Do I Need an Arizona Probate?

When someone dies, the first question the family usually asks is whether they have to go to court. In Arizona the answer depends far less on whether the deceased person had a will than most people think. It depends on what the person owned and how each asset was titled on the date of death.

This article answers the ten most common questions Arizona families ask about whether probate is necessary. It explains which assets must go through probate, which assets transfer automatically, when Arizona's small estate affidavits can replace probate, and how wills, revocable living trusts, joint ownership and surviving spouses fit into the picture.

Questions Answered in This Article

• Does every estate have to go through probate in Arizona?
• How do I know if probate is necessary in Arizona?
• Is probate required in Arizona if the deceased person had a will?
• Is probate required if the deceased person did not have a will?
• Can you avoid probate in Arizona if the estate is small?
• What assets are subject to probate in Arizona?
• What assets are exempt from probate in Arizona?
• Is probate necessary if the deceased person had a revocable living trust?
• Does jointly owned property have to go through probate?
• Is probate required when the surviving spouse inherits everything?

When Arizona Probate Is and Is Not Required

Does every estate have to go through probate in Arizona?

No. Many Arizona estates never go through probate. Probate is a Superior Court proceeding whose purpose is to give someone, called the personal representative, legal authority to collect the deceased person's assets, pay valid debts and transfer what is left to the people entitled to it. If nothing needs that authority, no probate is needed.

Arizona law gives families several ways to transfer property without opening a court case:

• Assets that pass automatically by contract or title, such as life insurance, IRAs and 401(k)s with living beneficiaries, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts, and property owned as joint tenants with right of survivorship or community property with right of survivorship.
• Real estate covered by a recorded beneficiary deed under A.R.S. §33-405.
• Assets owned by a revocable living trust, which the successor trustee administers privately without court involvement.
• Small estates that qualify for the affidavit procedures in A.R.S. §14-3971.

Arizona law also says a will has no legal effect to prove title to property until it is probated or the property passes under the small estate affidavit procedures, which is why a will alone does not keep a family out of court (A.R.S. §14-3102). The real question is not "Does every estate need probate?" but "Does this estate contain assets that cannot be transferred any other way?"

How do I know if probate is necessary in Arizona?

Make a list of everything the deceased person owned on the date of death and answer three questions for each asset.

• Who is the named owner? Look at the deed, the account statement, the vehicle title or the brokerage statement. If a trust is the owner, the asset is not a probate asset.
• Is there a beneficiary or survivor? A named beneficiary on an IRA, life insurance policy, POD or TOD account, a beneficiary deed or a vehicle beneficiary designation means the asset passes outside probate, as long as the beneficiary is alive. A surviving joint tenant or a surviving spouse holding community property with right of survivorship also takes the asset without probate.
• What is it worth, less liens? Add up the probate assets only. If the net value of personal property is $200,000 or less, and the net value of Arizona real estate is $300,000 or less, the family may be able to use small estate affidavits instead of probate.

Probate is usually necessary when the deceased person owned a house in his or her name alone with no beneficiary deed and the house is worth more than $300,000 above the mortgage, when probate personal property exceeds $200,000, when someone must sue or be sued on behalf of the estate, when creditors must be cut off, or when there is a dispute about who should be in charge or who inherits.

When in doubt, an Arizona probate attorney can review the asset list in a short consultation and tell you whether a probate, a small estate affidavit or nothing at all is required.

Is probate required in Arizona if the deceased person had a will?

Having a will does not avoid probate. This is one of the most common misunderstandings in estate planning. A will is a set of instructions to the probate court. It names the personal representative the deceased person wanted and says who should inherit probate assets, but it does not transfer anything by itself.

Under A.R.S. §14-3102, a will is not effective to prove the transfer of property unless it is admitted to probate (or the property is transferred under the small estate procedures). That means a bank or title company will not retitle an account or a house just because someone hands them a will.

Whether probate is required for a person who died with a will turns on the same asset-by-asset analysis as any other estate. If everything the person owned passed by beneficiary designation, survivorship, beneficiary deed or trust, the will may never need to be probated. If the person owned a house or accounts in his or her name alone with no beneficiary, the will must usually be probated so the named personal representative can be appointed and given authority.

One more point: the person who has the original will must deliver it to a person able to secure its probate or to the court after the death (A.R.S. §14-2516). Even if no probate is needed, keep the original will in a safe place.

Is probate required if the deceased person did not have a will?

Dying without a will, called dying "intestate," does not automatically require probate either. The same rule applies: probate is needed only if the deceased person left assets that cannot be transferred by beneficiary designation, survivorship, beneficiary deed, trust or small estate affidavit.

