Before the certificate arrives

Before probate is granted, what can you actually sign?

It's the single question every executor and every attorney under a Power of Attorney asks first, and almost nobody asks it before they need the answer. The free checklist covers what typically moves before the certificate, what usually has to wait, and the one line that catches people off guard every time.

  • Where your authority actually starts — attorney, executor, and joint owner are three different things
  • The one hard line — what a Power of Attorney stops doing the moment someone dies
  • What usually moves before the certificate — and what typically has to wait for it
  • The costs that keep running — whether the paperwork is finished or not
Free Checklist
Send Me the Checklist
One page. Nine things, in the order they actually come up. No calls unless you ask.
Free · One page · No sales call
Free
Always
9
Things To Check
1
Hard Line
0
Sales Calls
Why This Trips People Up

The waiting isn't the same as doing nothing.

Most families think they're stuck until a certificate shows up in the mail. Usually they're not — they just never got told what's fine to start.

01

Work out which authority you actually have

Attorney under a Power of Attorney, executor named in a will, joint owner on title, or nobody yet because there's no will and no appointment. They are not the same thing and they don't grant the same powers.

First
02

Know the one hard line

A Power of Attorney for Property ends the moment the person dies — no matter what was in progress. The estate trustee (called an executor in the will) takes over from that point, and usually needs the certificate to prove it.

Before you sign anything
03

Do what typically moves in the meantime

Some things don't wait for the certificate. The checklist lists them so you're not sitting idle for months you don't need to sit idle for.

This week
04

Track what's running either way

Tax, insurance, heat, hydro and upkeep don't pause for paperwork. The checklist has a worksheet for the monthly number.

Ongoing

The waiting isn't the same as the doing-nothing. Most families think they're stuck until a certificate shows up in the mail. Usually they're not — they just never got told what's fine to start.

Michael Nikolica · Chatham-Kent
Common Questions

Straight answers.

Do I have to talk to you to get it?+
No. It arrives by email and that's the end of it unless you reply. No call, and nobody phones you three days later.
Is the "POA ends at death" thing actually real?+
Yes — a Power of Attorney for Property is only valid while the person who granted it is alive. The moment they die, that authority ends, even mid-transaction, and the estate trustee named in the will (or appointed by the court if there's no will) takes over. It's the single most-missed detail in the whole process, which is why it's item one.
Can I sell the house before probate is granted?+
Sometimes parts of the process can start, but a buyer's lawyer will typically want to see the certificate before closing. The checklist walks through what usually moves early and what usually doesn't, and where to check for your specific situation.
Will I get sold to?+
You'll get the checklist, and after that a short series of emails covering the same ground in more detail. One click stops all of it, permanently.

Take the checklist.

Free, one page, and you never have to speak to me to use it.

Send Me the Checklist Or just call me · 548-290-8128