Guide / Where do I start?

I'm the executor of a Georgia estate. Where do I start?

Being named the executor of a Georgia estate isn't the same as having the legal authority to act on it. There's a sequence, and getting it right in the first 30 days saves months of cleanup later. Here's exactly what to do, in order.

Week 1: secure, gather, breathe.

You haven't filed anything with the court yet. You probably don't have to within the first week, despite what a stressed relative might tell you. Use this week to gather, not to act.

Find the will. Often in a safe deposit box, a fireproof home safe, with the deceased's estate-planning attorney, or filed for safekeeping with the local probate court.
Locate the deed and the most recent mortgage statement. You'll need both to talk to the mortgage servicer.
Order 6–10 certified copies of the death certificate. Banks, insurance companies, the Social Security Administration, the mortgage servicer, and the court all want originals or certified copies.
Secure the house. Change locks if you're not sure who has keys. Forward mail to your address. Confirm the homeowner's insurance policy is paid and the property is covered for a vacant home if no one is living there.

Week 2–4: file the petition.

With the will and death certificate in hand, you can petition the probate court in the county where the deceased lived to be officially appointed executor. The legal authority you need is called Letters Testamentary; without it, banks and title companies won't talk to you.

Georgia offers two paths for probating a will:

Common form: faster appointment (often a few weeks), but heirs have up to four years to challenge the will.
Solemn form: slower, requires formal notice to all heirs, but final once granted — no four-year challenge window.

The attorney we match you with will recommend one based on the family makeup and whether anyone is likely to contest. If there's even a small chance of a will challenge, solemn form is usually the safer choice.

What NOT to do before you have Letters.

Don't withdraw money from the deceased's bank accounts — even to pay for the funeral. You need Letters first, then open an estate account.
Don't sign a listing agreement with a realtor or a “cash for the house” contract with anyone. You don't have the legal authority yet.
Don't move into the house and start renovations. If the will is contested or heirs disagree, your improvements complicate the estate.
Don't cancel the homeowner's insurance, even if the house is empty. A lapsed policy is the single most expensive mistake families make.

Once you have Letters: the first 90 days.

With Letters Testamentary in hand, you can open an estate bank account, consolidate the deceased's accounts into it, notify creditors, file the inventory of estate assets with the court, and begin paying legitimate estate debts.

Georgia requires a Notice to Creditors to be published in the county newspaper, which starts a window (usually three months) during which creditors can present claims. You can't distribute estate assets to heirs — including the house — until that window has closed and known debts are paid.

The 15-minute call is when we map this for you.

We'll tell you what week you're actually in, which documents you have and which to find next, and introduce you to a probate attorney in your county. Free, no script, no upsell.

(470) MR-PROBATE Email us

By county

Filing in a specific Georgia county?

The framework above is the same statewide, but each probate court has its own pace, legal organ, and quirks worth knowing before you file. The counties we've mapped in detail:

Don't see yours? We still serve every Georgia county — the list above is where the hand-written guide lives. Reach out and we'll walk through your specific court.