A Washington general practice open since 1975, naming Beaufort, Hyde and Pitt counties among its areas of service. Keith D. Hackney, its sole attorney, handles probate — where the Clerk of Court verifies the will and appoints the personal representative, with debts, taxes and distributions to follow — and the parallel administration process for someone who died without a will.
What to Do When Someone Dies in Pitt County, North Carolina
How probate works in Pitt County: the Clerk of Superior Court record, what the process costs, and how to file there.
Probate Court Record
Pitt County Clerk of Superior Court
Pitt County · Superior Court District 3
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:30 AM-5:00 PM
Office
100 West Third Street, Greenville, NC 27834
Website
E-filing
Self-represented filing
Allowed
Self-help forms
E-filing
Required for attorneysAttorneys file estate documents through eCourts File & Serve. Self-represented filers may use File & Serve or file on paper at the clerk's office. The original will and any codicils are delivered to the clerk on paper and stay in the clerk's office. On paper: Self-represented filers may file on paper at the clerk's office; Original wills and codicils are delivered to the clerk on paper.
Self-represented filing
AllowedAn estate may be opened and administered without a lawyer. The statewide estate forms are on the Judicial Branch forms page.
Accepted payment
- At the counterCash, Credit card, Debit card, Money order.In person at the Cashier's Office in the courthouse: cash, credit or debit card (MasterCard, Visa, American Express, Discover, plus processing fees), money order or certified check; personal checks are not accepted. By mail: money order or certified check, payable to Pitt County Clerk of Superior Court. Filing fees on documents filed through eCourts File & Serve are paid online in File & Serve.
P.O. Box 6067
Greenville, NC 27835
About the court
- The courthouse opens at 8:00 AM and the clerk's office opens to the public at 8:30 AM. A second site, the Farmville Courthouse, is in the Farmville Municipal Building at 3672 North Main Street, Farmville.
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
How Probate Works in Pitt County
Probate is the court-supervised process of settling someone's estate after they die — validating the will, paying debts and taxes, and transferring what's left to the heirs. In Pitt County, probate runs through the Clerk of Superior Court at 100 West Third Street, Greenville. The court sits in the Superior Court District 3.
The personal representative opens the case, gives notice to heirs and creditors, files an inventory of the estate's assets, settles outstanding debts and taxes, and then distributes the remainder under the will — or under North Carolina intestacy law when there is no will.
Most North Carolina estates take 9 months to 12 months to move through this process. Creditors have 3 monthsNCGS §§ 28A-14-1, 28A-19-1, 28A-19-3, 28A-19-6, 28A-19-16Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present a claim, counted from the first publication of the notice to creditors.
What Probate Costs in Pitt County
What probate costs in Pitt County, North Carolina comes down to a handful of line items — the court filing fee, attorney and executor compensation, publication, and sometimes a bond — scaled by the estate's size and whether the will is contested. The case itself runs through the Clerk of Superior Court at 100 West Third Street, Greenville. The court is part of the Superior Court District 3.
North Carolina charges $120 plus 0.4% of personal property, up to $6,120N.C.G.S. § 7A-307(a)(1), (1a), (2)Verified Oct 17, 2026View source to open probate, the same in every county. Additional filings during administration — inventory, accounting, the final petition — add to the total.
Estimate the costs for this estate:
Attorney fees in North Carolina are negotiated, typically 2%Modeled estimate under N.C.G.S. § 28A-13-3(a)(19), § 28A-23-3(a) (attorney fees are a negotiated administration expense; no statutory schedule or percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3.1%Modeled estimate under N.C.G.S. § 28A-13-3(a)(19), § 28A-23-3(a) (attorney fees are a negotiated administration expense; no statutory schedule or percentage): the hours the statutory fee schedules imply, at the state's surveyed hourly rateVerified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value. Flat-fee arrangements are common for straightforward estates.
North Carolina allows executors 'reasonable compensation' — around 2.2%–3.8% of a $500,000 estate, judging by what the states with statutory schedules payN.C.G.S. § 28A-23-3 (clerk sets commission up to 5% on receipts/expenditures; no fixed schedule)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
North Carolina requires publishing notice to creditors in a local newspaper, and the estate pays for it.
