Not always — and that surprises most of the families I meet with in Flushing, Woodside, and Jackson Heights. Here are the questions I hear most often from Queens clients trying to figure out whether a loved one’s estate has to go through Queens County Surrogate’s Court, and the honest answers I give them.
Does every asset a person owned have to go through probate?
No. Probate only applies to assets titled solely in the deceased person’s name with no designated beneficiary. Anything held jointly, or with a named beneficiary already attached, transfers automatically outside the court process. I’ve walked plenty of Ridgewood and Middle Village families through this distinction after they assumed probate was unavoidable.
What about a co-op apartment?
Co-op shares are personal property, not real estate, which surprises many longtime Elmhurst and Astoria residents. If the shares were held jointly with rights of survivorship, or the proprietary lease names a beneficiary, they pass directly to that person without Surrogate’s Court involvement. If not, the shares typically do require probate, so I always recommend reviewing your co-op’s ownership documents alongside your estate plan. You can review a full breakdown of which assets qualify for non-probate transfer on our site.
Can a small estate skip probate entirely?
Sometimes. New York’s small estate proceeding, formally called a voluntary administration, allows estates under a certain dollar threshold to bypass full probate through a simplified filing. I’ve used this for Bayside and Forest Hills families settling a parent’s modest bank accounts and personal belongings, and it can save months compared to a full probate case.
What about retirement accounts and life insurance?
These pass by beneficiary designation alone, regardless of what a will says. That is why I advise every client I meet with in Jackson Heights and beyond to review these designations whenever there’s a marriage, divorce, or new grandchild in the family. An outdated form can send money to an ex-spouse instead of your intended heir.
If your loved one left behind accounts, property, or policies that need to be transferred outside of probate, contact Roman Aminov today for a free phone consultation.
Contributed by Dan Rose, a local business writer specializing in probate and estate administration services in New York City.
Roman Aminov Estate Law firm of Queens
147-17 Union Tpke, Kew Gardens Hills, NY 11367, United States
P59P+93 Kew Gardens Hills, Queens, NY, USA
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