Houston Estate Planning and Elder Law Attorney Blog
The death of a spouse can be challenging enough without having to consider legal implications. When one spouse dies, what happens with the couple’s community property? How does community property affect the probate process? Although these questions are difficult to think through, they are crucial to consider, and today’s blog covers some of the basics with regards to community property and Texas marital estates. As always, with more specific questions, contact a Houston estate planning attorney you can trust to give you advice tailored to your needs.
What Is Community Property?
Community property is property owned jointly by a married couple. In general, any property acquired during a couple’s marriage is community property. Both spouses have equal claim to marital property, even if only one spouse has the sole title to the property. The exception to the definition of marital property is any gift or inheritance. Gifts and inheritances are legally considered separate property in Texas.
Did the Spouse Die with or Without a Will?
If one spouse dies and that spouse had no will, the surviving spouse will usually keep his or her half of the community property, while the other half will go to the deceased spouse’s heirs. If the deceased spouse had no children, the surviving spouse will inherit the entire property. In order for community property to pass to the surviving spouse, that spouse must go through probate proceedings.
If one spouse dies and that spouse did have a will, the community property will pass on to the beneficiaries explicitly named in the estate planning documents. Again, the beneficiaries (whether the surviving spouse or someone else) must go through the appropriate probate channels to inherit.
Can the Surviving Spouse Avoid Probate Altogether?
There are a couple of main ways to bypass probate entirely when it comes to community property. The first is a “transfer on death” account. If a person names his or her spouse as the beneficiary of this kind of account, the money automatically transfers to the spouse upon death, without any need for probate at all. The second method is “joint ownership with the right of survivorship.” Under this kind of co-ownership, when one spouse dies, the other has the right to the entire property, assuming there were no additional owners.
Are You Looking for a Houston Estate Planning Attorney?
If you have questions about how to organize your communal property in your estate plan, give us a call at McCulloch & Miller. Our Houston estate planning attorneys are skilled at handling complex estates and lengthy probate proceedings, and we handle every case with the care and attention that we believe all our clients deserve. If you are looking for a trusted firm to guide you through the estate planning process, reach out to our office – we promise to stand by you every step of the way.
For a consultation with a Houston estate planning attorney from our team, give us a call today at (713) 333-8900. You can also fill out our online form to tell us about your circumstances and have an attorney reach back out to you as soon as possible.