Wealthy PotSmall Estate Affidavit: Limits in Every State and How to Use One
When someone dies with only modest property in their own name, most states let the heirs skip full probate. Instead they sign a sworn statement, a small estate affidavit, and hand it to the bank, the DMV or whoever holds the property, which then releases it. Each state sets its own dollar limit and waiting period, from $15,000 in Rhode Island to $400,000 in Wyoming. We checked the current law in all 50 states and DC; several limits rose in 2025 and 2026 and many websites still show the old numbers.
Table of Contents
The Short Answer
- What it is: a sworn form that lets heirs collect a small estate without opening probate.
- Limits range from $15,000 (Rhode Island) to $400,000 (Wyoming). Most states sit between $50,000 and $100,000.
- Only probate property counts. Accounts with a named beneficiary, jointly owned property and trust assets usually pass on their own and are left out.
- Most states make you wait 30 to 45 days after the death; Virginia waits 60, Colorado only 10.
- Real estate is often excluded or needs a separate procedure.
- Some states use a court form instead (Florida, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and others): simpler than probate, but filed with the court.
Check Your State's Limit
Pick the state where the person lived and enter what they owned in their name alone.
Small Estate Limits by State
Limits and rules as of October 13, 2026, each linked to the statute. "About" marks amounts that adjust for inflation where we calculated the current figure from the statute's formula.
| State | Limit | Key rules | Law |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Set by formula | Court petition, personal property only. The limit is tied to Alabama's inflation-adjusted family allowances, so ask the probate court for the current amount. | Ala. Code 43-2-690 to 43-2-698 |
| Alaska | $50,000 | Personal property; vehicles up to $100,000 also transfer. 30 days after death. | AS 13.16.680 |
| Arizona | $200,000 | Personal property; separate $300,000 affidavit for Arizona real estate (6 months after death). 30 days after death. | A.R.S. 14-3971 |
| Arkansas | $100,000 | Excludes homestead and allowances; can include real property. 45 days after death. | Ark. Code Ann. 28-41-101 |
| California | $208,850 | For deaths on or after April 1, 2025 (adjusted every 3 years). Excludes joint, trust, payable-on-death and certain other property. 40 days after death. | Cal. Prob. Code 13100 |
| Colorado | About $88,000 | Inflation-adjusted; $88,000 for 2026 deaths by our calculation from the statute. Personal property only. 10 days after death. | C.R.S. 15-12-1201 |
| Connecticut | $40,000 | Not available if the person solely owned Connecticut real estate. Filed with the probate court. | C.G.S. 45a-273 |
| Delaware | $50,000 | Raised from $30,000 in 2026. Not available if the person owned Delaware real estate alone or as tenant in common. 30 days after death. | 12 Del. C. 2306 |
| District of Columbia | $80,000 | Raised from $40,000 in 2025. A small estate court proceeding, not an affidavit. | D.C. Code 20-351 |
| Florida | $150,000 | Summary administration (a court petition), raised from $75,000 on July 1, 2026. Excludes exempt property such as protected homestead. | Fla. Stat. 735.201 |
| Georgia | No dollar limit | No small estate affidavit. Heirs can petition the probate court for an order that no administration is necessary. | O.C.G.A. 53-2-40 to 53-2-42 |
| Hawaii | $100,000 | Personal property; motor vehicles transfer regardless of value. | HRS 560:3-1201 |
| Idaho | $100,000 | Personal property only. 30 days after death. | Idaho Code 15-3-1201 |
| Illinois | $150,000 | For deaths on or after August 15, 2025; registered vehicles excluded. Personal property only. | 755 ILCS 5/25-1 |
| Indiana | $100,000 | For deaths after June 30, 2022. 45 days after death (vehicles: 5 days). | IC 29-1-8-1 |
| Iowa | $50,000 | Only if there is no real property. 40 days after death. | Iowa Code 633.356 |
| Kansas | $75,000 | Personal property only. | K.S.A. 59-1507b |
| Kentucky | No affidavit | The court can dispense with administration when assets do not exceed the $30,000 spouse or children exemption plus preferred claims. | KRS 395.455 |
| Louisiana | $200,000 | Raised from $125,000 on August 1, 2026 for Louisiana residents ($125,000 for non-residents). Can include real estate. | La. Code Civ. Proc. arts. 3421, 3431, 3432, 3434 |
| Maine | About $52,500 | $40,000 base adjusted for inflation; about $52,500 for 2026 deaths by our calculation. Personal property only. 30 days after death. | 18-C M.R.S. §3-1201 |
