Skip to content
Tulsa Cash Offersby Cash Offer Match

Selling a Tulsa house with title problems

A Tulsa house with a title problem can still be sold, but the problem has to be cleared, or paid off at closing, before the buyer's title examiner will approve it. In Oklahoma the seller supplies a certified abstract, the buyer's attorney or title insurer lists what must be fixed, and the standard state contract gives the seller extra time to fix it. Paid-off mortgages and old judgments usually clear with recorded releases or affidavits. Missing heirs or an estate that was never probated usually take a court order, which means a lawyer.

Updated

Get cash offers for the house

Takes about 2 minutes. No fees and no obligation.

Step 1 of 2 · Tell us about the house

Start here

Does this sound familiar?

If one of these fits, this guide is written for you.

  • The house is still in a parent's or grandparent's name, and no probate was ever opened.
  • One of the heirs cannot be found, or will not sign the deed.
  • The title search turned up a mortgage paid off years ago, or a judgment nobody remembers.
  • A transfer-on-death affidavit was never recorded, and more than nine months have passed since the death.

Step by step

What to do, in order

Before you accept any offer.

  1. Get the abstract and the title requirements

    Under the standard Oklahoma Real Estate Commission contract, the seller provides a current abstract certified by a licensed, bonded abstract company, and the buyer's attorney or title insurer examines it against the Oklahoma Bar Association's title standards. Abstracts for Tulsa County homes are held by private abstract companies, not the county. The written list of requirements that comes back is your to-do list.

  2. Clear paid-off mortgages and old judgments

    A lender has 30 days after payoff to release the mortgage. If it has not, send a written request: after 10 more days Oklahoma law adds a penalty of 1 percent of the principal per day, up to $100 a day. If there is still no release 60 days after the payoff, a title insurance company can record a release affidavit after giving the lender 15 days' notice, with no fee to you. A judgment that was paid, or went dormant after five years without collection steps such as execution or renewal, can be released by motion if the creditor does not object within 15 days.

  3. If an owner died, record the right affidavit

    With a transfer-on-death deed, each beneficiary records an affidavit and the death certificate with the Tulsa County Clerk within nine months of a death on or after November 1, 2011, or the house reverts to the estate (58 O.S. § 1252). A surviving joint tenant records an affidavit with a certified death certificate instead, and the County Clerk has a form for it.

  4. If there was no probate, establish the heirs in court

    An affidavit of heirship can be recorded, but its facts are only presumed true and can be challenged, so for the house itself plan on a court route. Tulsa County District Court can open probate, or decide heirship on a petition even after the usual time for probate has passed, with a hearing set six to ten weeks out and notice to known and unknown heirs. A quiet title suit can also name the heirs once a year has passed since the death. Both need an attorney.

  5. Write cure time into the contract

    The state contract gives the buyer 10 days after receiving the title evidence to object, then delays closing 30 days (unless you agree on a different period) while the seller cures. If the problems are not fixed in time, the buyer can cancel and get the earnest money back, so agree on a realistic date up front.

Paperwork

Documents to gather

A title company or attorney will ask for most of these. Having them ready shortens the closing.

  • The abstract of title, or the owner's title insurance policy from the last purchase
  • Death certificates and any will for owners who have died
  • Proof of payoff for old mortgages, such as a payoff letter or the canceled check
  • Court papers for any judgment, lien or earlier probate case tied to the property
  • Names and last known addresses of every heir and co-owner
  • The latest Tulsa County tax statement

What we do

How Tulsa Cash Offers can help

  • Describe the title issue in your request so buyer partners who are willing to wait on curative work can respond.
  • Written offers can set a closing date that leaves room for a release, an affidavit or a court order to be recorded.
  • Compare who orders the abstract, who pays for curative work, and how long each buyer will wait.
  • Requesting offers is free, and there is no obligation to accept one while the title is being cleared.

Caution

Watch out for

  • Do not sign a contract or take a deposit as if you were the only owner when other heirs hold a share. Every owner of record, or a court order, is needed to pass clean title.
  • Oklahoma's rule that turns a recorded affidavit of death and heirship into marketable title on its own covers only severed mineral rights, and only after ten years of record. Do not count on one for the house.
  • Quiet title, heirship and probate cases are court proceedings with formal notice. This page is general information, not legal advice; talk to an Oklahoma real estate or probate attorney before you file anything.

Questions

Questions about this situation

What happens if a transfer-on-death affidavit is recorded late in Oklahoma?

For a death on or after November 1, 2011, each beneficiary has to record the affidavit, with the death certificate attached, in the county where the house sits within nine months of the death. If that does not happen, the interest reverts to the deceased owner's estate, so the house generally goes through probate like other estate property. Deaths before November 1, 2011 have no nine-month limit.

Do I need a quiet title lawsuit to sell a Tulsa house?

Only for some problems. Paid-off mortgages and dormant judgments usually clear with releases, affidavits or a motion. For other recorded clouds, Oklahoma lets you first send the holder a certified-mail request with the curative document attached; they have 30 days to respond, and if they ignore it and you later win a quiet title suit, they can be ordered to pay your costs and attorney fees. Missing heirs and disputed claims generally need the court.

Can heirs sell a Tulsa house when the owner died years ago without probate?

Yes, once the heirs are established. An Oklahoma district court can determine heirship on a petition even after the usual time for probate has passed. Anyone served only by publication has 12 months after the judgment to ask for a rehearing. Once the heirs are named, they sign the deed together or the court authorizes the sale.

Sources

Where the facts on this page come from, with the date each source was read.

Keep reading

Related guides

See what local cash buyers would offer

It takes about two minutes. No fees, no obligation, and no pressure.

Get my cash offers
Get my cash offers