Arizona trusts and estates law is codified in Title 14 of the Arizona Revised Statutes, and it governs how property passes at death, how wills and trusts operate, and how courts protect adults and minors who can’t manage their own affairs. One fact colors everything else: Arizona is a community property state. The surviving spouse already owns half of everything acquired during the marriage, so only the decedent’s half is available to pass under a will or through intestacy. Keep that in mind as you read anything about who inherits what.
What Makes a Will Valid in Arizona
A standard written will must satisfy three requirements under A.R.S. 14-2502: it must be in writing, signed by the testator (or by another person signing at the testator’s direction and in the testator’s presence), and signed by at least two witnesses who each watched the signing or heard the testator acknowledge the signature or the will.1Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2502 – Execution of Wills The witnesses don’t have to sign at the same moment, but each must sign within a reasonable time after observing the testator’s act.
Arizona also honors holographic wills. No witnesses are required, so long as the signature and the material provisions (who gets what) are in the testator’s own handwriting.2Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2503 – Holographic Will These can work in an emergency, but disputes about handwriting and intent are common, and the absence of witnesses makes a holographic will easier to challenge.
Revoking or Replacing a Will
You can revoke a will by writing a new one that either expressly cancels the earlier will or is so inconsistent with it that both can’t stand. If the new will disposes of the entire estate, Arizona presumes it replaces the old one; if it covers only part of the estate, the law treats the new document as a supplement.3Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2507 – Revocation by Writing or by Act
The other method is a physical act: burning, tearing, canceling, or destroying the will with intent to revoke. Someone else can do the act, but only in the testator’s conscious presence and at the testator’s direction. The burn or tear doesn’t have to touch the words themselves to count.3Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2507 – Revocation by Writing or by Act
Marrying After Signing a Will
Getting married after signing a will is one of the most commonly overlooked issues in Arizona estate planning. A surviving spouse who married the testator after the will was signed is entitled to an intestate share of the estate, unless the will was made in contemplation of that marriage, the will says expressly it should survive any later marriage, or the testator provided for the spouse outside the will with evidence that the transfer was meant to replace a bequest.4Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2301 – Entitlement of Spouse; Premarital Will An existing will doesn’t automatically hold up after a later marriage.
Who Inherits When There Is No Will
When an Arizona resident dies without a valid will, the intestate succession rules in Title 14, Chapter 2, Article 1 take over.5Justia. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 14 – Trusts, Estates and Protective Proceedings They apply separately to the decedent’s half of community property and to any separate property. The surviving spouse’s own half of community property is not in play; it already belongs to the survivor.
Spouse and Shared Children Only
If the decedent had no children, or every surviving child is also a child of the surviving spouse, the surviving spouse takes the entire intestate estate.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2102 – Share of Spouse In a first-marriage-only family, the survivor ends up with all separate property plus the decedent’s half of community property.
Blended Families
When the decedent leaves surviving children who are not also children of the surviving spouse, the numbers shift sharply. The spouse gets half of the decedent’s separate property and no share of the decedent’s half of community property.6Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2102 – Share of Spouse Everything else passes to the decedent’s descendants by representation. The surviving spouse still owns their own community property half, but the decedent’s community property half goes to the children, not the spouse.
No Surviving Spouse
If no spouse survives, the entire estate goes to the decedent’s descendants by representation. With no descendants, it passes to surviving parents, or if none survive, to the descendants of the decedent’s parents (siblings, nieces, and nephews) by representation.7Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2103 – Heirs Other Than Surviving Spouse; Share in Estate The statute continues up the family tree from there. Children conceived before a parent’s death but born afterward generally inherit the same as children already alive at the death.
Family Protections That Come Off the Top
Arizona guarantees certain payments to the surviving spouse and dependent children before creditors are paid, regardless of what the will says. The surviving spouse is entitled to a homestead allowance of $18,000. If there is no surviving spouse, the decedent’s minor and dependent children split that $18,000 equally.8Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-2402 – Homestead Allowance A family allowance also supports the spouse and dependent children during administration and is exempt from all claims except administrative expenses and the homestead allowance itself. These payments are in addition to anything received under the will or through intestacy.
How Arizona Probate Works
Arizona provides two paths through probate. Choosing the right one saves months of time and significant legal fees.
Informal Probate
Most uncontested estates go through informal probate. Instead of a hearing, the applicant submits paperwork to the court registrar. Eligible applicants include the surviving spouse, an adult child, a parent, a sibling, any heir, or the person named as personal representative in the will.9Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3301 – Informal Probate or Appointment Proceedings; Application If no family member or heir comes forward, a creditor may apply 45 days after the death, and if nobody else qualifies, the public fiduciary handles it. The registrar reviews the application without a hearing and, if it checks out, issues letters of appointment to the personal representative.
Formal Probate
Formal probate is litigation: a petition, court notice, and a hearing before a judge. It’s used when someone contests a will’s validity, when heirs disagree about who should serve as personal representative, or when the court needs to determine heirship. An interested person starts the process by petitioning the court to probate a will, set aside an informal probate, or declare intestacy.10Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3401 – Formal Testacy Proceedings; Nature; When Commenced
Once appointed, the personal representative must publish notice to creditors and mail direct notice to known creditors.11Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3801 – Notice to Creditors Claims not filed within the statutory windows are permanently barred.12Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3803 – Limitations on Presentation of Claims The representative also prepares an inventory of estate property, listing fair market value at death and identifying whether each item is community or separate.13Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3706 – Duty of Personal Representative; Inventory and Appraisement After paying valid claims and expenses, the representative distributes what’s left. Arizona probate typically takes between 9 and 18 months, though simpler uncontested estates can close faster.
