A primary residence under $750,000

A Petition to Determine Succession to Primary Residence (Form DE-310, Probate Code §13150 and following) is the streamlined court process to transfer a deceased person's California primary residence to the people entitled to it — without a full probate administration. For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, California AB 2016 set the cap so a primary residence worth up to $750,000 can pass this way.

"Streamlined" is real — but it's still a court case, and it carries a step the §13100 affidavit doesn't: a probate referee appointed by the State Controller, whom you select, has to appraise the home before the judge will sign anything. Here's everything actually involved.

A succession petition is still a court case, with an appraisal, notice and a hearing

• A 40-day wait. The petition can't be filed until 40 days after the death (§13151(a)).
• DE-310 — Petition to Determine Succession to Primary Residence. Describes the home and the people entitled to it, and is verified by each petitioner. The filing fee is $435 ($450 in Riverside and San Francisco).
• DE-160 / DE-161 — Inventory and Appraisal by a probate referee. Made by a referee appointed by the State Controller, whom you select for the county (§13152(b)), and attached to the petition to show the home is within the limit.
• Notice to heirs and devisees within 5 business days. Each heir and devisee named in the petition must get notice of it within five business days of filing (§13151(b)).
• DE-120 — Notice of Hearing. Given to everyone named in the petition at least 15 days before the hearing (§§13153, 1220), with a proof of service filed.
• Probate examiner notes. In many courts, the court reviews the petition and the appraisal and posts defects to cure with an amendment before the hearing.
• DE-315 — Order Determining Succession to Primary Residence. The order the judge signs, drafted in advance; many courts ask for it before the hearing.
• Certified copies of the order. Keep two or three from the court clerk; a title company, bank or buyer may ask for one.
• Prop 19 property tax. Depending on who inherits, the home may keep its assessed value or be partly or fully reassessed — worth knowing before it shows up as a tax bill.
• Personal liability for debts. A petitioner who receives the home is personally liable for the decedent's unsecured debts, up to the home's date-of-death value less liens (§13156).

The referee appraisal and the notice rules are where self-filers stall

Succession looks simple on the court's self-help page and is anything but in practice. The probate-referee appraisal alone is a coordination project — choosing a referee for the county, getting the home valued, and attaching the Inventory and Appraisal. On top of that you're managing a 40-day wait, notice to every heir and devisee within five business days of filing and again before the hearing, curing the examiner's notes, preparing the order, and then working out whether Proposition 19 reassesses the home.

Any one of those slipping doesn't fail the petition — it continues it to a later date. Most people doing this themselves don't even know the referee step exists until they read the form.

A registered LDA prepares, files and tracks the petition at your direction

At your direction we prepare the DE-310 petition, help you arrange the probate-referee appraisal, and draft the DE-315 order up front. A registered California Legal Document Assistant files it, serves the notices on the people the statute lists on time, files the proof of service, prepares the corrections you direct for the examiner's notes, submits the order, and after the judge signs it, obtains the certified copies. An LDA is not a lawyer and does not give legal advice; if your situation needs one, your LDA will tell you.

One flat fee, one tracked process — instead of discovering the referee, the notice rules, and the reassessment question one missed deadline at a time.

How it works

1. Wait 40 days, then we prepare the petition (DE-310)The petition can be filed once 40 days have passed since the death. At your direction we prepare DE-310, describe the property, and list the people entitled to it. Each petitioner verifies the petition.
2. Arrange the probate-referee appraisal (DE-160/DE-161)An Inventory and Appraisal is attached to the petition, made by a probate referee appointed by the State Controller, whom you select for the county (Probate Code §13152(b)). It shows the home is within the limit: a primary residence worth up to $750,000 for deaths on or after April 1, 2025. Arranging the appraisal is a common place DIY filers stall.
3. Your LDA files it; the court sets a hearingThe petition is filed with the superior court. The filing fee is $435 ($450 in Riverside and San Francisco). The court sets the hearing from its own calendar; no statute fixes that date.
4. We deliver notice to heirs and devisees within 5 business daysWithin five business days of filing, the petitioner must deliver notice of the petition to each heir and devisee named in it (Probate Code §13151(b)).
5. We serve the Notice of Hearing (DE-120)Everyone named in the petition is given notice at least 15 days before the hearing, as Probate Code §1220 provides, and we file the proof of service. In practice the mailing is done by someone who is not a party to the case.
6. We respond to the probate examiner's notesIn many courts, an examiner reviews the petition and the appraisal and posts correction notes; we prepare the amendment you direct before the hearing, so the case is less likely to be continued.
7. We prepare the order (DE-315) and track the case to the hearingThe Order Determining Succession to Primary Residence (DE-315) is drafted in advance; many courts ask for it before the hearing. From filing onward your LDA follows the case on the court's docket — the assigned date, any continuance, any response — and you see the current status and the next date on your case page rather than calling the court.
8. The hearing and the signed orderUsually a single hearing, and in many courts unopposed petitions are granted on the tentative ruling without anyone appearing. The judge signs the order and your LDA obtains the certified copy. An LDA is not a lawyer and cannot appear or argue for you — if the court sets a contested hearing or directs an appearance, we tell you at once, and that is the point to consult an attorney.
9. You keep certified copies of the order, and the matter is closedThe signed order determines who succeeds to the home. Keep two or three certified copies from the court clerk; a title company, bank or buyer may ask for one. You get the signed order and the complete filed set, and the matter is closed on your case page.