What to Do When Someone Dies in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania
Probate in Dauphin County runs through the Orphans' Court: prove the will, settle the debts, and pass the house to the heirs. Here is how the local process works—and what each step actually costs.
When someone dies in Dauphin County, settling their estate runs through the Orphans' Court. This page covers the court record, whether probate is required, what it costs, how to file, transferring property, and the local attorneys who handle probate here.
Probate Court Record
Orphans' Court
Dauphin County
Address
Dauphin County Courthouse, 101 Market Street, Room 103Harrisburg, PA 17101
Paper filing availableE-filing optionalAppointment required
Accepted paymentCheck, Money order, Credit card. No cash accepted. Checks or money orders for county fees and inheritance tax; credit cards for county fees. Transactions involving payment must be completed by 4:00 PM.
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 Dauphin County, probate runs through the Orphans' Court at Dauphin County Courthouse, 101 Market Street, Room 103, Harrisburg. Dauphin County runs probate e-filing through dauphincounty.gov, its own system rather than a shared statewide portal.
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 Pennsylvania intestacy law when there is no will.
Most Pennsylvania estates take 9 months to 14 months to move through this process. The 12 months20 Pa.C.S. § 3532 (one year from first complete advertisement of the grant of letters — a risk-distribution protection period for the personal representative, not a nonclaim bar)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source creditor claim window is the largest fixed piece of that timeline — a mandatory wait regardless of how simple the estate is.
What Probate Costs in Dauphin County
What probate costs in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania 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 Orphans' Court at Dauphin County Courthouse, 101 Market Street, Room 103, Harrisburg.
Local procedures at this court that affect cost: No cash payments accepted. These are county-specific and not posted on the statewide court site.
The Orphans' Court charges $50 - $950+ (based on estate value)42 P.S. § 21022.1; 42 Pa.C.S. § 3733Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to open a probate case. Additional filings during administration — inventory, accounting, the final petition — add to the total.
The Orphans' Court accepts e-filing (https://www.dauphincounty.gov/government/publicly-elected-officials/register-of-wills-clerk-of-orphans-court/virtual-probate). Paper filing remains available for self-represented filers.
Estimate the costs for this estate:
Attorney fees in Pennsylvania are negotiated, typically 1.9%No statutory fee schedule; the Orphans' Court reviews reasonableness under In re Trust Estate of LaRocca, 431 Pa. 542, 246 A.2d 337 (1968). County percentage guidelines are not law — "[e]gregious error is committed when a court awards commissions and fees simply on a percentage basis without inquiry into the reasonableness of the compensation" (In re Estate of Preston, 560 A.2d 160, 165 (Pa. Super. 1989), quoted in Estate of Andrews, 2026 PA Super 168)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3%No statutory fee schedule; the Orphans' Court reviews reasonableness under In re Trust Estate of LaRocca, 431 Pa. 542, 246 A.2d 337 (1968). County percentage guidelines are not law — "[e]gregious error is committed when a court awards commissions and fees simply on a percentage basis without inquiry into the reasonableness of the compensation" (In re Estate of Preston, 560 A.2d 160, 165 (Pa. Super. 1989), quoted in Estate of Andrews, 2026 PA Super 168)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value. Flat-fee arrangements are common for straightforward estates.
Executor compensation is based on reasonable pay for time and effort — the states that do set a schedule pay 2.2%Estimated from the 16 state statutes that set an executor fee schedule (median and interquartile range at this estate value)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3.8%Estimated from the 16 state statutes that set an executor fee schedule (median and interquartile range at this estate value)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value. Family members who are also beneficiaries often waive the fee — executor pay is taxable income while inheritances are not.
Pennsylvania requires publishing creditor notice in a local newspaper, typically $200–$500. Professional appraisals for real estate or business interests add $300–$600 per asset.
A surety bond may be required unless the will waives it or all beneficiaries consent. Premiums run roughly 0.5%20 Pa.C.S. §§ 3171, 3174 (bond required before letters except as § 3174 provides; a PA-resident PR named in the will, or a PA-resident sole residuary legatee/next of kin, is excused by operation of law); § 3175 (court or register may still require bond)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of estate value annually.
Probate in Pennsylvania typically runs 9 months to 14 months, and costs accrue throughout that period.
How to File Probate at the Orphans' Court
Probate documents in Dauphin County can be filed in person at the Orphans' Court, by mail, or electronically. Most families handling probate themselves prefer paper filing, though e-filing is available. Dauphin County is one of 12 Pennsylvania counties that accept probate e-filing; most probate courts in the state still take filings on paper.
How to File Your Documents
Paper Filing Available
You can file your probate documents in person at the court or by mail.
E-Filing Also Available
If you prefer, you can file electronically through the state's online system. This is optional for families filing without an attorney.
Not every estate requires an attorney. Estate size, asset types, and whether beneficiaries agree determine if self-filing at the Orphans' Court is realistic.
