Who Inherits Property If No Will In Texas
Making a Will is useful because it makes the process of distributing your wealth to heirs and beneficiaries seamless. But there are also statutes called intestacy laws that can be used in a situation where someone dies without a Will. Intestacy laws instruct that a decedent’s property should be divided based on the decreasing level of connection to the decedent. This is very useful in a situation where a decedent that did not make a Will is survived by a spouse or children, grand-children, great-grandchildren, parents and siblings.
When The Deceased Is Survived By A Spouse And Children
In Texas, the spouse inherits the deceased’s entire estate if all of the surviving spouse’s children are also the children of the deceased. But the surviving spouse specifically inherits all property designated as community property and a fraction of the separate property. Community property generally is the property that the couple acquired during their marriage but there are a few exceptions.
Separate property is the property that was owned by each of the spouses before they got married, and property that each of the spouses acquired during marriage that was in the form of gifts, inheritance, and monetary recoveries for personal injuries. The children get two thirds of the deceased’s personal property while the surviving spouse gets a third of the personal property. If there were no children in the marriage, then all the community property will be inherited by the surviving spouse.
When The Deceased Is Survived By Children But No Spouse
The children or grandchildren of the deceased will inherit all of the deceased’s property if the deceased died while single. The property will be divided equally among the descendants of the deceased. That is each of the deceased’s children will get one third of the estate if they survived the deceased. But if one of the children dies but has surviving children, then those children take their parent’s inheritance (one third of the estate) and divide it among themselves.
What If There Is A Surviving Spouse And Non-Biological Children?
Without a Will, the spouse will inherit one-third of your separate property, a half of your community estate, and the right to use your real estate for life (usually land). All that remains will be inherited by your non-biological children. Any complications in this scenario can be easily resolved with the help of competent Texas estate planning lawyers.
Survived By Spouse and Parent or Parents, Or Only By Spouse And Siblings
The surviving spouse will inherit all the community property and all the separate property in a situation where only the spouse and the parent or parents of the deceased are surviving. The parents will inherit whatever remains after the surviving spouse collects inheritance. The same will happen if the deceased is survived by the spouse and the siblings.
Aunts, uncles, cousins of any degree will come into the picture if there are no close relatives surviving the deceased. In any of these situations, an experienced Texas estate planning lawyer can give you all the advice you need as a testator or as the person receiving the inheritance.