What changes when there is no will is who inherits and who has the right to serve as personal representative. Arizona's intestate succession statutes, A.R.S. §14-2102 and A.R.S. §14-2103, decide who receives probate assets. The priority list in A.R.S. §14-3203 decides who may be appointed personal representative, starting with the surviving spouse and then other heirs.

If probate is needed, the case is opened with an application for informal appointment of a personal representative in intestacy rather than an application to probate a will. The process, timeline and costs are similar. If all the heirs agree, an intestate probate can be just as smooth as one with a will. If heirs disagree about who should be in charge, a formal proceeding before a judge may be required.

Small Estates and Which Assets Count

Can you avoid probate in Arizona if the estate is small?

Yes. Arizona has three procedures for small estates.

• Affidavit for personal property. Thirty days after death, a successor can collect bank accounts, vehicles, stocks and other personal property by signing an affidavit if the total net value of all personal property in the estate, wherever located, is $200,000 or less and no personal representative has been appointed (A.R.S. §14-3971(B)). The affidavit is not filed with the court. It is presented to the bank, the brokerage firm or the Motor Vehicle Division.
• Affidavit of succession to real property. Six months after death, the heirs or devisees can transfer Arizona real estate by filing an affidavit with the Superior Court if the net value of all the decedent's Arizona real property is $300,000 or less, calculated from the assessor's full cash value for the year of death minus liens, and all unsecured debts have been paid (A.R.S. §14-3971(E)). The court issues a certified copy that is then recorded with the county recorder.
• Summary administration. If a probate is opened and the inventory shows the estate is worth no more than the family allowances, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical bills, the personal representative can distribute immediately and close the estate without publishing notice to creditors (A.R.S. §14-3973).

Arizona also lets an employer pay up to $5,000 of a deceased worker's unpaid wages directly to the surviving spouse on an affidavit at any time after death (A.R.S. §14-3971(A)).

These limits are measured using probate assets only. Life insurance, retirement accounts with beneficiaries, trust assets and survivorship property do not count toward the $200,000 and $300,000 limits.

What assets are subject to probate in Arizona?

A probate asset is anything the deceased person owned in his or her name alone, or as a tenant in common, that does not have a living beneficiary, a surviving joint owner with survivorship rights, or a trust as its owner. Common examples include:

• A house, condominium, rental property or land titled in the deceased person's name alone with no recorded beneficiary deed.
• The deceased person's share of real estate owned as tenants in common with someone else.
• Bank, credit union and brokerage accounts in the deceased person's name alone with no POD or TOD beneficiary.
• Vehicles, boats and RVs titled in the deceased person's name with no transfer-on-death beneficiary on the title.
• An ownership interest in an LLC, corporation or partnership unless the operating agreement or another document transfers it on death.
• Personal belongings such as furniture, jewelry, collectibles, firearms and cash.
• Money owed to the deceased person, refunds, final paychecks, and claims the deceased person had against others, such as a wrongful death or personal injury claim.
• Retirement accounts and life insurance where the named beneficiary died first or the beneficiary is "my estate."

In a married couple's estate, the deceased spouse's one-half of community property is also a probate asset unless it is held as community property with right of survivorship or in a trust. The surviving spouse already owns the other half.

What assets are exempt from probate in Arizona?

Assets that pass by contract, by title or by trust are not part of the probate estate. They go directly to the named beneficiary or survivor. These include:

• Life insurance and annuities with a living named beneficiary.
• IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s and pensions with a living named beneficiary.
• Payable-on-death bank accounts and transfer-on-death brokerage accounts under Arizona's nonprobate transfer statutes, A.R.S. §14-6101 and A.R.S. §14-6212.
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship and community property with right of survivorship. When one owner dies, the survivor owns the property automatically.
• Real estate covered by a beneficiary deed that was recorded before the owner died (A.R.S. §33-405).
• Vehicles with a transfer-on-death beneficiary on the Arizona title under A.R.S. §28-2055. See our article Arizona Vehicle Transfer on Death.
• Assets owned by a revocable living trust, which the successor trustee distributes under the trust agreement without court supervision.

"Exempt from probate" does not mean exempt from debts. Under A.R.S. §14-6102, a person who receives nonprobate property can be required to contribute toward the deceased person's unpaid claims and statutory allowances if the probate estate is not large enough to pay them.

Trusts, Joint Ownership and Surviving Spouses

Is probate necessary if the deceased person had a revocable living trust?

