Washington, inherited property can frequently be listed or sold before the estate formally closes, but two conditions control: the person signing the deed must have authority (Letters, or a cleared chain of title), and the title company must be willing to insure the sale. Without both, a buyer’s lender and the title company will not proceed. In practice, the legal path and the title company’s underwriting standard both matter, because the buyer and lender usually need insured title before closing. A lack-of-probate affidavit can support REET and title documentation, but whether it is enough to close a sale depends on the facts and the title company’s underwriting.

Does Apple Health Estate Recovery Affect an Inherited House?

If the decedent received certain long-term care benefits through Apple Health (Washington’s Medicaid program), the state’s estate recovery program may have a claim that has to be resolved from the sale proceeds, and Washington can recover from some nonprobate assets as well as probate assets (RCW 43.20B.080). This is a payoff-and-title issue to identify early, because it affects what the heirs actually net at closing. For a broader look at how Medicaid estate recovery works and what heirs can do about it, see our guide to whether Medicaid can take an inherited house.

Two Washington tools that can clear a path. When property passes outside probate but creditor issues still need handling, a notice agent can be used in some estates to manage creditor claims without opening a full probate (Chapter 11.42 RCW). And not every dispute requires full litigation: some Washington title and estate disputes among heirs are resolved through TEDRA agreements or court orders under the Trust and Estate Dispute Resolution Act (Chapter 11.96A RCW). Both can shorten the road to a clean, sellable title.

Out-of-state heirs often need to solve the Washington title issue in Washington, even when the main probate is happening somewhere else. Because real property is governed by the law of the state where it sits, a non-resident who died owning a Washington home in their individual name generally requires a Washington ancillary probate to clear title, even if the primary probate is running in the decedent’s home state. Ancillary probate can be avoided, though, when the property passed by a transfer on death deed, a trust, a valid survivorship title, or a community property agreement, or through another title-clearing document the title company will accept.

Washington as the ancillary state (a non-resident died owning a Washington home):

• With a will: the Washington ancillary probate is opened using an exemplified (authenticated) copy of the will and of the home-state order admitting it (RCW 11.20.090). The court admits the will and the property is distributed to the devisees.
• Out-of-state personal representative: a non-resident personal representative may serve, but must appoint a resident agent for service of process, and may need to post bond unless it is waived (RCW 11.36.010; RCW 11.28.185).
• Without a will: administration follows Washington’s priority order (RCW 11.28.120).

Washington as the home state (a Washington resident died owning out-of-state real estate): the out-of-state property generally requires an ancillary probate in that other state, because Washington’s probate cannot directly convey land located elsewhere.

The practical takeaway is that owning real estate in more than one state usually means more than one probate, which multiplies cost and delay. It is one of the most common reasons out-of-state heirs decide to sell rather than hold. Setting things up before death with a transfer on death deed, a community property agreement, a joint tenancy, or a trust is the standard way to avoid a Washington ancillary probate. For more on selling across state lines, see our guides to ancillary probate and selling inherited property out of state.

Washington has adopted the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (Chapter 7.54 RCW, enacted in 2023). It applies when inherited property is held as a tenancy in common and qualifies as heirs property, which is common when separate property passes to a surviving spouse and children together, or when a home passes to several siblings. The act adds protections so that family-inherited land is not forced to a quick sale at a low price when one co-owner wants out.

When property qualifies as heirs property and any cotenant files to partition, the court follows a protective sequence:

1. Determination of value. The court determines fair market value, usually by appraisal (RCW 7.54.040).
2. Cotenant buyout. The other cotenants get the chance to buy out the cotenant who asked to sell, at the value-based price (RCW 7.54.050).
3. Partition in kind preferred. The court prefers physically dividing the property where that can be done without significant harm (RCW 7.54.060 to 7.54.070).
4. Open-market sale. If a sale is ordered, the default is an open-market sale, generally listed with a broker, rather than a courthouse auction (RCW 7.54.080).

The buyout and the open-market-sale default are the heart of the protection. They give co-owning heirs a structured way to either keep the property in the family or sell it for closer to full value. Before a partition filing, heirs often compare a co-heir buyout, a broker-led listing, or a written settlement agreement; a partition action is usually the expensive fallback, not the first move. A broker opinion of value can give co-heirs a neutral starting point before anyone goes to court. For more on 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.

Inherited-property information online goes stale quickly, and a few points cause repeated confusion in Washington. Here they are, corrected against current law and primary sources.

• Whether Washington recognizes transfer on death deeds. It does. Washington’s Transfer on Death Deed statute (Chapter 64.80 RCW) has been in effect since 2014, and a properly recorded TODD passes real property to a named beneficiary outside probate.
• What the Washington estate-tax rate is for 2026. It depends on the date of death. A scheduled change takes effect for deaths on or after July 1, 2026, moving the top rate from 35% to 20% and the exclusion from $3,076,000 to $3,000,000.
• Whether a surviving spouse has an elective share. Washington has no elective share. As a community property state, the survivor already owns half of the community property by law, and the separate protection is the Chapter 11.54 basic award, not a Uniform Probate Code election.

Washington enacted a significant estate-tax change in 2026, following 2025 changes that also affected the capital-gains tax heirs sometimes confuse with real estate sale taxes.

ESB 6347 (signed March 24, 2026; effective for deaths on or after July 1, 2026) is the dominant development for inherited real estate. It rolls the estate-tax top rate back from 35% to 20%, sets the exclusion at $3,000,000 for deaths on or after July 1, 2026, with future-year figures to be verified against Washington DOR, and restores the pre-2025 graduated schedule. Until July 1, 2026, the first-half-2026 rules (a $3,076,000 exclusion and a 35% top rate) still apply, so the date of death controls which version governs an estate. (Engrossed Senate Bill 6347)

ESSB 5813 (2025) is the law being rolled back. It raised the estate-tax exclusion and pushed the top rate to 35% for deaths beginning in mid-2025, and it also made changes on the capital-gains side. It is relevant mainly as the backdrop to the 2026 rollback.

The 2024 basic-award amendment updated the Chapter 11.54 basic-award figure and its inflation adjustment, which is why the award amount is indexed rather than a fixed number.

The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (Chapter 7.54 RCW, 2023) remains in effect and governs heirs-property partition, as described above.

Washington’s small-estate and probate framework (Chapters 11.62 and 11.68 RCW) and its transfer on death deed statute (Chapter 64.80 RCW) remain operative as described on this page.