Probate is the process of authenticating the Will and approving the executor to distribute the deceased’s property.

All the assets value for the deceased must be assessed exhaustively.

After the assets’ value has been determined, any pending debts and taxes are deducted from the overall value before distributing the remaining asset to the kin.

The process is more hectic and complicated, especially where the deceased did not write a Will.

It is difficult to process probate when there is no document stating how you want your assets shared.

In such cases, all decisions are made by the judges and the process in most cases can take more than a year since the death of the property owner.

The longer the probate case takes in the court, the more it cost.

However, you can adopt alternative tricks of property inheritance to reduce this stressful Probate Court process.

Avoiding probate through Inheritance advances means you will save time, privacy, and cost implications.

Here are few ways to ensure your loved next of kin get the property the rightful way without the probate court process:

1. Use Death Deeds Transfers and Avoid Probate

In many countries, the owner of real estate can use death transfers to distribute the diseased assets to the beneficiaries.

The transfer allows the beneficiaries to avoid probate.

They are often similar to any other transfer on death designations attached to bank accounts or investments.

As a result, one can make additional assets without going through a stressful probate process.

The owner who uses a transfer on the death deed still retains ownership as they want and the ownership only changes upon their demise.

This is when the beneficiary gains the property ownership.

In special cases where two or more people co-own an asset, and each party wants to use the same death deed to name their preferred kin.

They must create a separate transfer on death deeds before naming their beneficiaries.

2. Create Living Trust

A living trust is relatively effective, the easiest and the most straightforward way to leave real estate to your successors.

It is also termed as a revocable trust where the trustee’s creator mentions themselves as trustees before they die.

The living trust also includes the successor trustee names.

These trustees will manage the assets entrusted to them after the demise of the property owners.

The grantor is also required to mention the names of the trust beneficiaries.

Once this is done, the property owners can still use their property as long as they are alive.

Still, the property now belongs to their trust but not to themselves.

On their demise, the trust becomes irreversible, and at this moment, no one can change anything.

However, you should be aware that you can no longer sell once you choose life estate without seeking the beneficiaries’ permission.

You might be responsible for their unpaid debts., and also all tax obligations.

Some legal factors like divorce can also have implications for your ownership.

3. Using Joint Tenancy

With Joint tenancy, those who own solemnly own properties will find it useful than any other method.

All you need to do is to input a joint tenant on a particular deed.

Upon your demise, your loved ones automatically become the legal owners of your property depending on your will without undergoing the hectic process.

Before getting into joint tenancy, you should note that each member in the tenancy will have equal ownership.

Let’s say you have included your spouse as a joint tenant, each of you would have halfway ownership of the property.

But if you include a wife and a kid, you would have each member owning one-third of the assets.

As you do this, make sure you add all assets in a joint tenant’s name so they get their equal share?

However, the biggest challenge here is that alongside the joint tenant, the joint tenant’s creditors also have the right to such assets.

4. Creation of a Life Estate

With Life estate, you have the freedom to continue using the dwelling as long as you still breathe, after which the beneficiary can only gain full possession.

Parents often use life estates who want to inherit their property to the child or children as their main beneficiary.

The life tenant must clear any pending obligation and keep the property maintained.

They should also do any other responsibilities as if they were the formal property owner. 

However, they cannot sell without the permission of the beneficiary based on state law.