How to Transfer Property After a Death in Georgia
· 6 min read
When a Georgia property owner dies, the county record doesn’t update itself. The house may already belong to someone new the moment the owner passes — or it may be stuck in the estate until a court signs off. Which one is true depends on two things: how the deed held title, and whether there was a will.
Here are the four ways Georgia property passes after a death, how to tell which one applies to you, and which document actually clears the record.
Start with the deed, not the will
Most families reach for the will first. The deed is actually the document that decides what happens next, because certain forms of ownership pass outside the will entirely.
Pull the most recent recorded deed and read the vesting language — the line that says who owns the property and how. You’re looking for the words “joint tenants with right of survivorship.” Georgia does not presume survivorship: if the deed just names two owners without that phrase, they own as tenants in common, and the deceased owner’s share goes to their estate instead of the co-owner.
If you can’t find the deed, we can pull the recorded copy from the county for you — see get a copy of your deed.
Path 1: Joint tenants with right of survivorship
If the deed says joint tenants with right of survivorship, the surviving owner already owns the whole property — the transfer happened automatically at death, by operation of law. No probate, no new deed required to make it real.
What’s left is cleanup: the county record still shows the deceased owner’s name. The usual fix is recording a death certificate and an affidavit of survivorship with the Clerk of Superior Court, so the record matches reality. It isn’t urgent legally, but an out-of-date record creates friction the moment you sell, refinance, or file an insurance claim — and it’s much easier to fix now than years later.
Path 2: A recorded transfer-on-death deed
Georgia has allowed transfer-on-death (TOD) deeds since July 1, 2024. If the deceased owner recorded one, the named beneficiary receives the property automatically — outside the will and outside probate.
To claim it, the beneficiary typically records proof of death (a death certificate) and the appropriate affidavit with the county clerk, and title passes to them — usually within a few weeks. Our guide to Georgia’s TOD deed law covers how these deeds work in detail.
TOD deeds are still new in Georgia, so most estates today won’t have one. If yours does, you’re in the fastest lane there is.
Path 3: There’s a will — probate and the executor’s deed
If the property was owned solely (or as tenants in common) and there’s a valid will, the property passes through probate. The will is filed with the probate court in the county where the deceased lived, and the court issues Letters Testamentary — the document that gives the named executor legal authority to act for the estate.
Once the executor has Letters Testamentary, the deed that moves the property out of the estate is an executor’s deed. It can transfer the home to the heir named in the will, or to a buyer if the estate is selling.
An attorney prepares the executor’s deed as part of our flat $295 service — title search, deed drafting, the PT-61 transfer form, eFiling, and county recording included. One honest caveat: we can’t draft it until the court has issued your Letters Testamentary. If probate hasn’t been opened yet, that’s the first step.
Path 4: No will — the administrator’s deed
When there’s no will, the probate court appoints an administrator (often the closest family member) and issues Letters of Administration. Georgia’s intestacy rules then decide who inherits — generally the surviving spouse and children, with the spouse guaranteed at least a one-third share.
The document that transfers the property out of the estate is an administrator’s deed, signed by the administrator under the court’s authority. Like the executor’s deed, it’s a flat $295 with us, and it requires Letters of Administration in hand before drafting can begin.
Georgia also has a procedure called year’s support that can award the home directly to a surviving spouse or minor children through the probate court — worth asking a probate attorney about before the estate is distributed.
Which document completes the transfer?
| Situation | How the property passes | Document that clears the record | Who signs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deed says “joint tenants with right of survivorship” | Automatically to the surviving owner | Death certificate + survivorship affidavit | Surviving owner |
| Recorded TOD deed | Automatically to the named beneficiary | Death certificate + beneficiary affidavit | Beneficiary |
| Will, probate opened | Through the estate | Executor’s deed | Executor (with Letters Testamentary) |
| No will | Through the estate under intestacy rules | Administrator’s deed | Administrator (with Letters of Administration) |
| Two names, no survivorship language | Deceased owner’s share goes to their estate | Executor’s or administrator’s deed for that share | Executor or administrator |
What the transfer costs
Our flat $295 covers the title search, the attorney-prepared deed, the PT-61 transfer form, eFiling, and recording with the county — in any of Georgia’s 159 counties. The deed is drafted within 2 business days of receiving your details, and recording typically takes up to a week after you return the signed original.
Georgia’s transfer tax ($1 per $1,000 of consideration) almost never applies here: distributions from an estate to heirs are exempt, and we file the correct exemption on the PT-61 as part of every order. More on that in our guide to Georgia transfer tax exemptions.
The mistake that costs the most: waiting
The expensive error isn’t picking the wrong affidavit — it’s doing nothing. When a property sits in a deceased owner’s name for years, heirs multiply, paperwork scatters, and the title gets harder to clear with every generation. Georgia calls this heirs property, and it’s one of the most common reasons a family home can’t be sold or borrowed against when the family finally needs to.
If a parent or grandparent’s name is still on a deed years after their death, start untangling it now, while the people who know the family history are still around to sign. A short conversation will tell you exactly which path applies — book a free call and we’ll walk through it with you.
Planning ahead for your own home?
If you’re reading this after settling an estate and thinking “I don’t want my kids to go through this” — that’s exactly what a transfer-on-death deed is for. You stay full owner for life, and your home passes to your beneficiary automatically, no probate involved. