When a Minnesota property owner dies and nobody opens probate within three years, the heirs can ask the district court for a decree of descent (Minnesota Statutes chapter 525). The decree declares who inherited the property, so the title can finally be cleared and the property sold or refinanced.
Why they matter
- The home has often sat in the deceased owner’s name for years.
- Heirs may be several siblings or grandchildren, sometimes spread across states.
- The filing usually happens because someone now wants to sell, refinance or settle the property.
Homes that never got a filing
Many inherited homes stay in a deceased owner’s name with no filing at all. Our database matches every probate filing since 2009 to current property records, so you can also find estates that opened probate years ago but never retitled the house.