What’s worse than having to go through formal probate proceeding after a loved one dies? Conducting two such court proceedings—in different states.

Two probates can be required if someone lived in one state but left real estate in another. If that’s the case, there may need to be a probate in each state. That’s because real estate is always governed by the law of the state in which it’s situated, not the law of the state where the owner lives.

Example: Julie is a resident of the great State of Washington; she lives here and owns a home and other assets here. She also owns a vacation home in Arizona, which she and her husband bought together years ago. Now that her husband has passed, the Arizona property belongs to Julie alone. At her death, there will probably need to be an Arizona probate proceeding before the property can be transferred to Julie’s daughter, who will inherit it.

Probate in a second (or third) state is called “ancillary probate,” and for the Personal Representative of the deceased person’s estate (and the heirs and beneficiaries), it means more bother and expense. The PR will probably need to find a lawyer in the other state to handle the probate.

Probate is begun first in the deceased person’s state of residence. (This is sometimes called the “domiciliary probate” because it takes place where the deceased person had their permanent home.) Then a second probate case (the ancillary probate) is opened where the out-of-state real estate is located. Once a Will has been accepted by the probate court in the state of residence, generally it will be accepted by another state without further proof. It’s called a “foreign Will.”

If you want to spare your family the expense and headache of an ancillary probate proceeding after your death, make avoiding probate for out-of-state real estate a priority. You’ll probably have several options, depending on state law. They may include:

* Owning the property with someone else in joint tenancy, tenancy by the entirety, or community property with right of survivorship.
* Putting the property in a revocable living trust.
* Recording a transfer-on-death deed for the property.

If you own real estate in more than one state and have questions about avoiding the need for an ancillary probate, give us a call at 253.858.5434 to set up an appointment today.