Idaho: Estate Inventory and Appraisement Requirements
The short answer
An Idaho personal representative generally must prepare an inventory within three months after appointment, listing property the decedent owned at death in reasonable detail with each item's death-date fair market value and any encumbrance. Copies go to interested persons who request them, while filing the original is optional; qualified disinterested appraisers may assist with reasonably doubtful values, and a supplement for later property or misleading entries follows the original filing-or-delivery route.
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This is the general rule in Idaho. Ask about your specific facts and see which parts of current Idaho law apply, with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law and administration type | Idaho UPC inventory/appraisement under Idaho Code §§ 15-3-706 to -708; special administrator and already-discharged successor exceptions |
|---|---|
| Who prepares, signs, and verifies | Personal representative prepares; §§ 15-3-706 to -708 prescribe no representative/appraiser signature, verification, oath, or notarization; appraiser name/address appears by item |
| Deadline, trigger, and extension | Within 3 months after appointment; no extension standard stated; special administrator excluded and successor excluded if predecessor discharged duty; supplement has no clock (§§ 15-3-706, -708) |
| Court filing or private delivery | Send requested copies; original may be filed; if original filed, file supplement, otherwise send supplement to Tax Commission and original recipients (§§ 15-3-706, -708) |
| Property scope, exclusions, and encumbrances | Property owned by decedent at death, listed with reasonable detail; type and amount of each item's encumbrance; § 15-3-706 states no category exclusion |
| Valuation date and method | Initial inventory: each item's fair market value as of death; supplement: new/revised item's death-date market value or revised description (§§ 15-3-706, -708) |
| Appraiser requirement and qualifications | Optional qualified disinterested appraiser for an asset whose value may be reasonably doubtful; different appraisers by asset kind; name/address with item (§ 15-3-707) |
| Recipients, confidentiality, and access | Requested initial copies to interested persons; conditional supplement copies to Tax Commission and original recipients; optional filing; §§ 15-3-706 to -708 state no sealing/confidentiality rule |
| Correction, supplementation, and noncompliance | Later property or erroneous/misleading value/description requires supplement; no correction clock stated; failure to perform a duty may support removal for cause (§§ 15-3-708, 15-3-611) |
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Requirements one by one
Preparation is mandatory; filing is optional
Idaho Code § 15-3-706 gives the personal representative three months after
appointment to prepare the inventory. A special administrator is excluded, and
a successor is excluded if the prior representative already discharged the
duty. The section states no extension standard.
The representative sends a copy to each interested person who requests it and
may file the original with the court. Optional filing does not make preparation
or requested-copy delivery optional.
Each item uses death-date fair market value
The inventory covers property the decedent owned at death. Section 15-3-706
requires reasonable detail, each item's fair market value as of death, and the
type and amount of any encumbrance tied to the item.
Sections 15-3-706 to -708 do not prescribe a representative signature,
verification, oath, notarization, or perjury declaration. They also do not state
a sealing, confidentiality, or redaction rule for an inventory that is filed.
Appraisers are optional for doubtful values
Under Idaho Code § 15-3-707, the representative may employ a qualified and
disinterested appraiser when an asset's value may be subject to reasonable
doubt. Different appraisers may value different kinds of assets. The inventory
identifies each appraiser by name and address with the appraised item or items.
The section does not require appraisal by asset category and does not prescribe
an appraiser certificate, oath, signature, or separate filing deadline.
The supplement follows the original inventory's route
Idaho Code § 15-3-708 requires a supplementary inventory or appraisement when
omitted property comes to the representative's knowledge or an original value
or description proves erroneous or misleading. It shows the new or revised
death-date market value or description and the appraisers or other data relied
on, if any.
If the original was filed, the supplement is filed with the court. Otherwise,
copies go to the State Tax Commission and every interested person who received
the original under § 15-3-706. Section 15-3-708 states no separate correction
deadline. Failure to perform a duty of office may support removal for cause
under § 15-3-611(b), but removal is not automatic.
What trips people up
Optional filing is not an excuse to skip the inventory. The three-month
preparation duty and requested-copy duty apply either way.
Correction routing depends on what happened initially. A filed original
leads to a filed supplement; a privately delivered original leads to the State
Tax Commission plus the interested persons who received that original.
The initial and supplemental valuation words differ. Section 15-3-706 uses
fair market value, while § 15-3-708 says market value for the new or revised
item.
Common questions
Does every heir automatically receive the inventory?
No. The initial copy duty applies to interested persons who request it.
Must the original be filed with the court?
No. Section 15-3-706 says the representative may file it.
Is an appraiser required for real estate?
Not by category. Section 15-3-707 allows a qualified, disinterested appraiser
when the asset's value may be subject to reasonable doubt.
Statutes and sources
- Idaho Code § 15-3-706 — three-month preparation, contents, requested
copies, and optional filing:
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title15/T15CH3/SECT15-3-706/
(accessed 2026-08-10). - Idaho Code § 15-3-707 — optional qualified and disinterested appraisers:
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title15/T15CH3/SECT15-3-707/
(accessed 2026-08-10). - Idaho Code § 15-3-708 — supplement triggers, contents, and conditional
filing or delivery:
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title15/T15CH3/SECT15-3-708/
(accessed 2026-08-10). - Idaho Code § 15-3-611(b) — removal cause, including failure to perform a
duty of office:
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title15/T15CH3/SECT15-3-611/
(accessed 2026-08-10).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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