PROBATE

What is the probate process in Nevada, step by step?

By Steve Lockhart

The short answer

The first step is filing. The will, if there is one, is delivered to the court, and a petition asks the court to open the estate and appoint a personal representative.

Full answer

The first step is filing. The will, if there is one, is delivered to the court, and a petition asks the court to open the estate and appoint a personal representative. The court sets a hearing, and once the representative is appointed and receives Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, they have legal authority over the estate, including the house.

Next comes notice and inventory. The representative notifies heirs and creditors, and the estate's assets are listed and valued. For a house, that means an appraisal or a documented market value, which becomes the foundation for everything that follows. Then the claim period runs, and valid debts and taxes get paid in the order Nevada law requires.

When the estate is ready, the remaining assets, including any sale proceeds from the house, go to the beneficiaries according to the will or, without a will, according to Nevada's intestacy rules. The representative files a final accounting, the court approves it, and the estate closes.

Every step has a deadline and a document. That is why the personal representative almost always works with a probate attorney, and why the real estate work, from the appraisal to the listing to the court-confirmed sale, runs alongside the legal calendar rather than after it.

A note about legal guidance: Steve is a licensed Realtor, not an attorney or a tax advisor. Probate, estate, and related tax questions involve Nevada law and IRS rules, and the specifics of your situation deserve a review with a probate attorney and a CPA who know your case.

Go a little deeper

Frequently asked

Questions people often follow up on

When does the personal representative get authority over the house?

Only after the court appoints them and issues Letters. Before those letters exist, no one, not even a family member, has authority to manage, sell, or otherwise act for the estate.

Where does the house fit in the process?

The house is inventoried and appraised early, and it can be sold once the representative has authority. The sale proceeds then become estate funds that go to paying debts and expenses before anything is distributed to heirs.

What happens at the end of probate?

The representative files an accounting of what came in and what went out, the court reviews and approves it, the remaining assets are distributed, and the estate is closed.

The Lockhart Method

Your Home | My Strategy | Proven Results

My strategy: treat the process as a shared calendar, not a mystery. The attorney owns the court steps, I own the home sale, and the family owns the decisions. When each side knows what comes next and when, the estate moves forward instead of stalling.

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