Probate in Maryland: What Your Family Goes Through Without a Will
Probate is mandatory for estates in Maryland when a will isn’t present. Dying without a will is referred to as intestate succession. If you don’t want your estate to go through probate in Maryland, you may need to ensure one of the following applies.
These categories typically pass directly to a named person.
- Beneficiaries on life insurance policies
- Beneficiaries on retirement accounts
- Payable-on-death or transfer-on-death designations
- Jointly owned property with right of survivorship
If none of these apply, an estate without a will does go through probate in Maryland. If the estate is valued at $50,000 or less (or $100,000 or less if a surviving spouse is the sole heir), you can use Maryland's small estate administration. This can help you avoid the complexity of probate.
Succession Laws Without a Will in Maryland
Maryland's inheritance rules follow certain lines of succession. Maryland is a common law property state which means that inheritance is based on who is listed on the title, deed, or account. Maryland substantially reformed its intestate succession statute effective October 1, 2023.
If none of the exceptions above apply, the estate will go through probate and be distributed as follows.
- If you have no descendants, your spouse inherits your entire estate, even if your parents are still living.
- If you have no surviving minor child and all of your descendants are also your spouse's descendants, your spouse stand to inherit your whole estate.
- If you have a surviving minor child, your spouse's share is reduced to 1/2 of your estate.
- If you have adult children who are not your spouse's, your spouse inherits the first $100,000 of your estate, plus 1/2 of the balance. Your children divide the rest.
- If you have children but no spouse, your children inherit everything and divide it equally.
- If you have no spouse and no children, your parents inherit everything, then your siblings.
Maryland Probate Process
Maryland probate is handled through the Orphans' Court and the Register of Wills in the county, or Baltimore City, where the deceased lived. Maryland is unusual in that it levies both its own state estate tax on estates over $5 million and a separate 10% inheritance tax on assets passing to more distant relatives or non-relatives.
Avoiding Probate in Maryland
Most families can steer the bulk of an estate around probate with these tools.
- Put your assets in a revocable living trust. You will have more control and be able to identify who manages the distribution of your assets when you pass.
- Place beneficiary designations on financial and retirement accounts to identify who becomes the new owner of those upon your death.
- Set up joint ownership of property with the right of survivorship. This gives your spouse or another co-owner automatic ownership of said property when you die.
