RJP Estate Planning Blog

Can My Children Automatically Inherit My House in Arizona?

Short answer: not automatically. Your children inherit cleanly only if your deed or your plan says how the home should pass.

Short Answer

  • Without a plan, your home usually goes through probate before children can take title.
  • You can avoid probate with a beneficiary deed or a revocable living trust. Both pass the home directly at death.
  • For married couples, community property with right of survivorship or joint tenancy passes the first spouse’s share to the survivor. It does not name children.
  • Very small estates may qualify for Arizona’s small‑estate affidavit rules for real property.

How inheritance works without a plan

When there is no effective will or trust, Arizona’s intestacy laws decide who inherits. A court process confirms the transfer first. See A.R.S. § 14‑2101.

Who inherits if I have a spouse and children?

It depends on family structure and how property is titled. A surviving spouse may take part or all, and children typically share what remains. Blended‑family situations are more complex. Intestacy rarely mirrors what parents intend, which is why planning matters.

  • Children from a prior relationship can receive a different share than a current spouse.
  • A will alone does not avoid probate. It simply tells the court who should receive assets.

To control timing and conditions for children, use a trust or a beneficiary arrangement.

Ways to skip probate for a home

Beneficiary Deed (Transfer‑on‑Death Deed)

Name your children now, and the house transfers to them automatically at your death.

A beneficiary deed lets you keep full control during life. You can sell, refinance, or revoke the deed. To work, it must be recorded before death in the county where the property sits. See A.R.S. § 33‑405.

  1. Confirm your legal description from the most recent deed.
  2. Prepare and sign an Arizona beneficiary deed naming the children as grantee beneficiaries.
  3. Record it with the county recorder before death.
Pros and cautions
  • Pros: Simple, low cost, no probate for the home, you keep control while alive.
  • Cautions: All named children become co‑owners at death, which can complicate sell‑or‑keep decisions. No built‑in management for minors or spend‑thrift children.

Revocable Living Trust

Put the home in your trust now, and your successor trustee transfers it immediately when you pass.

A living trust avoids probate, keeps details private, and lets you set conditions for children. To work, the deed must retitle the home to the trust, and you should align other assets. Learn more in our step‑by‑step trust funding guide and our overview of living trusts.

Common funding mistakes
  • Creating a trust but never deeding the house into it.
  • Naming all children as co‑trustees when they do not get along.
  • Forgetting to coordinate insurance, taxes, and HOA notices after retitling.

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Joint Tenancy and Community Property with Right of Survivorship

These forms help a surviving spouse, not children. Adding children to your deed now can create new risks.

Joint ownership with children can expose the home to their creditors or divorces and can trigger tax and control problems. Most families do better with a beneficiary deed or a trust that names children at death rather than during life.

If the estate is small

Arizona allows an affidavit process for small estates. For real property, you may file after six months if the estate’s real property is under the statutory limit. Lawmakers raised these limits in 2025. See the 2025 amendment to the small‑estate statute: HB 2116 (2025), amending A.R.S. § 14‑3971.

When a small‑estate affidavit helps
  • No trust or beneficiary deed was in place.
  • The home’s equity falls under the current threshold.
  • All required waiting periods and statements in the affidavit are satisfied.

Even with this shortcut, families often prefer planning that avoids any court filing.

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Special cases and practical questions

There is a mortgage

You can still use a trust or beneficiary deed even if the home has a loan.

Most families transfer ownership at death without lender disruption. Keep taxes and insurance current, and follow the servicer’s paperwork requests. For planning, review whether a trust or a beneficiary deed better protects your children.

One child wants the home, others want cash

Use a trust to name who can buy the house and how to equalize shares.

Your instructions can allow a child to purchase the home from the trust at appraised value, then equalize with other children using cash or other assets. This reduces conflict and delays.

The home is in another state

Out‑of‑state property can trigger a second probate unless you plan ahead.

Consider a trust and record the correct deed in the state where the property sits. A single beneficiary deed in Arizona will not transfer a home located elsewhere.

What to do now

Pick one of the probate‑free paths and put it in writing now.