| Maryland | $50,000 | $100,000 if the surviving spouse is the only heir or beneficiary. A small estate process with the Register of Wills; can include real property. | Md. Code, Est. & Trusts §5-601 |
| Massachusetts | $25,000 | Plus one motor vehicle. Personal property only. 30 days after death. | M.G.L. c. 190B, §3-1201 |
| Michigan | About $53,000 | $50,000 base (2024) adjusted for inflation; $51,000 for 2025 deaths and about $53,000 for 2026 by our calculation. No real property. 28 days after death. | MCL 700.3983 |
| Minnesota | $75,000 | Personal property. 30 days after death. | Minn. Stat. §524.3-1201 |
| Mississippi | $75,000 | Personal property. 30 days after death. | Miss. Code Ann. §91-7-322 |
| Missouri | $40,000 | Can include real property (recorded with the recorder of deeds). 30 days after death. | RSMo §473.097 |
| Montana | $100,000 | Personal property. 30 days after death. | Mont. Code Ann. §72-3-1101 |
| Nebraska | $100,000 | Personal property; a separate $100,000 affidavit covers real estate. 30 days after death. | Neb. Rev. Stat. §30-24,125 |
| Nevada | $25,000 | $100,000 if the claimant is the surviving spouse. No Nevada real property. 40 days after death. | NRS 146.080 |
| New Hampshire | No affidavit | No dollar-limited affidavit; small estates can use a waiver of administration. | RSA 553:32 |
| New Jersey | $50,000 | For a surviving spouse or partner; $20,000 for other heirs when there is no spouse. Only when there is no will. | N.J.S.A. 3B:10-3 |
| New Mexico | $50,000 | Cannot be used for real estate. 30 days after death. | NMSA 1978 §45-3-1201 |
| New York | $50,000 | Voluntary administration in Surrogate's Court for personal property. No waiting period. | N.Y. SCPA 1301-1304 |
| North Carolina | $20,000 | $30,000 if the surviving spouse is the only heir. Personal property. 30 days after death. | N.C. Gen. Stat. §28A-25-1 |
| North Dakota | $100,000 | Raised from $50,000 in 2025. Personal property. 30 days after death. | N.D. Cent. Code §30.1-23-01 |
| Ohio | $35,000 | $100,000 if the surviving spouse takes everything. A court release from administration, which can include real property. | Ohio Rev. Code § 2113.03 |
| Oklahoma | $50,000 | Personal property. 10 days after death. | 58 O.S. § 393 |
| Oregon | $275,000 | Up to $75,000 of personal property plus $200,000 of real property, in a small estate affidavit filed with the court. 30 days after death. | ORS 114.510 |
| Pennsylvania | $50,000 | Court petition; real estate excluded. Banks can also pay up to $20,000 per account and employers up to $10,000 of wages directly to family. | 20 Pa.C.S. § 3102 |
| Rhode Island | $15,000 | Personal property only (household goods not counted). 30 days after death. | R.I. Gen. Laws § 33-24-1 |
| South Carolina | $45,000 | Raised from $25,000 in 2025. Personal property. 30 days after death. | S.C. Code § 62-3-1201 |
| South Dakota | $100,000 | Personal property. 30 days after death. | SDCL § 29A-3-1201 |
| Tennessee | $50,000 | Personal property only, through limited letters from the court. 45 days after death. | Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 30-4-102, 30-4-103 |
| Texas | $75,000 | Excludes homestead and exempt property; only when there is no will. Filed with the court. 30 days after death. | Tex. Estates Code §§ 205.001-205.009 |
| Utah | $100,000 | Personal property. 30 days after death. | Utah Code § 75-3-1201 |
| Vermont | $45,000 | Court petition; personal property only. | 14 V.S.A. § 1901 |
| Virginia | $75,000 | Raised from $50,000 in 2025. Not real estate. 60 days after death. | Va. Code §§ 64.2-600, 64.2-601 |
| Washington | $100,000 | Personal property. 40 days after death. | RCW 11.62.010 |
| West Virginia | $50,000 | Not available if the person owned probate real estate (since July 2025). 30 or 60 days after death. | W. Va. Code §§ 44-1A-1 to 44-1A-4 |
| Wisconsin | $50,000 | Can transfer real property when recorded with the register of deeds. | Wis. Stat. § 867.03 |
| Wyoming | $400,000 | Raised from $200,000 in 2025. Personal property. 30 days after death. | Wyo. Stat. § 2-1-201 |
What Counts Toward the Limit
The limit applies to the probate estate: what the person owned in their name alone, with no beneficiary or co-owner. Typically:
Usually counted: bank accounts in their sole name with no payable-on-death beneficiary, a car titled only to them, personal belongings, uncashed checks and refunds, and (in states that allow it) real estate in their name alone.