Small Estate Affidavits
Many Arizona estates skip probate entirely. If the decedent’s personal property (bank accounts, vehicles, investment accounts, and similar assets), minus liens and debts, totals $200,000 or less, an heir can wait 30 days after the death and then present a sworn affidavit to whoever holds the property to collect it. For real property, the threshold is $300,000 in total Arizona real estate equity, and the heir must wait at least six months before filing the affidavit with the court.14Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-3971 – Collection of Personal Property by Affidavit In both cases, no personal representative can be appointed or pending. No bond, no published notice, no formal inventory. It’s dramatically simpler than even informal probate.
Passing Property Outside Probate
Several tools let property pass directly to beneficiaries without probate. A.R.S. 14-6101 recognizes these as nontestamentary transfers, operating independently of a will and taking effect automatically at death.15Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-6101 – Nonprobate Transfers on Death; Nontestamentary Nature Life insurance, retirement accounts, payable-on-death bank designations, and trusts all fall under this rule.
Revocable Living Trusts
A revocable living trust is Arizona’s most common probate-avoidance tool. The grantor transfers assets into the trust during life, names beneficiaries, and designates a successor trustee. Because the trust owns the assets, they aren’t part of the grantor’s probate estate. When the grantor dies, the successor trustee distributes trust property according to the trust document without court supervision, which is generally faster and more private than probate.
Funding is where people slip. A trust only avoids probate for assets that have actually been retitled in the trust’s name. A bank account still in your personal name, a house still deeded to you individually, or a brokerage account without the trust listed as owner will still go through probate no matter what the trust document says. Anything left outside the trust may also require court intervention, including a possible conservatorship, if you become incapacitated before death.
Beneficiary Deeds for Real Estate
Under A.R.S. 33-405, an Arizona property owner can record a beneficiary deed naming who receives the real estate at death. The deed must be signed and recorded with the county recorder before the owner’s death to be valid. The owner keeps full control during life and can revoke the deed anytime by recording a revocation before death. Multiple grantees can be named (as joint tenants, tenants in common, or community property), and successor grantees can be designated in case a primary beneficiary dies first.16Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 33-405 – Beneficiary Deeds; Recording; Definitions For many homeowners, it’s the simplest way to keep the house out of probate without the complexity of a trust. The property passes subject to all existing mortgages, liens, and encumbrances.
Creditors Can Still Reach Non-Probate Assets
Getting assets outside probate doesn’t automatically shield beneficiaries from the decedent’s debts. Under A.R.S. 14-6102, non-probate transferees can be held liable for creditor claims and statutory allowances to the extent the probate estate is insufficient, when the decedent had the power to revoke the transfer before death.17Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-6102 – Nonprobate Transferees; Liability for Creditor Claims and Statutory Allowances A trust beneficiary or a POD account holder who assumed they were clear of the decedent’s debts may still hear from a creditor.
Guardianship and Conservatorship for the Living
Title 14, Chapter 5 covers court-supervised protection of people who can’t manage their own affairs. Arizona law separates the role over the person from the role over the money, and courts must use the least restrictive option that meets the person’s needs.
Guardianship
A guardian makes decisions about where the person lives, what medical care they receive, and their general welfare. A petition for guardianship of an allegedly incapacitated adult must include the person’s name and residence, the reason guardianship is necessary, the type of guardianship sought, and whether less restrictive alternatives have been considered.18Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-5303 – Procedure for Court Appointment of a Guardian of an Alleged Incapacitated Person If a general (rather than limited) guardianship is requested, the petition has to explain why a limited version won’t work.
The petition must also disclose whether the person has a health care power of attorney, a durable power of attorney that nominates a guardian, or a vested trust interest. The court appoints an attorney for the alleged incapacitated person and typically orders an independent investigation or medical evaluation of capacity before ruling.18Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 14-5303 – Procedure for Court Appointment of a Guardian of an Alleged Incapacitated Person
Conservatorship
A conservator handles finances: managing assets, paying bills, handling investments, and making financial decisions for someone who can’t. The petition process parallels guardianship, and the same least-restrictive-intervention rule applies. Some people need both a guardian and a conservator; the court may appoint the same person to both roles or split them, depending on the circumstances.
A Note on Taxes
Arizona has no state estate tax and no inheritance tax, but federal rules still apply to inherited assets. The most important is the step-up in basis: your cost basis for capital gains purposes resets to the asset’s fair market value on the date of the original owner’s death. If your parent bought a house for $150,000 and it was worth $450,000 at death, your basis is $450,000, and selling for $460,000 produces only $10,000 of taxable gain.
Community property gives Arizona surviving spouses an unusually favorable result. Both halves of community property receive a stepped-up basis when one spouse dies, not just the decedent’s half. In non-community-property states, only the decedent’s share of jointly owned property gets that adjustment. The basis can also step down if an asset lost value before the owner’s death, so an inherited depreciated stock portfolio takes on the lower basis.