Selling an Inherited House in Western New York
Inheriting a house in Western New York is often bittersweet — you're grieving, and now there's a property to deal with. Here's how the process actually works in New York, and the shortest path from grief to a closed sale.
Probate in New York, briefly
Most inherited homes go through Surrogate's Court in the county where the person passed (Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus, etc.). If there's a will, an executor is appointed. If not, an administrator. In New York, small estates under $50,000 can use a simplified process. Full probate typically takes 6–12 months, but you can often list or sell the property before probate closes, as long as the executor has Letters Testamentary.
You don't have to clean it out
This is the single biggest reason WNY families call us. Decades of belongings, a full basement, a garage that hasn't been touched — cleaning it out costs thousands and takes months. A cash buyer will take the house with everything in it. Keep what matters to you, walk away from the rest.
Multiple heirs? Get on the same page first
One sibling wants to keep the house, another wants cash, a third lives out of state and doesn't care. Have that conversation before you get an offer, not after. If everyone agrees to sell, a cash sale is by far the cleanest path — no showings, no negotiation drama, one wire transfer split at closing per the executor's instructions.
Taxes: the stepped-up basis is your friend
When you inherit real estate, your cost basis is 'stepped up' to fair market value at the date of death — not what Grandma paid in 1962. That means if you sell soon after inheriting, you owe little or no capital gains tax. Talk to a CPA, but this is why selling quickly is often the smart tax move.
The Buffalo-specific reality
Inherited homes in Buffalo, Cheektowaga, Tonawanda, and older WNY neighborhoods often need major work — knob-and-tube wiring, cast iron plumbing, one lonely radiator per room. Retail buyers with FHA loans will not finance those homes. Cash buyers will. That's why families in this position almost always net more selling to a cash buyer than after 90 days of failed FHA appraisals.
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