What to gather for a small estate in New Mexico

Pick a procedure and check off what you already have. Download or print the list to take with you.

Papers most holders ask for
Papers for this procedure: Collection of personal property by affidavit (Affidavit of Successor in Interest)
Other formats

Your checklist

Collection of personal property by affidavit (Affidavit of Successor in Interest)

A sworn statement you give to a bank, company or the Motor Vehicle Division, so they pay or deliver the person's property to you. It is not filed with a court. It cannot be used to transfer title to real estate.

Limit

Up to $50,000 (deaths on or after January 1, 2012) Counted after subtracting liens (what is owed on the property).

Date of deathLimit
On or after January 1, 2012
$50,000

The entire estate, wherever it is, minus liens and encumbrances, cannot be worth more than $50,000.

What counts

The value of the entire estate, wherever located, minus liens and encumbrances. The courts' self-help guide says a small estate does not include any real property.

Waiting period

At least 30 days must have passed since the death.

Who can use it

A person claiming to be the successor (the person entitled to the property under the will or state law), or someone acting for that person.

Court or where to file

Not filed with a court. You give it to the bank, company or Motor Vehicle Division.

Notary

The affidavit must be signed by the person entitled to the property and notarized.

Papers to attach
  • Certified copy of the death certificate (the MVD requires an original or certified copy)
Steps
  1. Wait until at least 30 days after the death.
  2. Check that no one has applied to be personal representative in any state.
  3. Prepare the affidavit with the required statements (your county probate court can tell you where to get a form).
  4. Sign it in front of a notary.
  5. Give it to the bank or other holder; for a vehicle, use MVD form MVD-10013.
Fee

No court filing fee, because the affidavit is not filed with a court.

What the bank or holder must do

On a proper affidavit, the holder must pay the debt or deliver the property, and a transfer agent must re-register securities to the successor.

Law: NMSA 1978, 45-3-1201 (Laws 2011, ch. 124 (SB 146), sec. 50)

Source: Official page

Death certificates in New Mexico

Make checks or money orders payable to NM Vital Records.

Where to get it
New Mexico Department of Health, Vital Records
Official page
Official page

Car or vehicle title after a death in New Mexico

There are two ways to transfer a vehicle or vessel when there is no will or the will was not probated. (1) Claiming Successor: after 30 days, if the entire estate minus liens is worth no more than $50,000, bring the title, the Affidavit of Claiming Successor (MVD-10013, notarized), an original or certified death certificate, a lien release if any, and an odometer statement (MVD-10187). (2) Transfer Without Probate: a legal heir or spouse can use the Certificate of Transfer Without Probate (MVD-10011) after 30 days if the vehicle was not left to someone else by will and no personal representative is appointed; it only works in the state where the vehicle was titled. No excise tax is due when a beneficiary receives the vehicle for no payment.

Law: NMSA 45-3-1201(A), 66-3-105(C)

Agency
New Mexico Taxation and Revenue Department, Motor Vehicle Division (MVD)
Form
MVD-10013 Affidavit of Claiming Successor
Waiting period
30 days after the death
Fee

Normal MVD title fees apply.

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in New Mexico

New Mexico is a community property state. A home the couple owned as community property passes to the surviving spouse without probate when there is no will or the will leaves the person's share to the spouse; after six months the spouse can record an Affidavit of Surviving Spouse with the county clerk if the home's assessed full value is $500,000 or less. A spouse or legal heir can also transfer a vehicle at the MVD with a Certificate of Transfer Without Probate.

Law: NMSA 45-3-1205

Related pages

Free help in New Mexico

A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.