Oregon Small Estate Affidavit

The $75,000 limit, and what actually counts

The 30-day waiting period

30 days. ORS 114.515(3), verbatim: 'A simple estate affidavit may not be filed until 30 days after the death of the decedent.' Counted from the date of death, not from discovery, not from issuance of the death certificate. There is no outer deadline to file, but if the affidavit is filed more than one year after death the valuation date shifts to within 45 days before filing (ORS 114.510(2)(a)(B)). Note the separate downstream clocks: creditors have four months after the affidavit is filed to present claims (ORS 114.540(1)(a)); the affiant may not distribute remaining property to successors until that four-month period is complete and all unsecured creditors have been paid, and must do so before the two-year period ends (ORS 114.555(1)(a)); a petition for summary review may be filed within two years after the affidavit is filed (ORS 114.550(1)(a)); the affiant must mail or deliver the required copies within 30 days after filing (ORS 114.545(1)(d)).

Who can sign the affidavit

Under ORS 114.515(1), any of: (a) one or more "claiming successors", defined in ORS 114.505 as the decedent's heirs if intestate, the devisees if testate, the estate administrator of the State Treasurer under ORS 113.235, and creditors of the estate who have not been paid within 60 days after the decedent's death; (b) if the decedent died testate, any person named as personal representative in the decedent's will; (c) the Director of Human Services, the Director of the Oregon Health Authority, or an attorney approved under ORS 114.517, where the decedent received public assistance (ORS 411.010), medical assistance (ORS 414.025), or care at an institution (ORS 179.010) and the cost may be recoverable from the estate. Multiple claiming successors may sign jointly. A creditor-affiant where the decedent died intestate and without heirs must first obtain State Treasurer authorization (ORS 114.520). The affiant becomes a statutory fiduciary under ORS 114.545(1)(a). This is not a bare collection receipt.

Either. Both testate and intestate estates qualify. ORS 114.525(1)(i) requires the affidavit to state whether the decedent died testate or intestate. If testate, the affiant must file simultaneously with the simple estate affidavit: (a)(A) the original will, or (B) if the original is filed in an estate proceeding in another jurisdiction, a certified copy; and (b) proof of the will meeting the requirements of ORS 113.055 (ORS 114.525(3)). Copies of the will plus a copy of the affidavit showing the filing date must be delivered or mailed to every heir and every devisee (ORS 114.525(1)(j), (k)), within 30 days after filing (ORS 114.545(1)(d)). If the affidavit is filed under the trust prong of ORS 114.510(1)(b), the affiant must also file simultaneously a copy of the trust instrument or a certification of trust under ORS 130.860 (ORS 114.525(4)).

The affidavit must be signed in front of a notary. Most banks and UPS Stores have a notary; many charge under $15.

Can it transfer a house or land in Oregon?

Yes. Oregon is unusual: real property passes under the same simple estate affidavit. There is no separate real-property affidavit and no separate real-property threshold instrument (unlike CA Prob. Code 13200 vs 13100). Real property (combined with manufactured homes) is subject to its own $200,000 sub-cap inside ORS 114.510(1)(a)(B). The affidavit must include 'a legal description of any real property' (ORS 114.525(1)(g)). Title does not pass by the affidavit alone: under ORS 114.555(3), 'When the affiant transfers an interest in real property under this section, the affiant shall cause to be recorded in the deed records of the county in which the real property is situated a bargain and sale deed conveying the property to the person entitled to the property, executed in the manner required by ORS chapter 93.' That deed may only be given after the four-month claim period closes and unsecured creditors are paid (ORS 114.555(1)(a)). Property so conveyed remains subject to liens and encumbrances against the decedent or the estate, and remains subject to the rights of the decedent's/estate's creditors until the two-year period in ORS 114.550 expires (ORS 114.555(2)), a title insurer will typically want the two years run or an indemnity. Manufactured structures: where the affiant transfers a manufactured structure (ORS 446.561) assessed as personal property, the affiant files the necessary information with the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services to record the successor's interest on the ownership document (ORS 114.555(4)). Separate, unrelated lifetime device: Oregon's Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act, ORS 93.948 to 93.979, allows a TOD deed executed and recorded during the owner's lifetime; it is not a post-death affidavit.