Northern Dauphin Human Services Center, 295 State Drive, Elizabethville, PA 17023, 717-905-2700 ext. 2507. Open first and third Wednesdays, 9:00 AM - 4:30 PM.
An appointment is required to file in person. Appointments are required for certain in-person services. Virtual probate is also offered online. Call 717-780-6500 to schedule.
Accepted payment
Check, Money order, Credit card. No cash accepted. Checks or money orders for county fees and inheritance tax; credit cards for county fees. Transactions involving payment must be completed by 4:00 PM.
What to Bring
To file at the Orphans' Court you need: the original will (or proof there isn't one), a certified death certificate, contact information for all heirs and beneficiaries, and a summary of what the estate owns and owes.
Transferring Property in Dauphin 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 Recorder of Deeds.
Deeds and other real property documents for Dauphin County are recorded with the Recorder of Deeds, led by Recorder of Deeds James M. Zugay, at Dauphin County Courthouse, 101 Market Street, Room 102, Harrisburg, PA 17101. Phone: (717) 780-6560. Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM.
The Recorder of Deeds charges $88 for the first 4 pages plus $2 for each page beyond 4.
Dauphin County accepts electronic recording through Simplifile / CSC.
Recording Office Record
Recorder of Deeds
Dauphin County · Recorder of Deeds · James M. Zugay
Address
Dauphin County Courthouse, 101 Market Street, Room 102Harrisburg, PA 17101
County fee schedule adopted under the Recorder of Deeds Fee Law (Act 87 of 1982, 16 P.S. § 11011-1 et seq.), 42 Pa.C.S. § 3733(a.1)(1)(v), and 53 Pa.C.S. § 6011
Pennsylvania allows informal probate, so many families settle straightforward estates in Dauphin County without hiring an attorney. A probate attorney earns the fee when the estate is contested, includes a business or out-of-state real estate, has unclear or insolvent debts, or when beneficiaries disagree.
Probate attorney fees in Pennsylvania are based on reasonable compensation — typically 1.9%No statutory fee schedule; the Orphans' Court reviews reasonableness under In re Trust Estate of LaRocca, 431 Pa. 542, 246 A.2d 337 (1968). County percentage guidelines are not law — "[e]gregious error is committed when a court awards commissions and fees simply on a percentage basis without inquiry into the reasonableness of the compensation" (In re Estate of Preston, 560 A.2d 160, 165 (Pa. Super. 1989), quoted in Estate of Andrews, 2026 PA Super 168)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source to 3%No statutory fee schedule; the Orphans' Court reviews reasonableness under In re Trust Estate of LaRocca, 431 Pa. 542, 246 A.2d 337 (1968). County percentage guidelines are not law — "[e]gregious error is committed when a court awards commissions and fees simply on a percentage basis without inquiry into the reasonableness of the compensation" (In re Estate of Preston, 560 A.2d 160, 165 (Pa. Super. 1989), quoted in Estate of Andrews, 2026 PA Super 168)Verified Sep 8, 2026View source of the estate's value, billed hourly or as a flat fee. Ask a Dauphin County firm to quote a structure up front.
A probate attorney files the petition with the Orphans' 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.
Lancaster firm on East King Street with a trusts and estates group serving Lancaster County and south-central Pennsylvania, with additional offices in Reading, York, and Harrisburg. Handles estate planning, estate and trust administration, and probate, plus Orphans' Court litigation and estate and inheritance tax planning.
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbate LitigationTrust Litigationand 2 more
Seventeen-attorney Harrisburg law firm providing elder law services and assistance with all aspects of the probate and estate administration process since the 1920s.
Harrisburg firm serving Dauphin County and Central Pennsylvania, guiding executors and administrators through the Pennsylvania probate process since 1978. Handles estate plans ranging from simple wills to business-succession structures, plus estate administration, elder law, and powers of attorney.
Cumberland County firm in Lemoyne, in the Harrisburg metro, handling estate planning and probate before the Cumberland, Dauphin, and York County Orphans' Courts since 1914. Attorneys draft wills and trusts, administer decedents' estates through probate, and litigate will contests and fiduciary disputes.
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbate LitigationTrust Litigationand 3 more
Full-service firm with offices in Harrisburg and Lancaster whose Estate Planning Group works with clients and their other professional advisors to develop customized estate plans that reduce taxes, preserve assets, and carry out legacies.
PracticesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbate LitigationTrust Litigationand 5 more
Harrisburg firm on North Front Street serving Dauphin, Cumberland, Perry, Lancaster, and York counties in south-central Pennsylvania since 1969. Its estates and trusts group handles estate planning, estate and trust administration, and probate, along with guardianship, Medicaid, and estate and inheritance tax planning.
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.
Living trust assets, and accounts with a named beneficiary or surviving joint owner. These skip probate; some states charge the court fee only on what remains.
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Dauphin County Guides
Step-by-step tools for families in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania.
