Inheriting property can feel like an unexpected gift — a tangible piece of someone’s life, and often a significant financial asset. But the transition from estate to sale is rarely straightforward. Families navigating inherited real estate face a distinct set of pressures: multiple decision-makers, emotional attachment, unfamiliar processes, and a market that rarely meets expectations. Of all the mistakes heirs make, one of the most costly is also one of the most common — holding out for a price the market simply won’t deliver.
Rhett Fruitman sees this all the time. As co-founder of Inherited Property Match, a broker matching service that connects heirs with specialists, Fruitman has a close-up view of where inherited property sales go wrong. The culprit, more often than not, is anchoring bias — the tendency to fixate on an early number and refuse to budge, even as carrying costs mount and the market moves on.
How a Number Becomes a Trap
The anchoring problem typically starts before a property ever hits the market. An heir checks Zillow, or a broker eager to win a listing presents an aggressive valuation, and that number becomes the floor below which no offer is acceptable to the heirs.
The gap between an anchored price and actual market value is rarely dramatic in percentage terms — often 10% to 15%. But the consequences of refusing to close that gap are significant. Heirs consistently underestimate the cost of holding a property while waiting for an offer that meets their expectations. A property valued at $850,000 that an heir believes is worth a million dollars may sit unsold for years while the heir waits for a bid that never comes.
Meanwhile, carrying costs accumulate. Debt service, HOA fees, property taxes, insurance, and maintenance don’t pause while families wait for a higher bid. A property sitting unsold for even 12 months can erase whatever premium an heir hoped to capture by holding out.
Multi-Heir Dynamics
In a standard residential sale, the decision typically rests with one or two people. Inherited property sales rarely work that way. When a property passes to multiple heirs — siblings, cousins, or more distant relatives — the anchoring problem multiplies. A single co-heir convinced that the market will improve can stall a transaction indefinitely, even when the other parties are ready to sell.
This dynamic is structurally different from other real estate transactions. A primary homeowner who anchors on an unrealistic price bears the full cost of that decision. In an inherited property situation, the anchoring bias of one heir becomes a financial burden shared by all co-heirs, regardless of whether they agree with the valuation.
Fruitman estimates that sales fall apart due to heir disagreement less than 10% of the time — most co-heirs do eventually come around. But the damage done by months or years of delay can be substantial. “If one of them just thinks it’s worth 15% more, or the market’s going to improve, a lot of times you end up waiting too long,” Fruitman says.
Why Broker Selection Makes the Difference
Fruitman argues that the anchoring problem is, at least in part, a broker selection problem. Heirs who receive inflated valuations from overeager brokers are being set up to anchor to unrealistic numbers. A broker willing to overstate a property’s value to win the listing creates a mismatch between expectations and reality that plays out over months or years, resulting in unsold inventory and mounting costs.
Conversely, a broker who can accurately value a property, explain the basis for that valuation, and guide multiple decision-makers toward a shared understanding of fair market value is performing a function that goes well beyond closing a deal. In inherited property situations, that guidance is often the difference between a clean sale and a years-long stalemate.
Finding the Right Broker
Heirs are often the least equipped to evaluate their broker options at precisely the moment when broker selection matters most. A few approaches can help. Referrals from estate attorneys or financial advisors who regularly work with inherited properties are a reliable starting point — these professionals see broker performance firsthand and have no incentive to inflate valuations.
Heirs can also seek out brokers with specific experience in probate or estate sales, who are accustomed to managing multiple decision-makers and the legal constraints that often accompany inherited property transactions. Matching services like Inherited Property Match take a more structured approach, connecting heirs and executors with vetted specialists whose expertise aligns with the specific property type, market, and complexity of each estate.
The volume of inherited real estate is only going to grow. Cerulli Associates has projected that $84 trillion in assets will pass between generations over the next two decades, and real property will represent a significant share of that transfer. For families navigating that process, the difference between a clean sale and a years-long stalemate often comes down to two things: entering with a realistic valuation, and having a broker capable of guiding multiple decision-makers toward the same conclusion.
About the Expert: Rhett Fruitman is co-founder of Inherited Property Match and president of Real Estate Broker Match, with prior experience at Citi Private Bank, CBRE, and in the 1031 exchange industry.
This article is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or investment advice. The views and opinions expressed herein reflect those of the individuals quoted and do not represent an endorsement of any company, product, or service mentioned. Readers should conduct their own due diligence and consult qualified professionals before making any investment decisions.