How to use a small estate affidavit in Oregon

1. 1

   Confirm you're under the limit and past the wait

   Add up the property that passes through the estate and check it against the $75,000 ceiling. Two separate caps, both must be satisfied (ORS 114.510(1)(a)): (A) not more than $75,000 of the fair market value of the estate attributable to personal property other than manufactured homes; and (B) not more than $200,000 of the fair market value attributable to the combined fair market value of real property and manufactured homes. Effective aggregate ceiling $275,000. Critical: value is the fair market value of the entire interest in the property "without reduction for liens or other debts" (ORS 114.510(2)(b)): a $250,000 home with a $210,000 mortgage counts as $250,000 and disqualifies the estate. Not indexed to inflation; fixed dollar figures set by statute. Figures exclude non-probate assets (joint tenancy w/ survivorship, POD/TOD, beneficiary-designated life insurance and retirement accounts, trust assets) because those are not part of "the estate".

2. 2

   Gather the documents

   You'll need certified copies of the death certificate: order at least three, since institutions often keep one: plus account numbers, the vehicle title or VIN, and the names and addresses of every heir.

3. 3

   Complete the affidavit

   Fill in Simple Estate Affidavit (ORS 114.505 to 114.560), renamed from "Small Estate Affidavit" by 2023 Or. Laws ch. 17 (SB 308), operative Jan. 1, 2024, listing the decedent, the heirs and their relationships, the assets and their values, and the known debts.

4. 4

   Sign it in front of a notary

   Sign in front of a notary public. Banks, credit unions and shipping stores all offer notarization, usually for a small fee.

5. 5

   File it with the probate court

   Court filing is mandatory. This is not a bank-presentment-only affidavit. ORS 114.515(1): filed 'with the clerk of the probate court in any county where there is venue for a proceeding seeking the appointment of a personal representative' (i.e., the Oregon circuit court sitting in probate for the county of the decedent's domicile or where property is located). The affidavit 'shall be made a part of the probate records' (ORS 114.515(4)). No court order or judicial approval issues, unlike Texas, no judge approves the affidavit; the affiant's authority arises from the act of filing. The clerk issues certified copies, which are what get presented to banks, employers, DMV and transfer agents (ORS 114.535(1)). FEE: ORS 114.515(5). 'The clerk of the probate court shall charge and collect the fee established under ORS 21.145 for the filing of a simple estate affidavit, except that a fee may not be charged or collected for the filing of an amended affidavit.' ORS 21.145 sets a flat circuit court filing fee of $124 (verify current amount at filing time; ORS 21.145 is amended periodically). Separate fees: petitions for summary determination (ORS 114.542) or summary review (ORS 114.550), and any other appearance, pay the ORS 21.135 fee; if a petition for appointment of a personal representative is later filed for the same estate, that filer pays the ORS 21.170 probate fees (ORS 114.552). Amended affidavits are required to correct material errors/omissions or add omitted property (ORS 114.515(6)) and are free.

6. 6

   Present it to whoever holds the property

   ORS 114.535 is the compulsion-and-safe-harbor provision. (1) The affiant may deliver a certified copy of the filed simple estate affidavit to any person who has possession of personal property belonging to the estate or who was indebted to the decedent; upon receipt, that person shall pay the debt or transfer, deliver, provide access to and allow possession of the personal property to the affiant. (2) A person holding property must provide the affiant access to and possession of the decedent's personal property. (3) The obligation runs wherever the person would have been required to pay or deliver to a personal representative. (4) safe harbor, the person who pays or delivers 'is discharged and released from any liability or responsibility for the debt or property in the same manner and with the same effect as if the debt had been paid or the property had been transferred or delivered to a personal representative.' Banks, credit unions, employers paying final wages, insurers and brokerages therefore have full statutory protection and no basis to demand letters testamentary. (5) A corporate transfer agent shall change the registered ownership on the books of the corporation to the affiant or the person named in the affidavit as entitled to it. (6) The responsible agency shall change the registered ownership of a recorded brand likewise. (7) If the holder refuses, the affiant may, after 30 days following demand. File a motion in the probate court to compel payment/transfer, and the court may award reasonable attorney fees against a person who refused without an objectively reasonable basis (and against an affiant who moved without an objectively reasonable basis). (8) An affidavit signed by the DHS Director, OHA Director, or an ORS 114.517-approved attorney may be certified by that signer. Separate financial-institution protection, ORS 114.545(5): a financial institution (ORS 706.008) that opens deposit accounts for the affiant 'is not liable to any other person for opening the account or accounts or for permitting the affiant to withdraw funds' and 'is not required to ensure that the funds of the decedent that are paid out by the affiant are properly applied.' Safe deposit boxes, ORS 114.537: before filing, a prospective affiant who knows the decedent was sole or last surviving lessee may require the lessor to permit an inventory of the box; the lessor retains the original inventory and gives the affiant a copy; if the estate still fits the ORS 114.510 limits the affiant files an amended affidavit and, on presenting a certified copy, the lessor must release the contents; if the contents push the estate over the limits, no amended affidavit may be filed, the affiant must file notice with the court and serve the lessor, and the lessor delivers the contents to a personal representative. Digital assets, ORS 119.021/119.026: a custodian must disclose a deceased user's digital assets on presentation of a death certificate and a simple estate affidavit (or letters, or court order).

