Texas probate checklist: small estate affidavit, muniment of title and deadlines

At a glance

Small estate affidavit: who can use it

The distributees of a person who died without a will may collect the estate without waiting for a personal representative if all of these are true (Texas Estates Code 205.001):

• At least 30 days have passed since the death.
• No petition for the appointment of a personal representative is pending or has been granted.
• The value of the estate assets, excluding the homestead and exempt property, is $75,000.00 or less on the date of the affidavit.
• The estate assets, excluding homestead and exempt property, exceed the known liabilities, excluding liabilities secured by the homestead and exempt property. Equal is not enough.
• The affidavit meets section 205.002, is filed with the clerk, and the judge approves it (205.003). The distributees then give certified copies to the people holding estate property (205.004).

A will rules the affidavit out. The chapter applies only to a decedent who died intestate. If you are not sure whether there is a will, answer that question before relying on any result.

The homestead and exempt property nuance

• The homestead is left out of the $75,000.00 count only when it could be set aside under Estates Code 353.051, and that set-aside is for a surviving spouse or minor children (353.051(a)(1)). An unmarried adult child alone does not qualify for the homestead.
• Other exempt property, such as household goods and a vehicle (Property Code 42.002), can also be set aside for an unmarried or incapacitated adult child who lived with the decedent (353.051(a)(2)), up to the Property Code 42.001 aggregate.
• A homestead that is the only real property can pass by the affidavit and is recorded in the deed records (205.006). Any other real property cannot pass by the affidavit (205.008(b)).
• ExecutorBench does not prepare a deed or a homestead affidavit: Texas Government Code 83.001 bars a non-lawyer from charging to prepare one.

Signers are not protected from mistakes. Each person who signs the affidavit is liable for losses from payments made in reliance on it (205.007(c)), and the distributees are answerable to anyone with a prior right and to a personal representative appointed later (205.007(b)). Some Texas courts require or strongly recommend an attorney even for a small estate affidavit, so check your county court’s policy before filing.

Muniment of title

A court can admit a will to probate as a muniment of title, which proves the will so property can be transferred without appointing an executor, when the estate owes no unpaid debt other than a debt secured by a lien on real estate (Estates Code 257.001). The application must be filed within four years of the death (257.054; late probate under 256.003 is narrow and does not produce letters).

• It is still a court proceeding, and many Texas courts expect an attorney unless the applicant is the only beneficiary.
• Not later than the 180th day after the will is admitted, the applicant must file a sworn affidavit stating which terms of the will have been fulfilled and which have not, unless the court waives it or extends the time (257.103). ExecutorBench tracks this date from the order date you enter.
• A debt that is not secured by a real estate lien, including a state claim for the decedent’s medical assistance, can rule this route out. Ask the court.

When an attorney is required

• Texas courts have held that an executor or administrator is a representative of the estate and generally must be represented by a licensed attorney in court (Steele v. McDonald, 202 S.W.3d 926 (Tex. App. Waco 2006)).
• Sole-beneficiary nuance: the Texas Supreme Court narrowed that rule for an executor who is the only beneficiary (Suday v. Suday, No. 24-1009 (Tex. June 27, 2025)), with the rights of creditors reserved. It does not cover an executor who shares the estate with others, and it does not remove county rules.
• Several probate courts publish their own pro se policies (for example Bexar, Lubbock, Travis and Harris counties). Read your county’s before you file anything.
• ExecutorBench never files anything for you and does not replace a lawyer. In full probate it lays out the plan so you can work with your attorney.

Key Texas deadlines and dates

Dates ExecutorBench shows are planning dates computed from the dates you enter. Confirm each with the court.

What ExecutorBench does in Texas

• Applies the Texas rules above to the numbers you enter and shows the route that the rules point to, with the reason in plain language. It is not a legal determination.
• Splits the family question the way the statute does: a surviving spouse or minor child, and separately an unmarried or incapacitated adult child.
• Lists the Texas tasks and the planning dates for your route, including the will filing, notices and the muniment report, and lets you record court dates so later dates recalculate.
• Drafts notification letters (banks, creditors, insurers, credit bureaus) with a draft notice, and a creditor letter that says you are not personally responsible for a debt only if you tell it you are not a co-signer, joint account holder or surviving spouse.
• Produces worksheets that organize the facts for the affidavit and an asset and debt summary.

It does not give legal advice, prepare court forms, deeds or homestead affidavits, file anything with a court, or replace an attorney.

Pricing

• Free: the eligibility checker and an estate workspace with the immediate tasks.
• Estate Action Plan PDF, $29: a one-time snapshot of your route, deadlines and checklist for one estate. The amount is credited toward your first upgrade on that estate.
• Guided, $199: the full task plan with the state dates ExecutorBench tracks, one-time, per estate.
• Complete, $499: everything in Guided plus the letters and worksheets, and a read-only portal for beneficiaries, one-time, per estate.