I need a deed change from mother name to my name. Mother died and left no will.

Full question:

I need a deed change from mother name to my name. Mother died and left no will.

• Category: Wills and Estates
• Subcategory: Probate
• Date: 04/07/2025
• State: Michigan

Answer:

When a person dies, their assets are distributed in the probate process. If a person dies with a will, an executor is named to handle the distribution of the estate. If the person dies without a will, the court appoints an administrator to distribute the decedent's assets according to the state's laws of intestacy. In cases where the decedent didn't own property valued at more than a certain amount, which varies by state, the estate may go through a small estate administration process, rather than the formal probate process. To dispose of the real property interests of the decedent, the executor or administrator executes an executor's deed or fiduciary deed. For example, if a person who is a joint tenant dies without a will, the administrator of the estate can execute a fiduciary deed transferring their interest to the remaining joint tenants, or other person entitled to receive the interest under intestacy laws of the state. If a person is a sole owner, the fiduciary deed may transfer all the interest in the property to one or more heirs entitled to inherit under intestacy laws.

In the case of a life tenant who holds a life estate, when the life tenant dies, their interest may pass to the remaindermen. Title may also return to the person giving or deeding the property or to his/her surviving children or descendants upon the death of the life tenant--this is called "reversion."

The following are MI statutes:

700.3982 Court order distributing small
estates.

Sec. 3982. (1) Upon a showing of evidence, satisfactory to the court,
of payment of the expenses for the decedent's funeral and burial and if
the balance of a decedent's gross estate consists of property of the
value of $15,000.00 or less, the court may order that the property be
turned over to the surviving spouse or, if there is not a spouse, to the
decedent's heirs.

(2) Upon a showing of evidence, satisfactory to the court, that the
decedent's funeral or burial expenses are unpaid or were paid by a person
other than the estate, and if the balance of the gross estate after
payment of the expenses would consist of property of the value of
$15,000.00 or less, the court shall order that the property be first used
to pay the unpaid funeral and burial expenses, or to reimburse the person
that paid those expenses, and may order that the balance be turned over
to the surviving spouse or, if there is not a spouse, to the decedent's
heirs.

(3) Other than a surviving spouse who qualifies for allowances under
this act or the decedent's minor children, an heir who receives property
through an order under this section is responsible, for 63 days after the
date of the order, for any unsatisfied debt of the decedent up to the
value of the property received through the order. The court shall state
in the order the condition on the distribution of property provided by
this subsection.

(4) If a decedent's estate meets the criteria for using the procedure
under either this section or section 3983 and if a person is authorized
by this act to use either procedure, a person, other than the court,
shall not require the authorized person to use 1 procedure rather than
the other.

(5) A dollar amount prescribed by this section shall be adjusted
as provided in section 1210.

700.3301 Informal probate or appointment
proceedings; application; contents.

Sec. 3301. (1) An application for informal probate or informal
appointment shall be made by an interested person and directed to
the register. If an application is not filed within 28 days after
the decedent's death, a person that has a right or cause of action
that cannot be enforced without administration or appointment may
file an application. An applicant shall swear that the application
is accurate and complete to the best of the applicant's knowledge
and belief as to all of the following information:

(a) In an application for informal probate of a will or for informal
appointment of a personal representative, other than a special or
successor representative, all of the following:

(i) A statement of the applicant's interest.

(ii) The decedent's name, date of death, and age; the decedent's county
and state of domicile at the time of death; and the names and addresses
of the spouse, children, devisees, and heirs with the ages of those who
are minors so far as known or ascertainable with reasonable diligence by
the applicant.

(iii) If the decedent was not domiciled in the state at the time
of the decedent's death, a statement showing venue.

(iv) A statement identifying and indicating the address of a personal
representative of the decedent appointed in this state or elsewhere whose
appointment has not been terminated.

(b) In an application for informal probate of a will, in addition
to the statements and information required by subdivision (a), all
of the following:

(i) That the original of the decedent's last will is in the court's
possession or accompanies the application, or that an authenticated copy
of a will probated in another jurisdiction accompanies the application.

(ii) That, to the best of the applicant's knowledge, the will was
validly executed.

(iii) That, after the exercise of reasonable diligence, the applicant
is unaware of an instrument revoking the will and that the applicant
believes that the instrument that is the subject of the application is
the decedent's last will.

(c) In an application for informal appointment of a personal
representative to administer an estate under a will, all of the
following:

(i) A description of the will by date of execution.

(ii) The time and place of probate or of the pending application
for probate.

(iii) A statement adopting the statements in the application or
petition for probate.

(iv) The name, address, and priority for appointment of the person
whose appointment is sought.

