How to Find Probate Real Estate Leads in King County, WA
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When a property owner dies, the home often sits in limbo while an estate is opened. Heirs may live out of state, may not want the house, and may not know where to start. For investors, agents and researchers, probate filings are a public, ethical starting point for finding those properties. This guide walks through the free public tools in King County, Washington. It is educational, and it is not legal advice.
What probate leads are
A probate lead is a property tied to a recently opened estate. The court record names the decedent and the person appointed to manage the estate (the personal representative), and sometimes their attorney. Your job is to connect that name to real property using county records. Estates open at different speeds, and not every death leads to a probate case, so no list is complete.
Step 1: Search the Superior Court portal
King County Superior Court cases, including probate, are viewable in the KC Script Portal:
https://dja-prd-ecexap1.kingcounty.gov/?q=Home
According to the county, you do not need an account to view case docket information, though confidential or sealed cases will not appear. Case search is built around case numbers and participant names. We could not confirm that the portal offers a date-range browse for new probate filings. If it does not, the Clerk's Office will assist with searches for a fee ($30 per hour per the county FAQ). Contact them at 206-477-0691 or desk.correspondence@kingcounty.gov.
Free versus paid: viewing dockets is free. Copies of documents cost money (the county lists $0.50 per page for uncertified copies).
Note what to capture: the decedent's name, case number, filing date, the personal representative and any attorney listed.
Step 2: Match the name to property with the Assessor
Next, look up whether the decedent owned property. The King County Assessor's eReal Property tool is here:
https://blue.kingcounty.com/Assessor/eRealProperty/default.aspx
The county describes this tool as searchable by property tax account or parcel number. For name or address matching, the county's Parcel Viewer helps you find a parcel by address and links through to the Assessor record:
https://kingcounty.gov/en/dept/kcit/data-information-services/gis-center/maps-apps/parcel-viewer
If you work at volume, the Assessor also offers a data download page for its property files:
https://info.kingcounty.gov/assessor/DataDownload/default.aspx
We could not confirm costs or terms for those files, so check the page before you rely on them.
Step 3: Check the Recorder for liens and the deed history
The King County Recorder's Office runs a free online index of official records:
https://recordsearch.kingcounty.gov/LandmarkWeb
You can search by name, parcel ID, recording date and recording number, among other options. Documents recorded on or after August 1, 1991 are online. Older records are on microfilm through the King County Archives. Reading the index is free. The county accepts card payment for copies, and pricing was not shown on the page we reviewed.
Use the index to see whether there is a deed of trust (mortgage), any recorded liens, or a past deed that shows how the owner took title. An estate with a large mortgage and an estate with no recorded loan are very different situations, so this step is worth the time.
Step 4: Cross-check with legal notices and tax records
Estates often publish a notice to creditors in a legal newspaper, which gives you a second source. The Seattle Times runs public notices here:
https://classifieds.seattletimes.com
King County Treasury also posts tax foreclosure information. Washington foreclosures for unpaid property tax begin once taxes are three years delinquent, and auctions are held each September:
An estate property that is also behind on taxes deserves extra care, because the owners may face real deadlines.
Step 5: Build and refresh a weekly routine
1. Pull new probate filings from the court portal each week. 2. Match each decedent to property in eReal Property or the Parcel Viewer. 3. Record any deed of trust or liens in the Recorder index. 4. Note the personal representative and attorney, since that is who you would contact. 5. Keep dated notes so you never contact the same estate twice without a reason.
Many investors find that the weeks after a personal representative is appointed are the most useful window, but there is no official rule. Estates that remain open for months with the property unsold can also be worth a look.
Free versus paid at a glance
- Court docket viewing: free. Document copies and clerk-assisted searches: paid.
- Assessor eReal Property and Parcel Viewer: free. Bulk data: check terms.
- Recorder index search: free. Copies: paid.
- Phone and email lookups (skip tracing) require separate paid tools and are outside this article.
Be respectful and compliant
Families dealing with a death deserve patience and honesty. Be clear about who you are, never pressure anyone, and keep records of consent. Solicitation, telemarketing, TCPA and Do Not Call rules vary by state, so check Washington and federal requirements before any outreach. This article is for education and is not legal advice.
If you would rather start from ready-made data, you can browse probate leads by county at ListCentral.us.