Small estate checker for Ohio

Enter the date of death and what the person owned. The page adds what the state counts and compares it with the limit for that date. It does not decide anything.

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The limit is picked from the date of death.

Enter the date of death and the values you know

Leave a box empty if the person had nothing of that kind. We add up only what the state counts.

The limits this checker uses

These come from the state's law as we checked it. The checker picks the row that matches the date of death you enter.

Release from administration (Application to Relieve Estate from Administration)

Date of deathLimit
On or after November 9, 1994
$35,000
October 20, 1987 to November 8, 1994
$25,000
January 1, 1976 to October 19, 1987
$15,000

Also in Ohio (not tested here)

These procedures have their own rules, so the checker does not test them. See the state page.

  • Release from administration when the surviving spouse receives everything ($100,000)
  • Summary release from administration
  • Payment of a deceased employee's wages without probate

What counts toward the limit in Ohio

Add up the value of the estate's assets: property in the person's name that would otherwise go through probate. Property that passes to someone else by contract or title (payable-on-death and joint survivorship accounts, transfer-on-death property, named beneficiaries) is not an estate asset. Cars the surviving spouse takes by affidavit (up to $65,000 total) are left out. Debts are listed separately on Form 5.1.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03, 2113.031, 2106.18, 2106.19, 2131.10, 2131.12, 2131.13

Kind of propertyHow it is treatedDetails
Bank accounts in the person's name alone
Counts

Bank accounts in the person's name alone, with no payable-on-death beneficiary, are estate assets.

Law: R.C. 2113.03; R.C. 2113.031(C)(2)(d)(ii)

Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts
Left out

A payable-on-death account is paid to the named beneficiary by contract with the bank, and an account held with right of survivorship goes to the survivor; they are not estate assets.

Law: R.C. 2131.10, 2131.12

Cars and other vehicles
Own procedure, up to $65,000

Cars the surviving spouse selects, up to $65,000 total, pass by affidavit at the title office and are not estate assets. Cars with a transfer-on-death beneficiary or a surviving joint owner also pass outside the estate. Other vehicles count.

Law: R.C. 2106.18(A), 4505.10, 2131.13

Boats and mobile or manufactured homes
Has its own procedure

The surviving spouse may take one watercraft, one watercraft trailer and one outboard motor by affidavit; these are not estate assets. Other boats and manufactured homes count.

Law: R.C. 2106.19(A)

Real estate in Ohio
Counts

Ohio real estate in the person's name counts and is transferred by certificate of transfer, unless it passes by a transfer on death designation affidavit or survivorship deed.

Law: R.C. 2113.03(B), 2113.031(C)(3)(b), 5302.22

Main home (primary residence)
Counts

The person's home counts like other real estate in their name, unless it passes by transfer on death designation affidavit or survivorship deed.

Law: R.C. 2113.03, 5302.22

Real estate in another state
Not clear

The release statute does not address real estate in another state; it is handled under that state's law. Ask the probate court.

Law: R.C. 2113.03

Unpaid wages owed to the person
Not clear

An employer may pay wages directly to the spouse or family, but the statute does not say whether unpaid wages count toward the release limit. Ask the probate court.

Law: R.C. 2113.04

Military pay owed to the person
Not clear

Ohio's release statutes do not mention military pay owed to the person.

Law: R.C. 2113.03

Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person
Not clear

The release statute does not list life insurance or retirement benefits paid to a named beneficiary. Ask the probate court.

Law: R.C. 2113.03

Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate
Counts

Benefits payable to the estate are estate assets.

Law: R.C. 2113.03

Property in a living trust
Not clear

The release statute does not mention property held in a living trust. Ask the probate court.

Law: R.C. 2113.03

Property owned jointly with right of survivorship
Left out

Property held in joint ownership with right of survivorship (including survivorship deeds for real estate) passes to the surviving owner.

Law: R.C. 2131.12, 5302.17, 4505.10(C)

Property going to a surviving spouse
Counts

Property the surviving spouse inherits is still an estate asset and counts, including the $40,000 allowance for support. Cars the spouse takes by affidavit (up to $65,000 combined) and one boat, boat trailer and outboard motor taken by affidavit are not estate assets. The $100,000 limit applies when the spouse receives everything.

Law: R.C. 2113.03(A)(2), 2106.13(A), 2106.18(A), 2106.19(A)

Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts
Counts

Stocks and bonds in the person's name, with no transfer-on-death beneficiary, are estate assets.

Law: R.C. 2113.031(C)(2)(d)(iii)

Furniture, jewelry and other belongings
Counts

Household goods and other belongings are estate assets; items without a readily known value may need an appraiser.