A surety bond may be required unless the will waives it or all beneficiaries consent. Premiums run roughly 0.5%Industry surety premium estimate; the bond itself under N.C.G.S. § 28A-8-1Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in North Carolina typically runs 9 months to 12 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Clerk of Superior Court
Probate cases in Pitt County, North Carolina are filed at the Clerk of Superior Court. The court sits in the Superior Court District 3.
Can You File Without an Attorney?
In North Carolina, informal probate is not availableN.C.G.S. § 28A-2-1 (clerk of superior court is ex officio judge of probate), § 28A-6-1 (single application for letters; no informal/formal election)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, so self-filing means a formal court petition rather than a registrar filing.
For a full cost comparison and filing checklist, see the Pitt County Self-Filing Assessment.
What to Bring
Filed with the opening petition at the Clerk of Superior Court: Evidence of the decedent’s death — a certified or authenticated copy of the death certificate is the first of four alternatives the clerk may accept; the NC Judicial Branch tells applicants to bring a certified death certificate (N.C. Gen. Stat. 28A-6-1(c)); Original will and any codicils (offered for probate; AOC-E-201 / addendum AOC-E-309 for out-of-state probate) (N.C. Gen. Stat. 28A-2A-1); Oath / Affirmation of the personal representative (AOC-E-400) (N.C. Gen. Stat. 28A-7-1)N.C. Gen. Stat. 28A-6-1 (application for & grant of letters), 28A-6-2 (letters without notice), 28A-2A-1 (probate of will); 28A-7-1 (oath required before letters issue)Verified Aug 24, 2026View source.
Death Certificates and the Medical Examiner in Pitt County
In North Carolina a death is registered locally, and in Pitt County certified copies of the death certificate are issued by Pitt County Register of Deeds as well as by North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services - NC Vital Records.
Vital Records Office Record
Register of Deeds
Pitt County · Pitt County Register of Deeds
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-5:00 PM
Office
100 East 1st Street, Greenville, NC 27834
Website
Order online
Fax
1-252-830-4132
Certified copy fees
| First certified copy | $10 |
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Coroner or Medical Examiner Record
State Medical Examiner
Pitt County · North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
Phone
1-919-743-9000 (option 3 for family inquiries)
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-5:00 PM
Office
4312 District Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607
Website
Serves this county
North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
Mail and offices
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
3025 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-3025
Fax
1-919-743-9099
Verified November 2, 2026 · Source
Transferring Property in Pitt County
Clearing title to real estate after a death, whether by a personal representative’s deed, an affidavit of survivorship, or a court order, happens at the Register of Deeds.
Deeds and other real property documents for Pitt County are recorded with the Register of Deeds at 100 East 1st Street, Greenville, NC 27834. Phone: 1-252-902-1650. Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-5:00 PM.
The Register of Deeds charges $26 for the first 15 pages plus $4 for each page beyond 15.
Pitt County accepts electronic recording through CSC, ePN, Indecomm and Simplifile.
Recording Office Record
Register of Deeds
Pitt County
Phone
Hours
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM-5:00 PM
Office
100 East 1st Street, Greenville, NC 27834
Website
Fax
1-252-830-4132
Recording fees
| Base fee (first 15 pages) | $26 |
| Each page beyond 15 | $4 |
| Non-Standard Document Fee | $25 |
NCGS 161-10(a)(1)
Verified October 16, 2026 · Source
Probate Attorneys Serving Pitt County
North Carolina uses formal, court-supervised probate, which makes an attorney worthwhile for most estates in Pitt County — the filing sequence, notice requirements, and accounting leave little room for error. Estates under the small-estate threshold are the usual exception.
Probate attorney fees in North Carolina are based on reasonable compensation, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Pitt County firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the Clerk of Superior Court, publishes the required creditor notices, prepares the inventory and accounting, handles creditor claims and tax filings, and guides the final distribution. They represent the personal representative — not the beneficiaries — a distinction that matters if a dispute develops.