Where to take the signed affidavit

Debts and your personal liability

Substantial and materially different from most states' bare collection affidavits. (1) content: the affidavit must describe and value all estate property (ORS 114.525(1)(g)), list all heirs and devisees with addresses (114.525(1)(j),(k)), list undisputed unpaid claims, list disputed claims, and state the mailing address (and optionally email/fax) for presentment of claims. (2) mandatory 14-point bold notice immediately below the caption on page 1, in substantially this form (ORS 114.525(1)(a)): 'Notice of duty to pay debt or turn over property / To: Any person to whom a copy of this simple estate affidavit is mailed or delivered. Under ORS 114.535, if you owe a debt to the decedent or have personal property of the decedent, you must pay the debt or turn over the property to the affiant. If you refuse, the affiant may ask the court to compel you to pay the debt or turn over the property and you could be responsible for the affiant's attorney fees.' (3) A certified copy of the death record is filed as a confidential document (ORS 114.525(2)). (4) claims window: creditors may present claims to the affiant within four months after filing; later claims are barred except as provided in ORS 114.550 or 130.350 (ORS 114.540(1)(a),(b)). Filing a claim with the court does not constitute presentment (114.540(1)(c)). A presented claim not listed in the affidavit is deemed allowed unless the affiant mails/delivers a disallowance within 60 days of presentment (114.540(2)(a)). (5) affiant is a fiduciary (ORS 114.545(1)(a)) with a general duty to administer, preserve, settle and distribute; may not commingle estate property (114.545(1)(b)); must take control of and collect income from estate property; must mail/deliver each required instrument within 30 days of filing; may open estate deposit accounts; must pay ORS 115.125(1)(b),(c) expenses, listed undisputed claims, allowed presented claims and claims allowed on summary determination, in the ORS 115.125 order of priority; must retain administration records until the later of expiry of the two-year ORS 114.550 period or conclusion of any summary review. (6) affiant/successor personal liability: any claiming successor to whom estate property is delivered is 'personally answerable and accountable' to estate creditors to the extent of the value of the property received, and to any personal representative later appointed (ORS 114.545(4)). The court may remove the affiant, surcharge the affiant for any loss caused by non-compliance, and substitute a new affiant (ORS 114.550(4)(c)). (7) Disallowed claims may be taken to summary determination within 30 days of the disallowance notice (ORS 114.542(1)(a)); disputed-listed claims within four months (114.542(1)(b)); such an order is not appealable and is enforced only via an ORS 114.550 summary review petition (114.542(5)). (8) Surviving spouse's elective share (ORS 114.600–114.725) is preserved notwithstanding the bar of other claims (ORS 114.555(1)(a)(B)).

When you can’t use it

Oregon takes the affidavit route off the table when:

• Personal property (other than manufactured homes) exceeds $75,000 fair market value. ORS 114.510(1)(a)(A)
• Real property plus manufactured homes exceeds $200,000 fair market value. ORS 114.510(1)(a)(B)
• Values are computed gross, without reduction for mortgages, liens, or other debts. ORS 114.510(2)(b); an over-encumbered house still blows the cap
• A personal representative has already been appointed in Oregon, a petition for appointment is pending in Oregon, or the estate is currently being administered in Oregon. ORS 114.525(1)(h) (the affidavit must affirmatively state none of these is true)
• The proposed affiant would be disqualified from acting as a personal representative under ORS 113.095. ORS 114.515(2)(a)
• The proposed affiant has been convicted of a felony in Oregon or any other jurisdiction. ORS 114.515(2)(b)
• Fewer than 30 days have elapsed since the date of death. ORS 114.515(3)
• The decedent died intestate and without heirs and the filer is a creditor, without prior authorization from the State Treasurer. ORS 114.520(1)
• Testate estate whose specific devises exceed the caps, or whose residue is not devised to a pre-existing trust of which the decedent was a settlor, cannot use the ORS 114.510(1)(b) trust prong
• If the estate's value is later discovered to exceed the limits (e.g., after a safe deposit box inventory under ORS 114.537), the affiant MAY NOT file an amended affidavit; the affiant's authority terminates and formal probate is required. ORS 114.515(7)
• Affiant must deliver estate property to a later-appointed personal representative on request. ORS 114.515(7)
• Only a probate proceeding, summary determination (ORS 114.542) or summary review (ORS 114.550) may be used to challenge administration. ORS 114.560 (exclusive remedy)

If any of those apply, a probate attorney is the right call. A typical small-estate proceeding runs $1,000–$3,000 plus the court’s fee.

