Disclaimer: General educational research only — not legal advice. Procedures change. ACS median home value is not a decedent house or equity. Verify with court self-help and counsel.
Nationwide look at whether simplified estate procedures can cover a typical home. Combines Family Estate Guide small-estate references with Census ACS median owner-occupied home values (2024 5-year, B25077). A home-to-limit ratio is shown only when a procedure has a documented real-property (or summary-administration) limit that can include real property. Personal-property-only paths get no invented house ratio.
Limits reference: small estate affidavit limits by state. Costs: probate costs by state.
Downloads
Cite this page URL when reusing findings. Not a substitute for statutes or legal advice.
National snapshot
- Coverage: 51 jurisdictions (50 states + D.C.).
- Jurisdictions with a home comparison in this release: 4. Others are n/a because the simplified path excludes real property or lacks a comparable real-property limit.
- Verification pass (2026-09-17) removed false-positive ratios where notes already said no real estate, or where homestead is excluded from the dollar cap.
State comparison table
A–Z. Full multi-procedure inventory is in the CSV download.
| State | ACS median home | Home comparison? | Comparison limit | Home ÷ limit | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $209,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Alaska | $352,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Arizona | $394,500 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Arkansas | $188,000 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| California | $734,700 | Yes | $69,625 | 10.552 | high |
| Colorado | $539,400 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Connecticut | $366,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Delaware | $352,000 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Florida | $359,000 | Yes | $75,000 | 4.787 | high |
| Georgia | $303,300 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Hawaii | $839,100 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Idaho | $418,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Illinois | $263,300 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Indiana | $218,200 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Iowa | $208,000 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Kansas | $217,200 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Kentucky | $205,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Louisiana | $216,500 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Maine | $296,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Maryland | $419,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Massachusetts | $562,100 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Michigan | $231,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Minnesota | $329,300 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Mississippi | $169,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Missouri | $230,300 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Montana | $375,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Nebraska | $238,600 | Yes | $100,000 | 2.386 | medium |
| Nevada | $435,400 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| New Hampshire | $402,500 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| New Jersey | $454,400 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| New Mexico | $248,100 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| New York | $423,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| North Carolina | $288,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| North Dakota | $249,900 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Ohio | $214,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Oklahoma | $199,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Oregon | $477,600 | Yes | $200,000 | 2.388 | high |
| Pennsylvania | $254,500 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Rhode Island | $404,200 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| South Carolina | $259,000 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| South Dakota | $257,400 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Tennessee | $286,700 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Texas | $283,800 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Utah | $489,400 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Vermont | $316,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Virginia | $383,700 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Washington | $564,600 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Washington, D.C. | — | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| West Virginia | $162,600 | No / n/a | — | — | high |
| Wisconsin | $266,500 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
| Wyoming | $309,700 | No / n/a | — | — | medium |
How to read this
If the house is the main asset and the simplified path is personal-property-only, an affidavit usually will not clear title. See will vs trust and avoiding probate.
Related research: estates that qualify for a small-estate process often skip publication entirely. For full probate, probate notice to creditors by state compares notice rules and creditor deadlines by state.
Methodology
ACS 2024 5-year B25077. Procedure inventory from the live affidavit reference plus curated multi-procedure rows where verified. Ratios use real-property / summary-admin limits only.
National draft updated September 17, 2026 after eligibility cleanup. State editions deferred until each has substantive local analysis.