How to Avoid Probate: 7 Strategies That Actually Work

Probate isn't always a nightmare, but it is slow, public, and expensive. For most estates, the process takes 9 to 18 months, costs thousands of dollars in court and attorney fees, and puts your family's financial details on the public record. It's no surprise that "how to avoid probate" is one of the most commonly searched estate planning questions in the country.

The good news: probate can be avoided, or at least significantly minimized, with the right planning. None of these strategies are secret or particularly complex. They just require acting before the need arises, because once someone passes away, the options narrow dramatically.

Here are seven approaches that work.

Why People Want to Avoid Probate

Before diving into strategies, it helps to understand what you're actually avoiding:

Cost. Between court filing fees, attorney fees, executor compensation, and appraisals, probate typically costs 3–7% of the estate's total value. On a $500,000 estate, that's $15,000–$35,000 that could have gone to your family. How much does probate cost?

Time. Even a straightforward estate takes 9–18 months to close. Complex estates can take years. During that time, assets may be frozen, property can't be easily sold, and beneficiaries wait. How long does probate take?

Privacy. Probate is a public court proceeding. The will, asset inventory, creditor claims, and distribution records all become part of the public record. Anyone can look them up.

Family stress. The longer the process takes and the more complicated it gets, the more strain it puts on everyone involved, particularly the executor.

That said, probate exists for good reasons: it protects creditors, prevents fraud, and provides a legal framework for resolving disputes. Not every estate needs to avoid it, and for some families the court's oversight is actually valuable. The goal isn't to fear probate, it's to understand when avoiding it makes sense and how to do it properly.

Strategy 1: Establish a Revocable Living Trust

A revocable living trust is the most comprehensive way to avoid probate. You create the trust during your lifetime, transfer your assets into it, and name a successor trustee who distributes those assets after your death, all without court involvement.

How it works: You set up the trust (usually with an estate planning attorney), retitle your assets in the name of the trust, and continue using them normally during your lifetime. You maintain full control, you can change the terms, add or remove assets, or dissolve the trust entirely. When you pass away, the successor trustee distributes assets according to the trust's instructions, bypassing probate completely.

Does a revocable trust avoid probate? Yes, but only for assets that are actually in the trust. This is where people make mistakes. If you create a trust but forget to retitle your house, that bank account, or that investment portfolio into the trust's name, those assets still go through probate. The trust itself is just a container, it only works for what you put in it.

Cost to set up: Typically $1,500–$3,000 for an individual, $2,000–$5,000 for a married couple. This is a one-time cost that can save many times that amount in avoided probate fees.

Best for: Larger estates, homeowners, people who want complete privacy, families with beneficiaries in multiple states, and anyone who wants to avoid the delay and cost of probate entirely.

Strategy 2: Use Transfer-on-Death (TOD) Designations

Transfer-on-death designations allow certain assets to pass directly to a named beneficiary when you die, no probate, no waiting, no court involvement.

Does transfer on death avoid probate? Yes. Assets with a valid TOD designation transfer automatically to the beneficiary upon proof of death (typically a death certificate), completely outside the probate process.

Where you can use TOD designations:

• Brokerage and investment accounts — Most financial institutions allow you to add a TOD beneficiary to individual and joint accounts
• Bank accounts — Often called "payable on death" (POD), this works the same way: the named person inherits the account balance directly
• Vehicles — Some states allow TOD designations on vehicle titles
• Real estate — A growing number of states (currently around 30) offer transfer-on-death deeds, which let you name a beneficiary for your home without creating a trust

Does payable on death avoid probate? Yes, a POD designation on a bank account works exactly like a TOD on an investment account. The named beneficiary walks into the bank with a death certificate and the funds are released directly to them.

Cost: Free or minimal. Most financial institutions add TOD/POD designations at no charge. Transfer-on-death deeds for real estate typically cost $50–$200 to prepare and record.

Best for: People who want a simple, low-cost way to pass specific accounts or assets directly to named individuals.

Strategy 3: Own Property Jointly With Right of Survivorship

When two people own property as "joint tenants with right of survivorship" or as "tenants by the entirety" (for married couples), the surviving owner automatically inherits the deceased owner's share. No probate is needed because the property never becomes part of the deceased's individual estate.

How do you avoid probate on a home? Joint ownership with right of survivorship is one of the simplest ways. When one owner dies, the surviving owner files an affidavit of survivorship and a death certificate with the county recorder's office, and the property title updates, no court required.

Important distinction: "Joint tenancy with right of survivorship" avoids probate. "Tenancy in common" does not, under tenancy in common, the deceased's share becomes part of their estate and goes through probate normally. The exact wording on the deed matters.

Cost: If you're buying property together, there's no additional cost, just make sure the deed specifies the right type of ownership. Changing an existing deed typically costs $200–$500.

Best for: Married couples, domestic partners, and family members who want to share ownership and ensure seamless transfer at death.

