Small Estate Options in Georgia

This is general information, not legal advice. A Georgia probate attorney can help with your specific situation.

Families dealing with a modest estate often hope there is a quick, inexpensive way to wrap things up without going through full probate. In many states, a small estate affidavit fills that role. Georgia’s options are narrower — and it is important to understand exactly what they cover before relying on them.

Georgia Has No Universal Small Estate Affidavit

Many states allow heirs to collect assets by presenting a sworn affidavit to the holder — a bank, a broker, a DMV — once the estate falls below a certain dollar threshold. Georgia does not have this kind of general procedure. There is no single affidavit that lets heirs collect all types of assets across the board.

The Bank Deposit Affidavit (O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239)

Georgia’s only small estate affidavit covers one narrow situation: a bank deposit account with a balance of $15,000 or less where the decedent died intestate (without a will). Under O.C.G.A. § 7-1-239, the bank may — but is not required to — pay the funds to the decedent’s heirs if they present a sworn affidavit establishing their identity and their right to the funds.

Several important limits apply:

• The decedent must have died without a will. If there is a will, this procedure does not apply.
• The account balance must be $15,000 or less at the time of the request.
• The procedure applies to bank deposits only — not real estate, not vehicles, not brokerage accounts, not retirement accounts.
• The bank has discretion; it is not obligated to pay under the affidavit.

If the account has a named beneficiary or is held jointly with right of survivorship, it passes outside probate entirely and no affidavit is needed.

Year’s Support as the Primary Small-Estate Tool

For most Georgia families dealing with a small estate, the year’s support petition is the more practical option. Under O.C.G.A. § 53-3-1, the surviving spouse and minor children can petition the probate court for property from the estate — and if the award covers most or all of the estate’s assets, the family receives clear title to those assets without going through full probate administration.

Year’s support is particularly effective when:

• The estate consists mostly of the family home and personal property
• There is a surviving spouse who would naturally inherit everything
• The estate has modest debt that the year’s support property can be insulated from

The petition must be filed within 24 months of death, requires published notice for 4 weeks, and involves a probate court hearing — but it is generally simpler and faster than full administration. See the Year’s Support guide for the full process.

When Full Probate Is Still Required

Even for small estates, full probate administration may be unavoidable if:

• There is no surviving spouse or minor children (no year’s support eligibility)
• The estate includes real property that must be transferred to non-spouse beneficiaries
• There is a will that needs to be formally admitted
• Creditors need to be addressed through the formal notice process
• The estate includes a vehicle or other titled property that requires a court order to transfer

Non-Probate Planning as the Best Small-Estate Strategy

The most effective way to avoid probate for a modest estate is to set up non-probate transfers before death — joint tenancy with survivorship, beneficiary designations on financial accounts, and Georgia’s new transfer-on-death deed for real property. See the Non-Probate Transfers guide for how those tools work.