In a California probate, the inventory and appraisal is a sworn list of everything the decedent owned that passes through probate, valued as of the date of death. The personal representative files it on Judicial Council Form DE-160 within four months of receiving Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. Cash and cash-equivalent assets are valued by the personal representative; nearly everything else is appraised by a court-appointed probate referee. The filing drives creditor claims, statutory fees, tax basis, and ultimately what each beneficiary receives.
The Four-Month Deadline and Form DE-160
The clock starts the day the court issues Letters. From that date, you have four months to file the inventory and appraisal.1Justia. California Probate Code 8800-8804 – General Provisions The court can grant an extension when circumstances justify one, but you have to ask. The deadline does not move on its own.
The filing is Form DE-160, which separates assets into two attachments: Attachment 1 for items the personal representative values directly, and Attachment 2 for items the probate referee appraises.2Judicial Council of California. DE-160/GC-040 – Inventory and Appraisal You sign the form under penalty of perjury. Copies then go to all interested parties so heirs, beneficiaries, and creditors can see what the estate holds.
What Belongs on the Inventory
Every probate asset the decedent owned at death must appear on the inventory, listed individually and valued at fair market value as of the date of death.3California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8802 – Inventory and Appraisal That includes:
- Real property, usually described by street address or assessor’s parcel number.
- Bank accounts, brokerage accounts, certificates of deposit, and money market funds held in the decedent’s name alone.
- Stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and cryptocurrency.
- Vehicles, jewelry, collectibles, artwork, and other tangible personal property of value.
- Business interests in sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, or corporations.
- Debts owed to the decedent, such as promissory notes and receivables.
- Copyrights, patents, trademarks, and royalty streams.
- Life insurance and retirement proceeds where the estate itself is the named beneficiary.
What Skips the Inventory
Assets that pass directly to a named beneficiary stay off the inventory. Life insurance payable to a spouse, a 401(k) with a designated beneficiary, a payable-on-death bank account, and property held in a living trust all transfer outside probate. The inventory captures only assets the probate court has authority to administer.
Community Property
If the decedent was married, generally only the decedent’s one-half interest in community assets is a probate asset. The surviving spouse’s half is not. Separating those interests is one of the harder parts of preparing the inventory, especially for accounts funded over decades of marriage.
Who Appraises Each Asset
California law splits appraisal duties between the personal representative and a probate referee. The categories are not interchangeable.
What You Appraise Yourself
The personal representative values cash and cash-equivalent assets at face value: currency, bank accounts, money market funds, checks issued before death, and lump-sum insurance or retirement proceeds payable to the estate.4California State Controller’s Office. The Probate Referee Guide These go on Attachment 1. A bank balance of $47,312 is worth $47,312, and no outside appraiser is needed to confirm it. If you believe the fair market value of a cash-type asset differs from its face amount, that asset moves to the referee for independent appraisal.
What the Probate Referee Appraises
Everything else goes to the probate referee: real estate, business interests, securities, vehicles, jewelry, artwork, collectibles, and any other non-cash asset.4California State Controller’s Office. The Probate Referee Guide These items appear on Attachment 2. You deliver the inventory to the referee along with supporting documents such as deeds, financial statements, business records, and recent tax returns.
Probate referees are independent appraisers appointed by the California State Controller’s Office and assigned to specific counties. The court must choose from the Controller’s approved list for the county where the estate is being administered.5California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8920 – Designation and Removal of Probate Referee
The referee’s commission is one-tenth of one percent (0.1%) of the total appraised value of the assets they appraise, plus reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses.6California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8961 – Commission and Expenses of Probate Referee The commission applies only to assets the referee actually appraises, not to cash items you valued yourself. The estate pays the fee as an expense of administration before distributions.7California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8960 – Commission and Expenses of Probate Referee
How the Referee Reaches a Value
Every asset is valued as of the date of the decedent’s death, not when the inventory is filed and not when assets are later distributed. One valuation date keeps tax calculations and distributions consistent.3California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8802 – Inventory and Appraisal
For real estate, the referee looks at comparable recent sales, property condition, location, and any unique features, dating the value back to the day of death. Publicly traded securities are valued more mechanically: closing price on the date of death, or an average of high and low prices if the market was open. Business interests are the complicated category. The referee reviews financial statements, tax returns, revenue trends, and industry conditions, and closely held businesses often receive marketability and control discounts reflecting that a minority stake in a private company is harder to sell. Rare assets like fine art, antiques, or intellectual property may require the referee to bring in a specialized independent appraiser.
