Small Estate Affidavit Tool (2026)

This free small estate affidavit tool helps you find out, in about a minute, whether an estate can skip full probate and use your state’s simpler small-estate process instead. Choose the state where the person lived, enter the value of the estate, and the small estate affidavit tool shows the 2026 dollar limit, how real estate is handled, and how long you must wait before filing.

Losing someone is hard enough without a long court process on top of it. For many smaller estates, a short sworn affidavit can take the place of months of formal probate — often settling things in weeks, with little or no court involvement. This page explains how the shortcut works and lets you check your own situation right away.

On this page

• What this small estate affidavit tool does
• How to use it
• What actually counts toward the limit
• Real estate and the small-estate process
• Where these figures come from
• Frequently asked questions

What this small estate affidavit tool does

Every state lets very small estates avoid full probate, but the rules differ a great deal. Some states cap the process at $20,000; others allow several hundred thousand dollars. The small estate affidavit tool above compares the estate value you enter against your state’s current 2026 limit and gives you a plain-language answer: likely eligible, likely too large, or covered by special rules. It also flags whether your state’s process covers a house or only personal property, and the waiting period after the death before you can file. Instead of reading through statutes, you get the three numbers that matter in one place.

How to use it

There are three quick inputs. First, choose the state where your loved one lived when they died — that state’s law controls, not where you happen to live. Second, enter the value of the assets that would normally pass through probate. Third, check the box if the estate includes a home or land. The small estate affidavit tool then shows your result instantly, with the state’s limit, real-estate handling, and timing together. Before you file anything, it helps to gather the death certificate and recent account statements so your value estimate is accurate.

What actually counts toward the limit

This is where many families are surprised. The dollar limit usually applies only to "probate" assets — and a lot of common assets never go through probate at all. Life insurance with a named beneficiary, retirement accounts such as a 401(k) or IRA with a beneficiary, payable-on-death bank accounts, property owned jointly with right of survivorship, and anything held in a living trust typically pass straight to the named person. None of those count toward the small-estate limit.

For example, a $300,000 estate that is mostly a life-insurance payout and a jointly owned home may have only a few thousand dollars of true probate assets. Subtracting the non-probate items often pulls an estate back under the line, which is why it is worth running the small estate affidavit tool after you have set those assets aside.

Real estate and the small-estate process

In most states the small-estate affidavit covers personal property only — bank accounts, vehicles, and belongings — and a house has to be transferred a different way. In a handful of states, owning real estate that needs probate can even disqualify the simplified process entirely, so the home is the deciding factor. A few states, such as Oregon, Wyoming, and Texas, do fold real estate into their small-estate procedures up to a limit. The tool tells you which group your state is in, so you know whether the home is covered or needs its own separate step.

Where these figures come from

Each state’s limit, real-estate rule, and waiting period was checked against the state’s own statutes and court forms for 2026 — including recent changes like California’s increase to $239,700 for deaths on or after April 1, 2026, Illinois’s rise to $150,000, and Alabama’s revised Small Estates Act effective October 1, 2025. Limits change over time, so for the official figure in your county, confirm with your state’s probate court or our small estates by state guide. You can also read a plain-English overview of how probate works at the Cornell Legal Information Institute.

Frequently asked questions

Is the small estate affidavit tool free?

Yes. It is completely free, needs no sign-up, and gives you an instant answer based on 2026 figures.

Does a small estate affidavit avoid probate completely?

Often, yes. When an estate qualifies, the affidavit lets you collect and transfer assets directly, without opening a formal probate case — usually in weeks rather than months.

What if the estate is just over the limit?

Re-check what counts. Once you remove assets that pass outside probate — life insurance, beneficiary accounts, joint property, and trust assets — many estates drop under the limit. Run the small estate affidavit tool again using only the probate assets.

Who can file the affidavit?

Usually the surviving spouse or an heir entitled to inherit. Some states require that all heirs agree to the distribution. Your state guide lists the exact rules and the form to use.

Is this legal advice?

No. This tool gives general 2026 information to point you in the right direction. For advice about a specific estate, talk to a probate attorney or your local court’s self-help center, which is often free.

This tool provides general information for 2026 and is not legal advice. Small-estate limits, eligibility, and procedures vary by state and county and can change. Confirm the current rules with your state’s probate court before filing.