If you inherited a house in Louisiana, the deed is often still in the name of the person who died. Heirs can plan a sale, but a buyer and a title company need proof of who owns the house. That proof comes from a succession. This page explains the usual pieces. A succession attorney decides what applies to your family. We are a home buyer, not a law firm.
The local selling steps are on selling an inherited house in Shreveport-Bossier and selling a house in a succession. If the heirs are not on the same page, read heirs can't agree.
Want a cash offer, or to have us take over the payments? Call or text Charlie at (318) 714-4321, or Get My Cash Offer. Cash is not promised on every house. No fee, no obligation.
What a succession is
A succession is the legal process that identifies the heirs and moves the dead person's property into their names. Other states say probate. For most families we meet, the case is in the district court for the parish where the person lived: the 1st Judicial District Court in Shreveport for Caddo Parish, the 26th Judicial District Court for Bossier and Webster Parish, and the 42nd Judicial District Court in Mansfield for DeSoto Parish.
A judgment of possession is the court order that names the heirs and puts them in possession. A title company usually looks for that order, or for a small-succession affidavit it will accept, before it will close. We can often sign with the heirs now and close after that paperwork is ready. Whether the file is ready is the title company's decision. Cash is not promised on every house.
Small succession by affidavit
A small succession is a smaller estate that the Code of Civil Procedure lets the heirs handle with a sworn affidavit instead of a full court case, when the statute says a court opening is not required. The dollar lines are in Code of Civil Procedure article 3421. As that article reads now, a small succession includes:
- The succession of a person who died domiciled in Louisiana and left property with a gross value of $200,000 or less, valued as of the date of death.
- The ancillary succession of a person who died domiciled outside Louisiana and left property in Louisiana with a gross value of $125,000 or less, valued as of the date of death.
- The succession of a person who died at least twenty years before the affidavit is signed and left property in Louisiana of any value.
Article 3421 was amended by Acts 2026, No. 293. Do not use an older dollar figure you remember from before that act. The gross value is the whole estate the article describes, measured on the date of death, not a guess about today's sale price of one house.
Article 3431 says it is not necessary to open a judicial succession for certain people, including a person domiciled in Louisiana who died intestate, meaning without a will. A Louisiana resident who died with a will is a different case. Article 3431 allows an affidavit path for some testate estates only in the situations the article lists, such as when there is no immovable property in Louisiana and everyone who would inherit agrees to waive probate. A house in Louisiana is immovable property. If there is a will, ask a lawyer before anyone relies on an affidavit.
Article 3432 lists what an intestate small-succession affidavit must say, including the heirs, the property, and the values at death. It also says who signs. We do not prepare that affidavit. A succession attorney and the title company decide whether an affidavit fits your family and whether a title company will insure a sale from it.
When the heirs do not agree
One heir usually cannot sell the whole house if other people own shares. Civil Code article 807 says no one may be compelled to hold property in indivision with another, unless the law or a juridical act says otherwise, and that any co-owner has a right to demand partition. Partition can be excluded by agreement for a period the article describes. A partition is a court matter. It takes a lawyer, and it takes time. We do not file it.
What we can do is put one as-is price in writing so every heir sees the same numbers. We will not pressure an heir who does not want to sign, and we will not close a sale that leaves out someone who still has a share unless a court order says who may sign. The practical notes are on heirs can't agree.
What to do first
Gather the papers you can find: a deed, a will if there is one, the mortgage statement, tax bills, and the names of the people who may be heirs. Talk to a succession attorney in the parish where the person lived. You can also call us and tell us the parish and how many heirs you know about. Either order is fine. Neither call is a contract, and neither one is legal advice.
Call or text Charlie at (318) 714-4321. We buy the house as it sits, including belongings the family leaves. Cash is not promised on every house.
Sources
La. Code of Civil Procedure art. 3421 (small-succession definition and dollar limits, as amended by Acts 2026, No. 293). Art. 3431 (when a judicial opening is not necessary). Art. 3432 (intestate small-succession affidavit). Civil Code art. 807 (right to demand partition).
Updated November 13, 2026