Portage County Probate Court and Real Estate

A combined court in the Ravenna courthouse

Portage County runs probate and juvenile cases through one court, at 203 West Main Street in Ravenna. The local rules’ hearing notice places the court in Room 305 of the courthouse, and payments by mail go to PO Box 936, Ravenna, OH 44266. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at 330-297-3870 (fax 330-297-3894).

Judge Patricia J. Smith presides over both divisions. Probate matters are heard by the judge and the court’s magistrates, Heather Gyekenyesi (also court administrator), Tammy Richardson-Rilley and Diana Prehn.

Two scheduling rules shape every Portage estate:

• Local Rule 53.1: new cases and anything with a fee must be filed by 3:30 p.m.
• Local Rule 53.3: hearings are held Monday through Wednesday only. A video appearance needs an application at least 5 days ahead.

Inventory and account approval hearings are set at 9 a.m. on fixed dates the court publishes for 2026 and 2027.

Paper rules that send filings back

Portage is strict about the form of filings. Local Rules 57.2 to 57.4 require typed, one-sided, unstapled pages and do not allow “/s/” signatures. Filing is in person, by mail or by fax, but fax is barred for new cases, anything needing a summons, original wills, accounts that need statements, and filings over 10 pages. Local Rule 58.1 requires the full anticipated cost to be paid in advance.

Local Rule 51.1 makes the Ohio Supreme Court’s form mandatory wherever one exists, and Local Rule 51.2 makes the court’s own local forms mandatory with no substitutes. Before filing an estate, Local Rules 59.1(C) and 60.3(B) require checking the court’s index of deposited wills.

Getting appointed in Portage County

The court’s intestate checklist (revised January 2026) lists Form 4.0, Form 1.0, Form 4.5 (the entry appointing the fiduciary and issuing letters), a death certificate with the Social Security number redacted, waivers on Form 4.3 or notice on Form 4.4 for others with an equal right to serve, Form 4.8 (the fiduciary’s acceptance), a bond commitment or proof of exemption, and the spousal election paperwork. The application must carry good-faith value estimates. Blank, $0 or “unknown” is rejected.

A hearing is held in every intestate case, and in will cases where no suitable person is nominated. It is waived when the applicant is the sole heir, nobody else is entitled to notice, or everyone entitled has waived. The applicant appears in person, and the checklist says an administrator must be an Ohio resident.

Bond under Local Rule 75.2 is at least double the personal property plus a year’s rents and income, with a $100,000 minimum when values can’t be estimated. It can be dispensed with when the will waives it or the total is under $5,000, and letters don’t issue until bond or the exemption is in place. Local Rule 60.4 requires a nonresident fiduciary to have an Ohio attorney. The letter of authority guide covers the statewide side.

Valuation, certificates and releases

Local Rule 61.2 lets the estate use the county auditor’s tax value instead of an appraisal. If an appraiser is used, they can be a licensed agent, broker, auctioneer, credentialed appraiser or loan officer with Portage County experience, and the fee is whatever the fiduciary and appraiser agree.

For moving the house to the heirs:

• Certificate of transfer only. The court’s instructions (revised May 18, 2026) require the death to be more than 6 months before filing, real estate to be the only asset, and the decedent to have lived in Portage County or owned real estate there. Under Local Rule 78.2(F), a will must actually be admitted to probate, not just filed for record, with Form 2.4 filed before the certificate issues.
• Release from administration. The limits are $100,000 when a surviving spouse takes everything and $35,000 otherwise. The commissioner must be an Ohio resident, and real estate needs Form 12.1 with the auditor printout or an appraisal. Under Local Rule 78.2(C), there is no bond or publication, and a report of distribution is due within 30 days after distributions finish.
• Abandoning real property. Local Rule 78.2(E) sets a procedure for property worth less than its liens.

The certificate of transfer guide explains what the certificate does once recorded.

Land sales under Local Rules 65.1 to 65.3

Portage’s land sale rules are built around fresh title evidence. Local Rule 65.1 requires:

1. a title certification based on an exam done within 15 days before the complaint is filed;
2. the County Treasurer named as a defendant in every case;
3. an updated certification within 15 days before the motion for order of sale;
4. 30 days for the buyer to obtain title evidence.

Local Rule 65.2 adds a proposed settlement statement with the motion to confirm, a guardian ad litem in guardianship land sales, and a status conference for any sale still open after a year, where the fiduciary must show why the property shouldn’t go to public auction. A contested sale is handled as civil litigation (Local Rule 65.3). Local Rule 64.2(B) requires the settlement statement to be attached to the account after any sale.

The forms run in a 31.x series: 31.0 is the estate complaint to sell real estate, 31.7 evidence of title, 31.14 the motion to fix price, 31.19 the return on sale and motion to confirm, and 31.20 the entry confirming sale and ordering the deed.

Portage County deposits

Card fees apply in person and online. The schedule doesn’t list a separate deposit for a certificate-only case, so call the court. If you are handling a house in Kent, Streetsboro, Ravenna or the townships, our Portage County page covers selling there, and the probate house sale page helps with the timing.