Law: R.C. 2113.03(C)

Source: Official page

Release from administration (Application to Relieve Estate from Administration)

A short probate court case for an estate worth $35,000 or less. The court orders the bank accounts, other personal property and real estate delivered or transferred to the people entitled to them, without appointing an executor or administrator.

Limit

Up to $35,000 (deaths on or after November 9, 1994)

Date of deathLimit
On or after November 9, 1994
$35,000
October 20, 1987 to November 8, 1994
$25,000
January 1, 1976 to October 19, 1987
$15,000

The estate's assets can be worth up to $35,000 for a death on or after November 9, 1994. The limit is $100,000 if the surviving spouse is entitled to all of the estate (see the next procedure). Form 5.0 also lists older limits: $25,000 for deaths on or after October 20, 1987, and $15,000 for deaths on or after January 1, 1976. If assets are not money, stocks, bonds or other property with a readily known value, an appraiser chosen by the applicant and approved by the court values them.

What counts

The value of the assets of the estate (property that would otherwise go through probate). Debts are listed separately on Form 5.1. Cars the surviving spouse takes under R.C. 2106.18 are not estate assets and are left out.

Waiting period

The law sets no waiting period before you apply. The court decides how long notice must be given to the surviving spouse and heirs, and notice by newspaper publication may be required unless the court waives it. Creditors have six months after the death to present claims.

Who can use it

Any interested party, such as a family member, heir or beneficiary, may apply. The surviving spouse, heirs, legatees and devisees can sign a waiver of notice on the back of Form 5.0. If there is a will, it must first be admitted to probate.

Court or where to file

The probate court of the county where the person lived at death.

Papers to attach
  • Form 5.0 Application to Relieve Estate from Administration
  • Form 5.1 Assets and Liabilities of Estate to be Relieved from Administration (with the appraiser's certification if any assets were appraised)
  • Form 1.0 Surviving Spouse, Children, Next of Kin, Legatees and Devisees
  • The will, if there is one (it must be admitted to probate)
  • If there is real estate: an application for a certificate of transfer
  • Certified copy of the death certificate (courts usually ask for one)
  • Medicaid estate recovery notice form, if the person or their spouse received Medicaid (due within 30 days of filing)
Steps
  1. List the estate's assets and their values, and the known debts, on Form 5.1. Leave out cars the spouse takes by affidavit.
  2. Have an appraiser value assets that do not have a readily known value, if the court requires it.
  3. If there is a will, file it for probate first.
  4. File Form 5.0 with Forms 5.1 and 1.0 at the county probate court, with any waivers of notice.
  5. Give the notice the court orders, or have the people entitled to notice sign waivers.
  6. At the hearing, if the court is satisfied, it signs an entry releasing the estate and directing who receives each asset.
  7. Give certified copies of the court's entry to banks and others; real estate transfers by certificate of transfer.
Fee

Filing fees are set by each county probate court; ask the probate court. The appraiser, if one is used, is paid under R.C. 2115.06. Publication in a newspaper, if required, costs extra.

Debts and responsibility

Property delivered under a release from administration is subject to creditors' claims presented within six months after the death. A court order releasing the estate protects an innocent buyer of the real estate from unsecured creditors' claims.

What the bank or holder must do

The court's entry directs delivery of personal property and transfer of real property to the people entitled to them. The statute does not list a separate release of liability for banks.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2113.03, 2113.01, 2117.06, 2117.061

Source: Official page

Bank accounts after a death in Ohio

A payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary, and a joint account with right of survivorship goes to the surviving owner, without probate. For an account in the person's name alone, the bank needs a probate court order, such as an entry releasing the estate from administration or a summary release order with a certified copy of the application. Ohio has no statute letting a bank pay a small account to family on an affidavit alone.

Law: Ohio Rev. Code 2131.10, 2131.12, 2113.03, 2113.031(E)

Source: Official page

Surviving spouse in Ohio

A surviving spouse can take the person's cars, up to $65,000 combined, and one boat, boat trailer and outboard motor, by affidavit at the clerk of courts title office; these are not estate assets. The spouse (and minor children) are entitled to a $40,000 allowance for support from the estate, reduced by the value of the lowest-valued car if the spouse took more than one. The release from administration limit is $100,000 when the spouse receives everything, and the spouse can apply for summary release when the estate is no more than the $40,000 allowance plus up to $5,000 for funeral costs. An employer may pay the person's wages to the spouse.

Law: R.C. 2106.18, 2106.19; R.C. 2106.13; R.C. 2113.03, 2113.031; R.C. 2113.04

Related pages

Free help in Ohio

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