Estate Planning Law in California

What it means in California:
Estate planning in California focuses on managing and transferring assets during life or after death and minimizing probate.

Key points:

• Governed by California state law
• Applies to people of all asset levels
• A good plan can significantly reduce or avoid probate

California-specific considerations:

• California recognizes beneficiary (transfer-on-death) deeds for real property, allowing probate-free transfer of a home or other real estate to designated beneficiaries.
• Community property with right of survivorship automatically passes to the surviving spouse
• Payable-on-death (POD) and transfer-on-death (TOD) designations on financial accounts avoid probate
• Estate planning can include trusts that completely bypass probate