Oregon small estate affidavit FAQ

Statute and sources

Last verified July 29, 2026. Three amendment waves in the last three years; the dollar thresholds were not changed by any of them. I read the enrolled text of all three acts. (1) 2023 Or. Laws ch. 17 (SB 308), approved and filed March 29, 2023, effective January 1, 2024; applies to simple estate affidavits filed on or after the effective date (sec. 27). This act renamed the procedure from 'small estate affidavit' to 'Simple estate affidavit' throughout, and substantially rewrote ORS 114.505, 114.510, 114.515, 114.517, 114.520, 114.525, 114.535, 114.537, 114.540, 114.542, 114.545, 114.550, 114.552 and 114.555 plus ORS 111.200, 113.238, 119.021/026/062, 130.150, 238.390, 238.458, 708A.655, 723.844. It added the ORS 114.510(1)(b) pour-over-trust prong, the mandatory 14-point bold notice of duty to pay debt or turn over property, the affiant's express fiduciary status and ORS 115.125 payment-priority duty, the attorney-fee-backed motion to compel, and the ORS 114.555(3) recorded bargain and sale deed requirement for real property. Product copy still saying 'Oregon Small Estate Affidavit' is out of date, though the old name remains the dominant search term. (2) 2025 Or. Laws ch. 34 (SB 168), approved May 7, 2025, filed May 8, 2025, effective January 1, 2026; sec. 2 amended ORS 114.510 (keeping $75,000 / $200,000) and sec. 6(1) applies the ORS 114.510 amendments to estates of decedents dying on or after the effective date. Same act also amended ORS 112.105 (intestate succession/parentage), ORS 112.235 and 112.238 (will execution formalities; 'writing' excludes electronic records), and ORS 111.200 (probate procedure). (3) 2025 Or. Laws ch. 342 (SB 15), approved and filed June 17, 2025, effective January 1, 2026; sec. 1a (the version operative because SB 168 became law) amended ORS 114.510 to carve manufactured homes out of the $75,000 personal-property bucket and into the $200,000 real-property bucket, and added the ORS 114.510(3) definition of 'manufactured home'. Sec. 2/2a applies these amendments to estates of decedents dying on or after the effective date. Net effect and trap: for decedents dying on or after Jan. 1, 2026, a manufactured home counts against the $200,000 real-property cap; for decedents dying before Jan. 1, 2026, the pre-2026 text governs and a manufactured home assessed as personal property counted against the $75,000 personal-property cap. A rules engine must branch on date of death, not on filing date, for this classification, while the 2023 renaming/procedural changes branch on filing date. No inflation indexing, no scheduled future increase found.

• ORS 114.505 (definitions; "affiant", "claiming successor", "simple estate affidavit")
• ORS 114.510 (simple estate criteria; $75,000 / $200,000 limits; valuation)
• ORS 114.515 (who may file; 30-day wait; venue; fee; amended affidavit; disqualifiers)
• ORS 114.517 (approved attorneys for Medicaid/public assistance recovery)
• ORS 114.520 (State Treasurer authorization for creditor filing when intestate and no heirs)
• ORS 114.525 (required content; 14-point bold notice; will and trust filing)
• ORS 114.535 (duty of holders of property/debtors to transfer; discharge and release; securities transfer agents; recorded brands; motion to compel)
• ORS 114.537 (safe deposit boxes)
• ORS 114.540 (claims; four months)
• ORS 114.542 (summary determination of claims)
• ORS 114.545 (affiant as fiduciary; powers/duties; financial institution non-liability)
• ORS 114.547 (sales and transfers to third parties)
• ORS 114.549 (liability of affiant)
• ORS 114.550 (summary review; two years)
• ORS 114.552 (filing fees)
• ORS 114.555 (transfer of decedent's interest; recording bargain and sale deed for real property; DCBS filing for manufactured structures)
• ORS 114.560 (exclusive remedy)
• ORS 21.145 (filing fee)
• ORS 113.095 (persons disqualified from acting as personal representative)
• ORS 115.125 (order of priority for payment of claims)
• ORS 93.948 to 93.979 (Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act, separate lifetime planning device, not a post-death affidavit)

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