California Probate Cost: 2026 Fee Schedule

What Is Probate — and Why It Matters for California Homeowners

Probate is California's court-supervised process for transferring assets after someone dies. When you own real estate in your own name — not inside a trust — your heirs cannot sell or transfer that property without going through probate court.

The process requires filing a petition, notifying creditors, publishing a public notice, waiting for objections, and waiting for a judge to sign off. From start to finish, it takes 12 to 18 months in most California counties. In Los Angeles and San Diego, backlogs can push that past two years.

For California homeowners, this matters because the median home value in San Diego County is over substantial probate fees. At that value, the mandatory statutory fees — paid to the attorney and the executor before your heirs receive a dollar — reach substantial probate fees. That's not a worst-case scenario. That's the legal minimum.

California Statutory Probate Fee Schedule (2026)

California Probate Code §10810 sets the attorney and executor fees at identical rates. Both the attorney and the executor each receive these fees — so the total cost is doubled. The table below shows each individual fee and the combined total your estate pays.

The fee formula under Probate Code §10810: 4% of first varies by complexity + 3% of next varies by complexity + 2% of next varies by complexity + 1% of next varies by complexity — applied to both the attorney and executor independently. At substantial probate fees each gets substantial probate fees totaling substantial probate fees before any additional costs.

Note: The "Total Statutory Cost" column above reflects the commonly cited combined attorney + executor fee. Individual circumstances and estate complexity may affect final amounts.

→ Calculate the exact probate cost for your estate value

Real Examples: What Probate Costs in San Diego

These examples are based on California's statutory formula applied to typical San Diego home values. These are minimum fees — actual costs are always higher once you add court and administrative expenses.

These aren't outliers. They're the predictable consequence of dying without a trust in California — a state where housing values have made probate one of the most expensive wealth transfers in the country.

Hidden Costs: What the Fee Table Doesn't Show

The statutory fee table shows the minimum. In practice, probate in California involves several additional costs that rarely get discussed upfront:

Add substantial probate fees in additional costs to the statutory fees above. A higher-value San Diego home that generates substantial statutory probate fees will realistically cost substantial probate fees in total probate expenses — plus the 12–18 months your family waits.

How a Living Trust Avoids Probate Entirely

A revocable living trust holds your assets — primarily your home — during your lifetime. You remain in full control. When you die, your successor trustee distributes the assets to your beneficiaries privately, without court involvement, without attorney fees, and without the 12–18 month wait.

The key is funding the trust: your home must be deeded into the name of the trust. A trust document that hasn't been funded doesn't prevent probate. This is why 99% of DIY trusts fail — people create the document but never complete the deed transfer.

What a Living Trust Does:

• Transfers your home and assets to heirs without probate court
• Eliminates attorney and executor statutory fees entirely
• Keeps your estate private — no public court filings
• Allows your successor trustee to act immediately upon your death
• Remains fully revocable — you can change it anytime

HomeTrust prepares the complete trust package: trust document, pour-over will, advance healthcare directive, and the grant deed that funds the trust with your property. The deed is the step most people skip. We don't let you skip it.

→ Use our Probate Calculator to see your exact exposure

Probate vs. Living Trust: Full Approaches Compared

For a typical San Diego homeowner with a substantial probate fees property, here's what each path actually costs:

The an affordable trust service pays for itself before you sign the last page. The substantial probate fees probate bill comes out of your estate — reducing what your heirs actually receive.