Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Connecticut

Re: Inheriting a house and selling it while 3000 miles away

If there are no other relatives and no will (or equivalent trust arrangement) you will inherit everything. If she owned the house 100% (no cotenants) and especially if it is not mortgaged you probably have enough at stake to warrant getting any legal doubts resolved by retaining an attorney, either here or in CT. I would recommend having an initial free consultation with a wills, trusts and estates specialist in your home town and see what she/he recommends.

Your comment about art and its appraisal brings to mind the notorious case "In re Rothko" involving the estate of the abstract expressionist painter Mark Rothko. His daughter was defrauded by appraisers and dealers who took charge of disposition of his estate's paintings. She finally won, but it had to go to the highest court in New York. You might ask your lawyer to look up 43 N.Y.2d 305 for you.

I think you should get on this right away, especially if there is property that needs to be identified, inventoried and appraised. Saving the cost of an initial consultation and/or a trip to CT may turn out to be penny wise-pound foolish.

Granted, probate proceedings can move slowly, but you are owed at least enough status reporting so you can be comfortable with what's going on. In particular, you are entitled to know the status of formal probate (or intestacy) proceedings.