Serves Greenville and clients throughout North Carolina from an office on East Arlington Boulevard. Attorneys Phillip R. Dixon, Sr. and Jonathan Scott Dixon draft wills, living wills, and powers of attorney, and establish revocable, irrevocable, credit-shelter, and QTIP trusts. The estate practice is planning-side; the firm's litigation work is criminal defense, family law, and corporate law.
A two-attorney Greenville office on Red Banks Road practicing primarily real estate law, where L. Allen Hahn has represented eastern North Carolina clients for over fifty years and closed transactions in nearly every county in the region. Its estate work is wills, estate planning and estate administration; Brian V. Meyerhoeffer, Jr. handles closings across the state.
A Greenville firm that has represented the community for more than 50 years, with estate work handled by David W. Silver and Heather Bridgforth. It takes executors through estate administration, which it tells clients can run from several months to several years, and also drafts wills and trusts, powers of attorney and living wills, and handles guardianships, Medicaid planning and VA benefits.
Serves Lenoir, Pitt, Craven, and Greene counties from Kinston, Greenville, New Bern, and Snow Hill, with roots in Kinston dating to 1927. Estate work covers probate and estate administration — creditor matters, tax filings, and distribution of assets — along with trust administration and fiduciary litigation. Two estate attorneys are board-certified specialists in Estate Planning and Probate Law.
Serves Wilson County from downtown Wilson, where the firm and its direct predecessors have handled families' legal work for over fifty years. The wills and estates practice is planning-side: wills, powers of attorney, and revocable and special needs trusts. The firm quotes a standard $500 fee for a simple will with durable power of attorney, health care power of attorney, and living will.
Firm listings are for informational purposes only. SimplyTrust does not endorse or recommend any specific firm or attorney. Contact firms directly to verify their current practice areas and availability.
Legal Sources
(9)·
- N.C. Gen. Stat. 28A-6-1 (application for & grant of letters), 28A-6-2 (letters without notice), 28A-2A-1 (probate of will); 28A-7-1 (oath required before letters issue)
- N.C.G.S. § 28A-2-1 (clerk of superior court is ex officio judge of probate), § 28A-6-1 (single application for letters; no informal/formal election)
- N.C.G.S. § 28A-23-3 (clerk sets commission up to 5% on receipts/expenditures; no fixed schedule)
- N.C.G.S. § 7A-307(a)(1), (1a), (2)
- NCGS §§ 28A-14-1, 28A-19-1, 28A-19-3, 28A-19-6, 28A-19-16
- NCGS 161-10(a)(1)
- Pitt County Clerk of Superior Court, official page
- Pitt County Register of Deeds, official page
- Pitt County vital records and death investigation offices, official page
Data sourced from North Carolina statutes and official state code. Fee percentages are modeled estimates; each figure's note says how. How we research.
Tools for Settling an Estate in North Carolina
Free tools for settling an estate in North Carolina: whether probate is needed, executor and trustee pay, creditor deadlines and taxes. Run each tool.
How Do I Settle an Estate?
Settling an estate in North Carolina: the personal representative files the estate inventory within 90 daysN.C.G.S. §§ 28A-20-1, 28A-20-3, 28A-20-4Verified Sep 15, 2026View source of appointment; creditors have 3 monthsNCGS §§ 28A-14-1, 28A-19-1, 28A-19-3, 28A-19-6, 28A-19-16Verified Oct 19, 2026View source to present claims; a simple estate closes in 6 months to 9 months.
See the Steps
How Do I Settle a Trust?
Settling a trust in North Carolina happens outside court: the trustee acts under the state's Uniform Trust CodeN.C.G.S. § 36C-1-101 et seq.Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, notifies the beneficiaries, then pays the debts and distributes under the trust's terms.
See the Steps
Can I Self-File Probate?
In North Carolina, informal probate is not availableN.C.G.S. § 28A-2-1 (clerk of superior court is ex officio judge of probate), § 28A-6-1 (single application for letters; no informal/formal election)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source, so self-filing means a formal court petition rather than a registrar filing.
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