A reference guide for California estates — applicable to deaths on or after April 1, 2025
Written by Ronald K. Mullin
Attorney at Law | CA State Bar #84231 | Admitted 1978
Mullin Law Firm | 1355 Willow Way, Suite 110, Concord, CA 94520
Practice areas: Estate Planning, Probate Administration, Trust Administration — Contra Costa, Alameda, and Solano Counties
48 years of continuous California probate practice
Last updated: April 2025 | Next threshold adjustment: April 1, 2028 (Cal. Prob. Code § 890)
Current California Probate Thresholds (Effective April 1, 2025)
California law sets four principal thresholds for simplified estate transfers, all effective for deaths on or after April 1, 2025 and sourced from Judicial Council Form DE-300 (Rev. April 28, 2025).
Small Estate Affidavit — personal property (Cal. Prob. Code §§ 13100–13106): $208,850 gross estate value. This is the threshold most commonly used to transfer bank accounts, investment accounts, and other personal property without any court involvement.
Petition re: Primary Residence — real property (Cal. Prob. Code §§ 13150–13157; AB 2016, 2024): $750,000 gross property value. Available only for a decedent’s California principal residence. Requires a Superior Court petition and a six-month waiting period.
Affidavit for Real Property of Small Value — other real property (Cal. Prob. Code § 13200; Judicial Council Form DE-305): $69,625 gross property value. Applies to California real property other than the primary residence.
Small Estate Set-Aside — surviving spouse or minor children (Cal. Prob. Code §§ 6600–6613; Judicial Council Form DE-300): $107,900. A court order setting aside property for a surviving spouse or the decedent’s minor children.
All thresholds are based on date of death, not date of filing. The prior small estate affidavit threshold ($184,500) applies to deaths between April 1, 2022 and March 31, 2025.
1. What Is Probate and When Is It Required?
Probate is the court-supervised process for transferring a deceased person’s assets to their heirs or beneficiaries. In California, it is administered by the Superior Court in the county where the decedent resided. The process involves appointing a personal representative (executor if named in a will, administrator if not), publishing notice to creditors, inventorying and appraising assets, paying debts and taxes, and distributing the remainder to beneficiaries.
Full probate is required when a decedent owned assets that: (1) were titled in the decedent’s name alone, (2) did not pass by operation of law (e.g., joint tenancy), (3) did not have a valid beneficiary designation, and (4) exceed the applicable simplified-transfer threshold. When all of these conditions are met and no exception applies, the estate must go through formal probate.
Full probate administration in California typically takes 12 to 18 months. Attorney fees and personal representative compensation are fixed by statute under Probate Code § 10800 — a percentage of the gross estate, not the net. On a $500,000 gross estate, combined statutory fees total approximately $26,000 before court costs or any extraordinary fee petitions.
2. The $208,850 Small Estate Affidavit Threshold (Cal. Prob. Code § 13100)
California Probate Code § 13100 permits an heir or successor to collect the decedent’s personal property without court involvement by presenting a written affidavit to the holder of the asset, provided the gross value of the estate does not exceed the statutory threshold. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, that threshold is $208,850. The prior threshold ($184,500) applied to deaths between April 1, 2022 and March 31, 2025.
2.1 How Gross Value Is Calculated
The calculation uses gross value — debts and liabilities are not subtracted. Under Probate Code § 13050, the following are excluded from the calculation entirely:
- Vehicles, vessels, and mobile homes registered with a California state agency
- Property held in a revocable or irrevocable trust
- Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship
- Community or quasi-community property passing directly to a surviving spouse or registered domestic partner
- Life insurance proceeds, retirement benefits, and other death benefits with a named beneficiary other than the estate
- Multiple-party bank accounts (joint accounts with survivorship rights)
- Real property located outside California
Assets that are included in the calculation include solely-owned bank accounts, investment accounts without beneficiary designations, and California real property not otherwise excluded. Life insurance or retirement proceeds payable to the estate (rather than a named individual) are also included.
2.2 Procedure and Waiting Period
The affidavit must be signed under penalty of perjury and must state that the declarant is entitled to the property, that the estate’s gross value does not exceed the threshold, and that at least 40 days have elapsed since the date of death. No court filing is required. The institution or person holding the asset is legally obligated under § 13105 to transfer the property upon receipt of a compliant affidavit.
If a holder refuses to comply without good cause, the successor may bring a court action to compel transfer and may recover attorney’s fees under § 13105(c).
2.3 Threshold Adjustment Schedule
Probate Code § 890 requires the Judicial Council to adjust all summary succession thresholds every three years using the U.S. City Average Consumer Price Index. Adjustments are published on Form DE-300. The next scheduled adjustment is April 1, 2028. Current figures are reflected in Form DE-300 (Rev. April 28, 2025).
3. The $750,000 Primary Residence Threshold (Cal. Prob. Code §§ 13150–13157; AB 2016)
Assembly Bill 2016 (Chapter 452, Stats. 2024), effective January 1, 2025, substantially amended the simplified real property transfer procedures under Probate Code §§ 13150–13157. The most consequential change raised the threshold for transferring a decedent’s primary residence without full probate from $184,500 to $750,000.
The prior $184,500 limit had rendered the procedure effectively unavailable in most of California for over a decade, as median home values in counties like Contra Costa, Alameda, and Solano had long exceeded that figure. The $750,000 threshold brings a substantially larger proportion of California primary residences within reach of the simplified process.
