For adult children
Helping a parent sell the family home.
If you're the one doing the research while your mum or dad decides — or if you're sorting out a house after a parent has died — this page is written for you.
It's rarely the house. It's the timing, the distance, and forty years of belongings.
- Nothing has to be cleared out. Leave the furniture, the boxes, the garage.
- You don't have to fly in. Video walkthrough, siblings on the call, lawyers do the rest.
- No repairs. A house lived in since the 1970s needs a kitchen, a bathroom, a roof. Not your problem.
- You pick the date — including months out, if your parent needs time.
When a care placement comes up and you have days to decide
Continuing-care placements in Alberta often need an answer quickly, and the accommodation charge starts straight away — while the house sits empty, still costing money. A sale can be agreed and papered inside that window, with the closing date set wherever suits the family.
Worth knowing before you start
If your parent is still living but can't manage their own affairs, the house can usually still be sold under an Enduring Power of Attorney — but the paperwork has to be in order first. Worth checking early rather than at the closing table.
If a parent has died, Alberta probate typically takes several months to reach a grant. That doesn't have to stop a sale being arranged in the meantime, and we can work to that timeline and coordinate with the estate lawyer directly. There's a fuller page on selling an inherited house in Calgary — probate, executors, and what happens when the house sits empty.
If both parents are on title, Alberta's Dower Act may require the spouse to consent in writing, even if only one of them owns the property. Your lawyer will confirm.
If there's a reverse mortgage, it gets paid out at closing like any other mortgage — but get the payout figure early so nobody is surprised.
None of this is legal advice, and we're not your lawyer. It's the list of things that most often catch families out, so you can raise them early.
How we try to make this easier
- One visit, about half an hour. No parade of strangers through your parent's house.
- Video walkthrough with siblings on the call if you're not in Calgary.
- A printed offer we'll hand you at the kitchen table, if that's easier than email.
- Nothing needs to be cleaned, repaired or cleared out.
- You pick the closing date — including months out, if your parent needs time.
If listing it would be better for the family, we'll say so
A well-kept house in a good area will usually net more on the open market than it will from us, even after commission. If that's your parent's house, that's what we'll tell you — and we'll explain why.
Where we're genuinely useful is when the house needs serious work, when the timing is tight, or when the certainty of a fixed date matters more to the family than squeezing out the last few thousand dollars.