Selling a long-held family home in Encino and the southern Valley: a planning guide
If your family has owned a home for decades, or the home sits in a trust, the sale is a planning job before it is a marketing job. Settle who has authority to sell, what the tax picture looks like, and how much work the house needs. Then price it from recent closed sales. This guide covers each step for homes in Encino, Tarzana, Sherman Oaks, Studio City and Woodland Hills.
## What the last 12 months of sales say
Between November 2025 and October 2026, 2,345 residential sales closed in those five cities. Of those, 184 (7.8%) were listed as trust or probate sales. In Encino the share was 9.9%, with trust sales alone at 8.5%. The real count is likely a little higher, because the label is entered by the listing agent.
Trust and probate single-family homes were not slow sellers. Across the five cities, 135 of them closed in a median of 14 days at 99.5% of list price. Other single-family sales took a median of 25 days and closed at 98.2% of list price. The estate and trust homes were older and smaller: the median was built in 1956 and is 1,994 square feet, against 2,497 square feet for the rest.
Two cautions. These are medians across a small group, and they differ by city. In Studio City, for example, the 10 trust and probate single-family sales took a median of 28 days, against 27 for other single-family sales. Your own home's price and timing depend on its condition, location and the week it comes to market.
Source: Gregory Shenon analysis of closed residential sales, November 2025 to October 2026.
## Trust sale or probate sale: who can sign
In general terms, when a home is held in a living trust, the successor trustee named in the trust usually has the authority to sell after the trust's creator has passed away, without a court hearing. When a home has to go through probate, the court appoints an executor or administrator. If the personal representative has full authority under the Independent Administration of Estates Act, many sales can proceed without court confirmation. With limited authority, a sale generally needs court confirmation, which adds a hearing and the possibility of overbids.
Which of these applies to your family depends on documents only your attorney has seen. Confirm the path with your attorney before you list. Greg works alongside attorneys, business managers and estate fiduciaries, and keeps every party informed with clear documentation.
## Prop 19 and the property tax question
Proposition 19 changed two things families ask about. First, homeowners who are 55 or older, severely disabled, or affected by a disaster may be able to carry their existing property tax base to a replacement home in California, subject to rules on timing and value. Second, the property tax exclusion for transfers between parents and children now applies mainly when the child makes the home their primary residence, and it has a value limit.
These rules have conditions and deadlines. Confirm how they apply to your situation with your attorney or tax advisor before you decide whether to sell, keep or transfer the home.
## What to fix and what to leave alone
Homes that have been in one family for decades often have original kitchens, older systems and dated finishes. That is common: the median trust or probate home in these cities was built in 1956. Before you spend money, ask three questions. Does the issue affect safety or financing, such as a failing roof, active leaks or electrical problems? Is it cheap and visible, such as paint, clean floors, clear closets and a tidy yard? Or is it a larger renovation that a buyer may prefer to do their own way?
In most cases the first two are worth doing and the third is not. A walkthrough with your agent before listing helps you put the list in priority order, so you spend only on what changes the result.
## Working with family and advisors from out of town
Many of these sales involve siblings or beneficiaries in different cities. Agree on one point of contact, share the same documents with everyone, and set a decision date for price and offers. Photos, a walkthrough video and a weekly written update help people who cannot visit the house. Contents of the home need their own plan: decide who takes what, what is donated and what is sold, before the first showing.
## Next steps
If you are weighing a sale, start with a price range from recent closed sales near your home: request a valuation at /seller/valuation. If you would rather talk it through first, reach Greg at /contact.php. Nothing here replaces advice from your attorney or tax advisor.