(d) In an application for informal appointment of a personal
representative in intestacy, in addition to the statements and
information required by subdivision (a), all of the following:

(i) That, after the exercise of reasonable diligence, the applicant is
unaware of any unrevoked testamentary instrument relating to property
located in this state under section 1301, or a statement why such an
instrument of which the applicant is aware is not being probated.

(ii) The priority of the person whose appointment is sought and the
names of any other persons having a prior or equal right to the
appointment under section 3203.

(e) In an application for appointment of a personal representative
to succeed a personal representative appointed under a different
testacy status, all of the following:

(i) A reference to the order in the most recent testacy proceeding.

(ii) The name and address of the person whose appointment is sought and
of the person whose appointment will be terminated if the application is
granted.

(iii) A description of the applicant's priority.

(f) In an application for appointment of a personal representative to
succeed a personal representative who tenders a resignation as provided
in section 3610 or whose appointment is terminated by death or removal,
all of the following:

(i) A statement adopting the statements in the application or petition
that led to the appointment of the person being succeeded, except as
specifically changed or corrected.

(ii) The name and address of the person who seeks appointment as
successor.

(iii) A description of the applicant's priority.

(2) By swearing to an application for informal probate or informal
appointment, the applicant submits personally to the jurisdiction
of the court in any proceeding for relief from fraud relating to
the application or for perjury that may be instituted against the
applicant.

700.2102 Share of spouse

Sec. 2102. (1) The intestate share of a decedent's surviving spouse is
1 of the following:

(a) The entire intestate estate if no descendant or parent of the
decedent survives the decedent.

(b) The first $150,000.00, plus 1/2 of any balance of the intestate
estate, if all of the decedent's surviving descendants are also
descendants of the surviving spouse and there is no other descendant of
the surviving spouse who survives the decedent.

(c) The first $150,000.00, plus 3/4 of any balance of the intestate
estate, if no descendant of the decedent survives the decedent, but a
parent of the decedent survives the decedent.

(d) The first $150,000.00, plus 1/2 of any balance of the intestate
estate, if all of the decedent's surviving descendants are also
descendants of the surviving spouse and the surviving spouse has 1 or
more surviving descendants who are not descendants of the decedent.

(e) The first $150,000.00, plus 1/2 of any balance of the intestate
estate, if 1 or more, but not all, of the decedent's surviving
descendants are not descendants of the surviving spouse.

(f) The first $100,000.00, plus 1/2 of any balance of the intestate
estate, if none of the decedent's surviving descendants are descendants
of the surviving spouse.

(2) Each dollar amount listed in subsection (1) shall be adjusted
as provided in section 1210.

700.2103 Share of heirs other than
surviving spouse

Sec. 2103. Any part of the intestate estate that does not pass to the
decedent's surviving spouse under section 2102, or the entire intestate
estate if there is no surviving spouse, passes in the following order to
the following individuals who survive the decedent:

(a) The decedent's descendants by representation.

(b) If there is no surviving descendant, the decedent's parents
equally if both survive or to the surviving parent.

(c) If there is no surviving descendant or parent, the descendants
of the decedent's parents or of either of them by representation.

(d) If there is no surviving descendant, parent, or descendant of a
parent, but the decedent is survived by 1 or more grandparents or
descendants of grandparents, 1/2 of the estate passes to the decedent's
paternal grandparents equally if both survive, or to the surviving
paternal grandparent, or to the descendants of the decedent's paternal
grandparents or either of them if both are deceased, the descendants
taking by representation; and the other 1/2 passes to the decedent's
maternal relatives in the same manner. If there is no surviving
grandparent or descendant of a grandparent on either the paternal or the
maternal side, the entire estate passes to the decedent's relatives on
the other side in the same manner as the 1/2.

Please see the information at the following links:

http://definitions.uslegal.com/p/probate/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/f/fiduciary-deed/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/i/intestate/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/e/executors-and-administrators/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/s/small-estates/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/estate-planning/intestacy/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/estate-planning/probate-and-executors/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/estate-planning/wills-overview/
http://lawdigest.uslegal.com/wills-and-estates/small-estates/2579/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/r/real-estate-reservation-life-estate-deeds/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/r/remainder-interest/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/r/reversion/
http://definitions.uslegal.com/j/joint-tenancy/

Please see the forms at the following links:

http://www.uslegalforms.com/mi/MI-ET10.htm
http://www.uslegalforms.com/mi/MI-ET20.htm
http://www.uslegalforms.com/mi/MI-PC-590.htm
http://secure.uslegalforms.com/cgi-bin/forms/query.pl?S-T-MI-B-heir
http://secure.uslegalforms.com/cgi-bin/forms/query.pl?S-T-MI-B-fiduc~deed

Thank You,

Dana

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