Watch out for: Joint ownership gives the other person full rights to the property now, including the ability to sell their share, use it as loan collateral, or expose it to their own creditors. This is ownership, not just inheritance planning. Don't add someone to your deed solely to avoid probate without understanding the implications.

Strategy 4: Name Beneficiaries on Financial Accounts

This is the easiest and most overlooked probate-avoidance strategy. Most financial accounts, retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and many bank and investment accounts, allow you to name a beneficiary who receives the funds directly upon your death.

Accounts that commonly accept beneficiary designations:

• 401(k) and 403(b) retirement accounts
• Traditional and Roth IRAs
• Life insurance policies
• Annuities
• Health savings accounts (HSAs)
• Bank accounts (via POD designation)
• Brokerage accounts (via TOD designation)

Why this matters: Beneficiary designations override the will. If your will says your IRA goes to your daughter but the beneficiary form at Fidelity names your ex-spouse, the ex-spouse gets the IRA. The beneficiary form controls, not the will.

Action step: Review every financial account's beneficiary designation today. Update any that are outdated (especially after a divorce, remarriage, or death of a previously named beneficiary). This single step can keep a significant portion of your estate out of probate at zero cost.

Strategy 5: Use Small Estate Procedures

Every state has a threshold below which estates can use a simplified probate process, or skip probate entirely. These "small estate" procedures are faster, cheaper, and often require nothing more than a sworn affidavit.

How it works: If the estate's probatable assets fall below the state threshold, the executor (or heir) can file a small estate affidavit with each institution holding assets. The institution releases the funds based on the affidavit, without any court involvement.

State thresholds vary widely:

• California: $184,500
• Texas: $75,000
• New York: $50,000
• Florida: $75,000 (summary administration)
• Ohio: $35,000
• Many states: $10,000–$50,000

These thresholds apply only to assets that would otherwise go through probate, assets that pass by beneficiary designation, joint ownership, or trust aren't counted.

Best for: Smaller estates, or estates where most assets pass outside probate and only a modest amount remains. When is probate required (and when can you skip it)?

Strategy 6: Give Gifts During Your Lifetime

Assets you give away while you're alive don't go through probate, because you no longer own them. Lifetime gifting reduces the size of your probatable estate, and in some cases can also reduce estate tax exposure.

Current rules: As of 2025, you can give up to $19,000 per person per year without triggering any gift tax reporting requirements. Married couples can give $38,000 per recipient. Gifts above these amounts count against your lifetime gift and estate tax exemption ($13.99 million in 2025), but they still reduce your probate estate.

Practical examples: Helping a child with a down payment, funding a grandchild's education account, or transferring ownership of a vehicle are all forms of lifetime gifting that reduce what goes through probate.

Watch out for: Don't give away assets you might need. This sounds obvious, but it happens, people transfer their home to a child for probate avoidance, then need to sell it later for long-term care expenses. Once it's given, it's gone.

Strategy 7: Create a Lady Bird Deed (Enhanced Life Estate Deed)

Available in a limited number of states (including Florida, Texas, Michigan, Vermont, and West Virginia), a Lady Bird deed lets you transfer your home to a beneficiary upon death while retaining full control during your lifetime, including the right to sell, mortgage, or revoke the transfer.

How it's different from a regular deed transfer: With a standard deed, you give up ownership now. With a Lady Bird deed, you keep everything, the right to live there, sell it, rent it out, and the property automatically transfers to the named beneficiary when you die, outside of probate.

Cost: Typically $200–$500 to prepare and record.

Best for: Homeowners in states that recognize these deeds who want to avoid probate on their home without creating a trust. What happens to a house when the owner dies?

How to Avoid Probate After Death: What Can Still Be Done

Most probate avoidance has to happen before someone dies. But if you're an executor dealing with an estate that's already in probate, there are a few things that can still help:

Check for small estate eligibility. If the estate's probatable assets fall below the state threshold, you may be able to use the simplified affidavit process instead of full probate.

Identify non-probate assets. Review every account for beneficiary designations, TOD/POD registrations, and joint ownership. You may find that more assets pass outside probate than you initially thought, reducing the scope of what the court needs to handle. What assets go through probate?

Consider settling the estate without probate where possible. In some states, if all heirs agree and the estate has no significant debts, the family can distribute assets informally without opening probate. This doesn't work everywhere, and it carries risk, but it's worth discussing with a probate attorney.

For executors currently navigating the probate process, staying organized is the single best way to minimize delays and get through it as efficiently as possible. Percorso gives you a private dashboard to track every milestone, manage documents, and keep beneficiaries informed, so you can focus on moving the process forward rather than managing chaos.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

Avoiding probate isn't about gaming the legal system, it's about planning ahead so your family doesn't have to spend a year navigating a process that could have been simpler. The strategies above range from free (updating beneficiary forms) to moderately expensive (creating a trust), and most people benefit from a combination rather than a single approach.

If someone you love has already passed and you're in the middle of probate right now, the best thing you can do is stay organized and move efficiently through each phase. Learn how the probate process works, or explore Percorso, which helps executors track every milestone, store documents, and keep family members updated throughout the process.