Download Legal Ohio Heirship Affidavits Forms For Free

An Ohio small estate affidavit is a form that, when approved, hastens the distribution of the assets of a decedent's estate to the rightful recipients. This helps the estate avoid the traditional probate process, which can be long and expensive depending on the nature of the estate.

An affidavit of heirship should be signed by two disinterested witnesses. To qualify as a disinterested witness, one must be knowledgeable about the deceased and his or her family history, but cannot benefit financially from the estate.

Usually, the probate process is the legal means of transferring property to heirs and beneficiaries. However, an affidavit of heirship is a legal document that can transfer ownership of real property from a decedent to heirs without the property going through probate.

A ballpark fee for preparation of the affidavit is between $750 for a very simple estate with few heirs to several thousand dollars for a more complicated estate with many heirs. The filing fees to record the affidavit in each county where the real property is located usually run about $50 to $75 in Texas.

If there is no spouse, but there are children, the estate will be divided equally among them. If there is no spouse and no children, the deceased's parents will inherit. More distant relatives?aunts, nephews, cousins of any degree, etc. ?are next in line if the deceased had no spouse, children, or parents.

What is an Affidavit of Heirship in Illinois? An affidavit of heirship is a written statement establishing the right of inheritance. To be valid, it must be signed under oath and witnessed by a third party.