Have you ever bought a home or commercial property in any of the following circumstances--where the seller was a decedent's estate, a receivership, a bankruptcy estate? In each of these situations, the party signing the deed will not be the individual or company that has title to the property but a fiduciary who's been court appointed to handle disposition of the owner's property. The executor handling the decedent's estate, the receiver in a receivership, or the trustee in a bankruptcy estate are appointed by a court having jurisdiction over the property and typically transfer property using what is called a "fiduciary deed."
Real property that is sold by the executor, if there is a will, or an administrator, if there is no will, does not use the certificate of transfer process. If there is a need to sell an interest in real property prior to the end of the will contest or estate administration period, the executor, or administrator, as a fiduciary, if authorized to sell the real property, can proceed using a fiduciary deed. A fiduciary deed is used to transfer property when the executor is acting in his official capacity. A fiduciary deed warrants that the fiduciary is acting in the scope of his appointed authority but it does not guarantee title of the property. (Oh. Rev. Code Sec. 5302.09).