Eligibility screening

Small-estate route calculator

Compare counted probate assets with a reviewed state limit. A result is a screening answer, not permission to file.

This worksheet needs JavaScript to calculate.

The calculation runs entirely in your browser, which is why nothing you enter is sent anywhere — and why it cannot run with scripting disabled. Every figure it would produce is also published as static text: the state comparison lists limits, waiting periods and court charges for all reviewed states, and each state’s cost page itemises the statutory fee schedule.

Private by design: entries stay in this browser.

1. Where and when

StateDate of deathRequired. Without it no waiting period can be tested and the route stays undecided.

2. What they left

Ownership determines whether an asset usually enters probate. Choose “Not sure” when title or beneficiary status has not been confirmed.

Asset 1

DescriptionValue$Not entered. A blank amount is not counted as zero.Enforceable liens or mortgage$Not entered. Enter 0 if there is no lien.OwnershipThis is real property

Asset 2

DescriptionValue$Not entered. A blank amount is not counted as zero.Enforceable liens or mortgage$Not entered. Enter 0 if there is no lien.OwnershipThis is real propertyWill it be sold during administration?Some court charges are assessed on sale proceeds and exclude real property that is kept, so this changes the amount.

Your working estimate

Florida estate snapshot

Route check

More information is needed

Counted probate estate: not yet counted

A valid date of death is required before any waiting period can be tested.

Gross probate propertyNot yet counted

Court chargeMore information neededSummary administrationAt least one asset has no amount entered. A blank amount is not treated as zero, so the charge cannot be computed.More information neededFormal administrationAt least one asset has no amount entered. A blank amount is not treated as zero, so the charge cannot be computed.Court charges only, for the proceeding named beside each figure. That proceeding is not always the route screened above.

Scheduled executor compensationMore information neededAt least one asset has no amount entered.Florida presumes a percentage schedule is reasonable. The base is the compensable value of the estate, meaning the inventory value of the probate assets plus income the estate earned during administration, so it is not the same as the gross probate estate. A court may adjust compensation, and extraordinary services are paid separately.

This route check is general information, not legal advice. It does not test every eligibility condition, creditor issue, will provision, local fee, or asset-title fact.

How the small-estate result is decided

The calculator does not compare your total net worth to a limit. It first sorts each asset by how it transfers, then counts only what the state’s statute says to count, then applies the threshold and the waiting period as separate conditions.

Classify by transfer mechanism. Property with an effective right of survivorship, a living named beneficiary, or genuine trust ownership normally passes outside probate and is excluded before any threshold is applied. Property whose ownership you have not confirmed is not guessed at: it is held aside and the result is reported as indeterminate.
Apply the statutory scope. 4 of the 9 published states count personal property only, which means solely-owned real property neither counts toward the limit nor transfers under the procedure.
Apply the statutory value basis. 6 states measure value after liens and encumbrances; the rest measure gross value. A financed vehicle can decide eligibility on its own depending on which rule applies.
Test the threshold and the wait separately. Where a state states both, both must be satisfied. Some states also publish an independent route that ignores value entirely — Florida allows summary administration once the decedent has been dead for more than two years, whatever the estate is worth — so a failed value test does not always end the enquiry. A state that states no universal waiting period is reported as “none stated” rather than as zero days, because silence in a statute is not a stated permission.

Why a result can come back indeterminate

An indeterminate result is a real answer, not a failure. It appears when an asset’s ownership is unconfirmed, when a state measures value after exemptions this tool does not model, or when the controlling figure has not been verified. In each case the missing fact changes the outcome, so producing a confident yes or no would be misleading.

What this tool deliberately does not do

It does not decide who inherits. Intestate succession shares and will construction are outside its scope.
It does not price attorney fees, bond premiums, publication, appraisals, or property sale costs.
It does not calculate estate, inheritance, income, or capital-gains tax.
It does not transfer real property, and it does not advise on deeds or title.
It does not resolve creditor claims, family allowances, elective shares, or contested proceedings.
It does not send your entries anywhere. Everything you type stays in this browser.

Use this as a starting point.

This is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Probate law varies by state and county and changes over time. Verify the current rule with the court or a licensed attorney in the relevant state.