Supplemental Inventories for Later-Discovered Assets
Estates rarely close with a single filing. New assets surface: an overlooked bank account, a tax refund arriving months later, real property in another county that nobody mentioned. When you discover property that was not on the original filing, you must file a supplemental inventory and appraisal within four months of learning about it.1Justia. California Probate Code 8800-8804 – General Provisions The process mirrors the original: same form, same referee involvement for non-cash assets, same signature under penalty of perjury. Courts can extend the deadline when circumstances justify it.
Objecting to an Appraisal
Any interested person — a beneficiary, the personal representative, or a creditor — can challenge a valuation. The objection must be filed in writing with the probate court before the hearing on the petition for final distribution.8California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 8906 – Objection to Appraisal
Disagreement alone is not enough. The objecting party needs evidence: a competing appraisal, comparable sales data, financial analysis showing a business was over- or undervalued. The court may order a reappraisal by a different referee or an independent expert. If the court agrees the valuation was off, it adjusts the estate’s value, which then flows through to distributions, taxes, and creditor recovery. Waiting past the final distribution hearing means losing the right to object.
What Happens if You Miss the Deadline
If the personal representative does not file the inventory on time, any interested person can petition the court. The court has three options: order the personal representative to file, remove the personal representative, or impose personal financial liability for any harm the delay caused the estate or its beneficiaries.1Justia. California Probate Code 8800-8804 – General Provisions Liability can include attorney’s fees, and if the personal representative posted a bond, damages attach to it. An unreasonable delay also stalls the whole probate: creditors cannot be properly noticed, distributions cannot move forward, and the estate keeps incurring costs while it sits open.
Why the Appraised Values Matter
The numbers on the inventory are not just paperwork. They drive statutory fees, tax basis, and in large estates, federal estate tax.
Statutory Executor and Attorney Fees
California sets executor and attorney compensation by statute, based on the inventory value. Both the personal representative and the probate attorney earn the same scale:9California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 10800 – Compensation of Personal Representative
- 4% of the first $100,000
- 3% of the next $100,000
- 2% of the next $800,000
- 1% of the next $9,000,000
- 0.5% of the next $15,000,000
- Above $25,000,000, a reasonable amount set by the court
Fees are calculated on the appraised inventory value plus certain gains and receipts, without subtracting mortgages or other debts. A house appraised at $800,000 with a $500,000 mortgage counts as $800,000 for fee purposes. For a $1 million estate, the executor and the attorney each receive $23,000, so the estate pays $46,000 in statutory fees before any extraordinary services.
Step-Up in Basis
The inventory appraisal also fixes the tax basis for inherited assets. Under federal law, property acquired from a decedent generally takes a new basis equal to its fair market value at the date of death.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1014 – Basis of Property Acquired From a Decedent If a parent bought stock for $10,000 and it is worth $200,000 at death, the beneficiary who inherits it starts with a $200,000 basis and owes no capital gains tax if they sell at that price. An artificially low appraisal gives beneficiaries a lower basis and a bigger future tax bill. In California, community property receives a full step-up on both halves when one spouse dies, which makes accurate appraisal of community assets particularly important for the surviving spouse.
Federal Estate Tax
For 2026, the federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 per person.11Internal Revenue Service. What’s New – Estate and Gift Tax Most California estates fall well under that line and owe no federal estate tax. For larger estates, the inventory values feed directly into IRS Form 706, and the IRS does challenge valuations it considers too low, especially for closely held businesses and real property.
When a Full Inventory May Not Be Needed
Not every estate needs full probate. California allows a simplified small estate procedure when the gross value of the decedent’s property in the state does not exceed $208,850 (as adjusted effective April 1, 2025, with the next adjustment scheduled for April 1, 2028).12California Courts. DE-300 – Maximum Values for Small Estate Set-Aside and Disposition The threshold excludes certain assets like joint tenancy property, vehicles, and amounts in trust.13California Legislative Information. California Probate Code 13100 – Affidavit for Collection or Transfer of Personal Property If the estate qualifies, successors can collect assets with a simple affidavit after 40 days have passed since the death, skipping the inventory and appraisal process entirely.