Executor Fee in Texas: 5% of Cash Moved – Not 5% of the Estate

Guides › Settling an Estate

Updated July 31, 2026. Quick answer: the Texas “5% executor fee” is not 5% of the estate. Estates Code §352.002 pays 5% of cash the executor actually receives plus 5% of cash actually paid out — and expressly excludes the three biggest cash events in most estates: money already sitting in bank or brokerage accounts at death, life-insurance proceeds, and cash distributed to heirs. The whole commission is then capped at 5% of the estate’s gross fair market value.

What that means on a real estate

Take a $900,000 estate: a $500,000 house that is never sold, $300,000 across bank and brokerage accounts at death, and a $100,000 life-insurance payout. The commissionable cash flow is close to zero — the accounts are excluded as cash on hand, the insurance is excluded by statute, the house generates no cash unless sold, and paying the heirs earns nothing. Sell the house for $500,000 and pay $80,000 of debts and expenses, and the commission is 5% of ($500,000 + $80,000) = $29,000. The structure rewards administering activity, not holding wealth — the opposite of California’s gross-value schedule.

The will overrides. Most professionally drafted Texas wills replace the statutory commission with “reasonable compensation” or a stated amount — check before you count on §352.002. Courts can also award more when the standard commission is unreasonably low for the work.

Compute both inputs: executor fee calculator · the full Texas cost picture: Texas probate cost · charging vs inheriting: the waive-or-take math.