Texas Non-Probate Assets

Sometimes when individuals do estate planning, they place money in accounts and other types of savings vehicles that require that a beneficiary be listed.  If those accounts or insurance policies have a beneficiary then that contractual arrangement changes the character of the asset.  All assets do not necessarily need to be distributed by Texas probate.  Some of these assets include:

• Insurance policies

• IRAs

• KEOGHs

• Pensions

• Profit sharing plans

• 401(k) plans

• Property owned in joint tenancy with a right of survivorship

• Assets in trusts

• Money held in Transfer on Death (TOD) or Payable on Death (POD) bank accounts

In most cases, these non-probate assets can pass directly to the beneficiary, as long as that person is named as the beneficiary in the policy or account documents. Probate attorneys can help you determine whether assets must be administered, and can very often help you avoid many of the costs involved with Texas probate proceedings.

​