Usually not, but only if the trust was properly funded. A revocable living trust avoids probate only for assets the trust actually owns. Signing a trust agreement does not move anything into it. The house must be deeded to the trustee, the bank and brokerage accounts must be retitled in the trust's name or name the trust as POD or TOD beneficiary, and other assets must be assigned to the trust.

When a trust is fully funded, the successor trustee named in the trust agreement steps in after the death, collects the trust assets, pays the bills and distributes the property to the beneficiaries privately, without a court case. That is the reason Richard Keyt considers the revocable living trust the cornerstone of an Arizona estate plan.

Problems arise when the person who created the trust bought a new house, opened a new account or received an inheritance and never put it in the trust. That leftover asset is a probate asset. Most trust-based estate plans include a "pour-over" will that leaves any forgotten assets to the trust, but the pour-over will itself must go through probate unless the leftover assets are small enough to use the small estate affidavits. Arizona also allows a beneficiary deed that names the trustee of a revocable trust as the beneficiary, which is a useful backstop for real estate (A.R.S. §33-405(E)).

Does jointly owned property have to go through probate?

It depends on the type of joint ownership shown on the deed or account.

• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship. When one joint tenant dies, the surviving joint tenant owns the entire property automatically. No probate is needed for that property. For real estate, the survivor typically records a certified copy of the death certificate with the county recorder so the title records show the death.
• Community property with right of survivorship. Available only to married couples, this form of ownership works like joint tenancy: the surviving spouse owns the whole property at the first death without probate.
• Joint bank accounts. Under A.R.S. §14-6212, money in a joint account belongs to the surviving party at death unless there is clear and convincing evidence of a different intent.
• Tenants in common. Tenants in common have no survivorship rights. The deceased owner's share is a probate asset that passes under the will or intestacy law.
• Plain "community property." A deed that says community property without the words "with right of survivorship" means the deceased spouse's half passes by will or intestacy and may require probate.

Joint ownership avoids probate only at the first death. When the last surviving owner dies, the property is a probate asset unless that survivor added a beneficiary deed, retitled it into a trust or made another plan.

Is probate required when the surviving spouse inherits everything?

Not always. A surviving spouse often inherits everything without probate because most married couples own their home and accounts as joint tenants or as community property with right of survivorship, and name each other as beneficiaries of retirement accounts and life insurance. Those assets go to the spouse automatically.

Probate may still be required if the deceased spouse owned something in his or her name alone with no beneficiary, such as a separately titled house, a car or an account opened before the marriage, and the value exceeds the small estate limits. A plain community property deed without survivorship language can also require probate of the deceased spouse's half, even though the surviving spouse inherits it.

When the surviving spouse is the only heir and the assets are modest, the spouse can often use the $200,000 personal property affidavit and the $300,000 real property affidavit under A.R.S. §14-3971. When probate is necessary, the surviving spouse generally has priority to serve as personal representative (A.R.S. §14-3203), and if the estate qualifies for summary procedures, the spouse may be able to serve without a bond (A.R.S. §14-3603).

The most important planning lesson is for the surviving spouse: once the first spouse dies, survivorship titling no longer protects anyone. The surviving spouse should update his or her own estate plan so the children do not face probate at the second death.

Hire an Arizona Probate Attorney for a Flat Fee

Arizona probate attorney and former CPA Richard C. Keyt represents personal representatives in uncontested informal Arizona probates in every Arizona county for a $5,000 flat fee. The estate ultimately pays the fee, not the family members personally. Ricky has practiced law with his father, Richard Keyt, since 2012, and he handles the court filings, notices, creditor deadlines, inventory and closing documents so the personal representative can settle the estate without guessing.

To hire Richard C. Keyt, complete our Arizona Probate Questionnaire. If you have questions first, call Ricky at 480-664-7472, email him at rck@keytlaw.com, or book a free office, phone or Zoom video consultation.

To learn more, see our Arizona probate articles and Arizona probate FAQs.

Keep Your Own Family Out of Probate

Probate is what happens to families when someone dies without the right plan. Arizona estate planning attorney Richard Keyt has practiced Arizona law since 1979 and prepares custom estate plans built around a revocable living trust, which lets your family skip Superior Court probate entirely. The flat fee is $3,497 for one person and $4,497 for a married couple or life partners. See the 36 documents and services we provide.

To get started, complete our Arizona Estate Plan Questionnaire, call Richard Keyt at 480-664-7478 or email rk@keytlaw.com. See more of our Arizona Wills, Trusts & Estate Planning Articles.

This article provides general information about Arizona probate law as of October 2026. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Statutes, court fees and procedures change, and every estate is different. Talk with an Arizona probate attorney about your specific situation.