Most people know that without a will, Missouri law decides who inherits. Fewer understand what that means for the things that actually make up an estate: the family home, the checking account, the credit card balance, and the car loan. Each one follows its own rules. Some pass to family within days, others sit frozen until a probate court acts, and the debts don’t simply disappear.
First, Missouri Looks at How Each Asset Is Titled
Dying without a will only affects assets that are in your name alone with no beneficiary. Anything with a co-owner or a named beneficiary passes outside probate, will or no will. That’s why two people with similar estates can leave their families in very different positions.
When probate is needed and there is no will, the court appoints an administrator, usually the surviving spouse or an adult child, to collect the assets, pay the debts, and distribute what’s left. Because there’s no will to waive it, the administrator typically has to post a bond, which is an added cost paid by the estate.
The House
What happens to your home depends on the deed:
- Owned with your spouse as tenants by the entirety, or with someone as joint tenants with right of survivorship: the house passes automatically to the surviving owner.
- Covered by a recorded beneficiary deed: it passes directly to the named beneficiary.
- In your name alone: the house goes through probate and passes to your heirs under Missouri’s intestacy statute.
That last situation creates the most problems. A surviving spouse may end up co-owning the house with your children, including children from an earlier relationship, who may want to sell it. The mortgage doesn’t go away either. Heirs inherit the home subject to the loan, and someone has to keep making the payments while the estate is open.
Bank Accounts
Accounts follow the same pattern. A payable-on-death account goes to the named beneficiary, who only needs a death certificate to claim it. A joint account with survivorship rights belongs to the surviving owner. An account in your name alone, with no beneficiary, is frozen until someone has legal authority to collect it. If the estate is $40,000 or less after debts, Missouri’s small estate affidavit may be enough. Above that, your family will usually need a probate case.
Your Debts
Your family members generally don’t become personally responsible for your debts just because they’re related to you. The estate pays them. But that means creditors get paid before your heirs do, so debts shrink what your family receives.
How debts are handled in a Missouri estate:
- Creditors have a deadline. Under Missouri’s claims statute, claims generally must be filed within six months after notice to creditors is first published. Claims not filed within one year of death are generally barred.
- Debts are paid in a set order. Court costs and administration expenses come first, followed by funeral expenses and family allowances, then other debts.
- Secured debts stay with the property. A mortgage or car loan remains attached to the house or vehicle, whoever inherits it.
- Co-signers and joint account holders remain liable for debts they signed for.
- Nonprobate assets aren’t always safe. If the probate estate can’t cover valid debts, Missouri law can sometimes reach assets that passed outside probate.
A debt collector may contact your family after your death, but relatives who didn’t co-sign generally don’t have to pay from their own money.
Protections for a Surviving Spouse and Children
Missouri sets aside certain property for a surviving spouse or minor children before creditors are paid. This includes exempt property such as household furnishings and a vehicle, a support allowance for one year, and a homestead allowance of up to $15,000. These allowances can make a real difference when an estate is small and the debts are large.
Who Ends Up Inheriting What’s Left
After debts and allowances are paid, the remaining probate assets pass in the order set by Missouri’s intestacy law. We explain that order, including what a surviving spouse receives when there are children from another relationship, in our article on who inherits when there is no will.
Plan Ahead, or Get Help Sorting It Out
A will, a beneficiary deed, and up-to-date beneficiary designations can keep most of these problems from ever reaching your family. When someone has already died without a plan, the next steps are about protecting the house, getting access to accounts, and handling creditors in the right order.
Mark Harford Law guides Missouri families through probate in Chesterfield and surrounding counties, and helps people put plans in place so their families never have to. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.