Strategies to Avoid Probate in Arizona: A Planning Guide

The probate courts exist to oversee the administration of estates and handle other technicalities related to death and incapacity. The oversight provided by the courts can help prevent personal representatives and trustees from abusing their authority.

They can help families take action when a vulnerable individual fell victim to undo influence or attempted to modify an estate plan when they lacked the capacity to do so. The courts can also oversee the administration of an estate, which can sometimes prove costly and time-consuming. Many people would prefer to minimize probate involvement with their estates. They worry about the costs or want to keep the details of their legacy as private as possible.

How can people keep their estates out of probate court in Arizona?

By Changing Asset Ownership

Many of the strategies testators use to bypass the probate courts or minimize probate court involvement in estate administration relate to changing the legal ownership of specific assets. If the testator owns real estate, for example, they might execute a deed naming their spouse or a caregiver as their joint tenant who has rights of survivorship. That way, their interest in the home passes directly to that individual when they die instead of passing through the probate courts.

Others might add transfer-on-death designations to financial accounts. Such designations allow selected beneficiaries to assume direct control over a checking account or retirement savings funds after the primary account holder dies.

People may also use valuable property to fund a trust. Assets held by a trust typically do not have to pass through probate court during estate administration. They may also make gifts to specific beneficiaries while they are still alive instead of waiting for those people to inherit everything at once after they die. Doing so can reduce the value of the overall estate to help it qualify as a small estate not subject to standard probate court oversight.

There are a variety of strategies available for people who want to keep as much of their property out of probate court as possible. Creating an inventory of assets and discussing legacy preferences with someone familiar with Arizona’s probate statutes can help a testator establish the best estate plan for their situation. Those who keep their property out of probate court can prevent conflicts among family members, limit the risk of asset loss to creditor claims and potentially keep their legacy private.