A home with a transfer-on-death deed

A revocable transfer-on-death (TOD) deed lets a California homeowner — the "transferor" — name a beneficiary who receives the real property at death without probate (Probate Code §§5600–5696). This page covers what the named beneficiary does after the transferor dies, when a TOD deed is already on record.

It looks simple: record one affidavit and the house is yours. But "record one affidavit" hides the work. You have to check the recorded chain for later deeds, copy a legal description exactly, gather a certified death certificate, serve the notice the law requires on the transferor's heirs, complete the property-tax reports, and understand your personal liability for the transferor's unsecured debts. Miss one of those and the recorder can reject the packet — or a creditor, an heir or the assessor surfaces a problem months later. Here is the whole thing.

A TOD-deed transfer is a recording packet plus a mandatory notice to the heirs

It is rarely just the affidavit. A complete after-death TOD-deed matter typically includes:

• Checking the recorded chain. A TOD deed transfers the property at death, subject to recorded liens, and stays revocable until death (§§5614, 5652). So the first check is the recorded chain for later deeds or revocations.
• Affidavit of Death of Transferor. The affidavit of death (Probate Code §210) that puts the transferor's death on the public record.
• The exact legal description. The affidavit must carry the legal description copied word-for-word from the recorded TOD deed. A transcription error here is a common reason a packet is bounced at recording.
• Certified copy of the death certificate. Attached to the affidavit of death. As the beneficiary you can order an authorized copy (§5680(a)).
• Notice to the transferor's heirs — required. The beneficiary must serve notice on the transferor's heirs, with a copy of the deed and the death certificate (§5681), and then record an affidavit that the notice was served (§5682(c)). A challenge filed, with a lis pendens, within 120 days after that affidavit is recorded can void the deed; a later challenge cannot undo a good-faith sale or loan (§5694).
• Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR). The report the assessor uses to evaluate the transfer. It is filed with the recorder at recording; it is not recorded and stays confidential (Revenue and Taxation Code §§480.3, 481).
• Recording with the County Recorder. The affidavit of death, with the certified death certificate attached, is recorded with the County Recorder for the county where the property sits — meeting that recorder's margin, cover-page and formatting rules. There is no court hearing.
• Creditor exposure. The beneficiary is personally liable for the transferor's unsecured debts, up to the property's date-of-death value less liens (§§5672, 5674); a claim must generally be brought within one year of the death (Code of Civil Procedure §366.2). If a probate is later opened for the transferor, the beneficiary can owe the estate a share of those debts (§5677) — a situation for an attorney.
• Medi-Cal notice. If the transferor received Medi-Cal, or was the surviving spouse of someone who did, notice of the death with a copy of the death certificate goes to the Department of Health Care Services within 90 days (§215). The beneficiary counts as a beneficiary for this notice (§5680(c)).
• Property-tax / Prop 19 follow-through. The beneficiary files the change-in-ownership statement (BOE-502-D) within 150 days of the death (§5680(b); Revenue and Taxation Code §480). Under Proposition 19, a parent's principal residence passing to a child can be excluded up to a value limit if the child makes it their principal residence within one year and files the homeowners' exemption within one year; otherwise reassessment may apply.

The quiet risks come after the affidavit is recorded

It isn't recording the affidavit that's hard — it's everything that has to be true and tracked around it. Checking the recorded chain is the first trap: a later deed or revocation may have changed the picture, and nothing on the original deed warns you. Transcribing the legal description exactly, satisfying recorder formatting rules, and obtaining a certified (not plain) death certificate each trip people up at the counter.

The harder, quieter risks come after. The notice to the transferor's heirs is required, not optional, and the 120-day window for a challenge doesn't start until the affidavit of service is recorded — so skipping it leaves the transfer open. The beneficiary's personal liability for unsecured debts is easy to overlook. And the PCOR, change-in-ownership statement and Proposition 19 question — whether the transfer is excluded or triggers reassessment — is one most filers don't even know to ask. People typically do this once, in the middle of grief, with no warning when one of these pieces slips.

A registered LDA prepares the post-death packet at your direction

We check the recorded chain for later deeds or revocations and show you what we find, then prepare the affidavit of death with the legal description copied exactly from the TOD deed, the notice to the transferor's heirs and the affidavit of service, and the PCOR. The change-in-ownership statement (BOE-502-D) can be prepared for an additional fee. We tell you how to obtain the certified death certificate and note the Proposition 19 question so reassessment doesn't surprise you. A registered California Legal Document Assistant then records the packet with the right County Recorder, meeting its formatting rules.

If there's no recorded TOD deed — or it was revoked or superseded — a different route, such as a succession petition for a primary residence, may apply, and our screener shows the published requirements for each so you can decide. You get one flat fee and a tracked process instead of a stack of steps you didn't know existed. We prepare the post-death paperwork only; we do not provide estate planning, draft new TOD deeds, or give legal advice. If your situation needs an attorney, your LDA will tell you.

How it works

1. We check the recorded chain for later deeds or revocationsA revocable TOD deed transfers the property at the transferor's death, but it stays revocable until then (Probate Code §5614). We check the recorded chain for later deeds or revocations and show you what we find. Whether a particular deed is valid is a legal question; if anything in the chain raises one, that is the point to consult an attorney.
2. We prepare the affidavit of deathWe draft the affidavit of death of the transferor (Probate Code §210) and copy the exact legal description from the recorded TOD deed — word for word, because a transcription error in the legal description can be rejected at recording.
3. We assemble the death certificate and PCORWe tell you how to obtain a certified copy of the transferor's death certificate — as the beneficiary you can get an authorized copy (Probate Code §5680(a)) — and we complete the Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR) the assessor uses to evaluate the transfer.
4. We prepare the mandatory notice to the transferor's heirsThe beneficiary must serve notice on the transferor's heirs, with a copy of the TOD deed and the death certificate (Probate Code §5681). An affidavit that the notice was served is then recorded (§5682(c)). A challenge filed, with a lis pendens, within 120 days after that affidavit is recorded can void the deed; a later challenge cannot undo a good-faith sale or loan (§5694).
5. Recording the packet with the County RecorderThe affidavit of death, with the certified death certificate attached, is recorded with the County Recorder where the property is located, and the PCOR is filed with the recorder at the same time; the PCOR is not recorded and stays confidential. For a buyer or lender to rely on the transfer, the affidavit of service must be recorded too. We build the packet to that recorder's formatting and cover-page rules; you can record it yourself at the counter or by mail, or we can handle the recording. There is no court hearing.
6. File the change-in-ownership statement and note Prop 19The beneficiary files the Change in Ownership Statement (BOE-502-D) within 150 days of the death. Under Proposition 19, a parent's principal residence passing to a child can be excluded from reassessment, up to a value limit, if the child makes it their principal residence within one year and files the homeowners' exemption within one year — we note whether that question applies rather than letting it surprise you later.