Usually not counted: life insurance and retirement accounts with a named beneficiary, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, jointly owned property with survivorship, property in a living trust, and a home that passes by transfer on death deed. California, for example, leaves out joint tenancy, trust and payable-on-death property and certain vehicles and boats (Probate Code 13050).
States also differ on whether to subtract debts. Arizona measures personal property "less liens and encumbrances", while Wisconsin and Iowa use gross value. Check the rule in your state's statute before you sign.
How to Use a Small Estate Affidavit
- Confirm there is no probate case. Most affidavits require that no personal representative has been appointed or applied for.
- List the probate assets and add them up. Use values on the date of death.
- Wait out the waiting period (see the table).
- Get the form. Many probate courts and state judicial websites publish one. Some states require filing with the court (for example Oregon, Texas and Connecticut); most just require a notarized affidavit.
- Attach a certified death certificate and sign before a notary.
- Present it to each holder: the bank, the DMV for a car, the employer for a final paycheck. They must release the property to the person entitled to it.
- Pay debts and distribute fairly. The person who collects is responsible for paying valid debts and passing property to the right heirs.
Limits That Changed Recently
| State | Old | New | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | $200,000 | $400,000 | July 1, 2025 |
| Louisiana (residents) | $125,000 | $200,000 | August 1, 2026 |
| Arizona | $75,000 | $200,000 (real estate affidavit $300,000) | 2025 |
| Florida (summary administration) | $75,000 | $150,000 | July 1, 2026 |
| Illinois | $100,000 | $150,000 | Deaths on or after August 15, 2025 |
| North Dakota | $50,000 | $100,000 | 2025 |
| DC | $40,000 | $80,000 | March 2025 |
| Virginia | $50,000 | $75,000 | July 1, 2025 |
| Delaware | $30,000 | $50,000 | June 2026 |
| South Carolina | $25,000 | $45,000 | May 2025 |
West Virginia went the other way: since July 2025 the affidavit can't be used if the person owned any probate real estate. California's limit adjusts every three years and was last raised on April 1, 2025, to $208,850. Michigan reset its base to $50,000 in February 2024 and adjusts it for inflation each year.
Risks and Responsibilities
- You swear to the facts. Several states, such as Iowa and Louisiana, have you sign under penalty of perjury.
- You are accountable to other heirs and creditors. Under the Uniform Probate Code version used in many states, the person who collects is "answerable and accountable" to anyone with a better right to the property (for example South Carolina Code 62-3-1202).
- Debts don't vanish. Valid debts and funeral costs still have to be paid from the estate, in the order state law sets.
- Medicaid estate recovery can claim against the estate if the person received long-term care benefits.
- Inherited retirement accounts pass by beneficiary designation and have their own withdrawal rules: see our inherited IRA guide.
Sources & Methodology
We read the small estate statute for each state and DC, on the official legislature website where it was reachable and otherwise on the Justia code compilation (2025 edition), and checked enacted bills from 2024 to 2026 for increases. Each row in the table links to the law we used. Inflation-adjusted amounts for Colorado, Maine and Michigan for 2026 deaths are our calculation from the statutory formula and federal CPI data, because we could not reach the state's published figure; Alabama's is set by a formula tied to its family allowances. When a state uses a court procedure rather than an affidavit, the table says so.
Limits of this check: for about 20 states the official site blocked automated access, so we relied on the 2025 compilation and bill searches; a 2026 change could be missing. Confirm the current amount with the probate court before filing.
This article is educational and is not legal advice. Small estate rules change often; confirm the current limit and form with the probate court in the county where the person lived. Laws were checked on 2026-10-13.
FAQ
What is the small estate limit in my state?
See the table or the lookup above. Most states are between $50,000 and $100,000; California is $208,850, Texas $75,000 (not counting the homestead), Florida $150,000 for summary administration and New York $50,000.
Can a small estate affidavit transfer a house?
In some states. Arizona, Nebraska and Oregon have real-estate versions, Missouri, Wisconsin and Louisiana let the affidavit cover real property, and Texas allows only the homestead. Many states exclude real estate, so a transfer on death deed made during life is the easier route.
How long do I have to wait after the death?
Usually 30 days. California is 40 days, Indiana and Arkansas 45, Virginia 60, Colorado 10, and some states have no waiting period.
Do I need a lawyer?
Not usually. Courts and state websites publish the forms. If the estate is near the limit, includes real estate or has disputes among heirs, a probate lawyer is worth asking.
Does it matter if there is a will?
In most states, no: the affidavit works with or without one. A few versions are only for estates without a will (for example Texas and New Jersey).
Cite This Page
Journalists, educators and bloggers are welcome to cite this guide. Please link back so readers can reach the primary sources.
"Small Estate Affidavit: Limits in Every State and How to Use One." Wealthy Pot, 2026. https://wealthypot.com/small-estate-affidavit/