3.1 Eligibility Requirements
To use this procedure, all of the following must be true:
- The property was the decedent’s principal residence in California at the time of death (vacation properties, rental properties, and commercial real estate do not qualify)
- The gross fair market value of the property does not exceed $750,000 at the date of death
- At least six months have elapsed since the date of death
- The petition is filed in the Superior Court of the county where the property is located
- Notice is given to creditors and other interested parties as required by the statute
3.2 Scope and Limitations
This procedure applies only to the primary residence. Other real property owned by the decedent — rental houses, commercial buildings, undeveloped land — is outside the scope of §§ 13150–13157 and must be transferred through a separate proceeding. Depending on value, that may require full probate or may qualify under the Affidavit for Real Property of Small Value procedure under § 13200 (current threshold: $69,625).
The court will schedule a hearing, and the petition must include a declaration of the property’s fair market value (typically supported by a probate referee’s appraisal or comparable sales analysis), a legal description of the property, and evidence of heirship. A deficient petition can be continued or denied, which may push the matter into full probate if not corrected promptly.
4. When Full Probate Is Required: Costs and Timeline
When an estate’s assets exceed all applicable thresholds and no other nonprobate transfer mechanism applies, full administration under Probate Code §§ 7000 et seq. is required. In Contra Costa County, probate matters are heard at the Superior Court in Martinez. In Alameda County, the probate court sits in Oakland. Solano County probate matters are heard in Fairfield.
Ordinary statutory compensation for the attorney and personal representative is each calculated under § 10800 as follows: 4% of the first $100,000 of gross estate value; 3% of the next $100,000; 2% of the next $800,000; 1% of the next $9,000,000. These percentages apply to the gross estate — not net of debts or mortgages.
Statutory fee examples at common estate sizes (attorney fee and executor compensation each):
- $300,000 gross estate: $9,000 each — $18,000 combined.
- $500,000 gross estate: $13,000 each — $26,000 combined.
- $750,000 gross estate: $18,000 each — $36,000 combined.
- $1,000,000 gross estate: $23,000 each — $46,000 combined.
Extraordinary fees (e.g., for real property sales, litigation, or tax matters) are in addition to statutory fees and require separate court approval under § 10811.
5. How Estate Planning Avoids Probate Regardless of Estate Size
The threshold rules are relevant primarily when someone dies without a functioning estate plan. A properly drafted and funded revocable living trust passes all assets — including real property of any value — outside of probate, privately, without court supervision. Trust administration after death typically concludes within three to six months.
Other nonprobate mechanisms include: beneficiary designations on IRAs, 401(k)s, and life insurance policies; payable-on-death designations on bank and brokerage accounts; joint tenancy with right of survivorship on real property; and revocable transfer-on-death deeds (Cal. Prob. Code §§ 5610–5696).
A common and expensive failure mode: a trust is created but not funded. If the settlor acquires real property after signing the trust and title is never transferred to the trust, that property may require probate at death regardless of the trust’s existence. Regular review of asset titling and beneficiary designations is an essential part of maintaining a working estate plan.
6. Practical Considerations in Contra Costa, Alameda, and Solano Counties
Threshold analysis is only the first step. The practical outcome for a family also depends on how the local court applies the rules, what the probate referee’s appraisal process looks like in that county, and how the institutions holding the assets respond to affidavits or court orders.
Contra Costa County Superior Court (Martinez) and Alameda County Superior Court (Oakland) each have their own local rules, ex parte procedures, and calendaring practices that affect how probate and summary succession matters move through the system. An attorney familiar with both courts can often anticipate and address issues that would otherwise cause delay.
Ron Mullin has practiced probate and estate administration before these courts for over 48 years. That record of practice includes estates ranging from small estate affidavits to multi-property formal probate administrations, trust administrations, and contested heirship matters. Familiarity with what the courts require — and what common errors cause petitions to be continued or denied — is a product of that accumulated experience.
Statutory and Regulatory References
- Prob. Code § 890 — Threshold adjustment formula (CPI-based, triennial)
- Prob. Code §§ 6600–6613 — Small estate set-aside for surviving spouse and minor children
- Prob. Code §§ 7000 et seq. — Formal probate administration
- Prob. Code § 10800 — Statutory attorney and personal representative compensation
- Prob. Code § 10811 — Extraordinary compensation
- Prob. Code §§ 13050–13051 — Property excluded from gross value calculation
- Prob. Code §§ 13100–13106 — Small estate affidavit procedure (personal property)
- Prob. Code § 13200 — Affidavit for real property of small value
- Prob. Code §§ 13150–13157 — Petition for determination of succession to primary residence (as amended by AB 2016)
- Prob. Code §§ 5610–5696 — Revocable transfer-on-death deed
- Assembly Bill 2016, Chapter 452, Statutes of 2024 — Primary residence threshold amendment
- Judicial Council Form DE-300 (Rev. April 28, 2025) — Current maximum values for small estate procedures
- Judicial Council Form DE-305 — Affidavit re real property of small value
- Judicial Council Form DE-310 — Petition to determine succession to primary residence
About This Guide
This reference guide was prepared by Ronald K. Mullin, a California attorney with 48 years of probate and estate planning practice. It is intended as a general legal reference for educational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. The law is stated as of April 2025; thresholds and procedures are subject to change. Individual circumstances vary, and the application of these rules to a specific estate requires review by a qualified California attorney.
Ronald K. Mullin | Mullin Law Firm | 1355 Willow Way, Suite 110, Concord, CA 94520