What Probate Actually Costs a California Family

Probate is a court case, not paperwork

When someone dies owning assets in their own name, those assets do not pass automatically to the people named in their will. They pass through probate — a court-supervised process that confirms the will, settles debts, and authorises the transfer. The will decides who inherits. Probate decides when, and takes a share on the way through.

How long it takes

A straightforward California probate typically runs twelve to eighteen months. Nothing about that timeline depends on how simple the estate is — it is driven by statutory notice periods, creditor claim windows, and court calendars. During that time the family generally cannot sell the home, close the accounts, or distribute anything.

How much it costs

California is one of the few states that sets statutory probate fees as a percentage of the estate's gross value — before any mortgage is subtracted. A home worth $900,000 with $600,000 still owing on it is a $900,000 asset for fee purposes, not a $300,000 one.

Under Probate Code section 10810 the attorney and the personal representative are each entitled to the same statutory fee. On a $900,000 estate that is roughly $21,000 each, so about $42,000 in total, before court filing fees, appraisal costs and any extraordinary fees. Four to seven per cent of gross value is a reasonable rule of thumb.

It is also public

A probate file is a public court record. The inventory of what was owned, what it was worth, who inherits and in what proportion — all of it is available to anyone who asks the clerk. Families are often more surprised by this than by the cost.

What avoids it

A revocable living trust holds title to your assets during your life and names who receives them afterwards. Because the trust — not you personally — owns the assets, there is nothing for the probate court to transfer. The successor trustee distributes directly, privately, and usually in weeks rather than a year.

The trust only works for assets actually transferred into it. That step is called funding, and it is the one most often left half-finished. A trust that was signed but never funded leaves the family in exactly the probate it was meant to avoid.

When probate is fine

Small estates can avoid formal probate without a trust. California allows a simplified affidavit procedure for estates under a threshold set by Probate Code section 13100, adjusted periodically. If your estate is modest and you own no real property, a well-drafted will may be all you need.

This article is general information about California law, not legal advice about your situation. My Wise Legacy is a document preparation service and not a law firm.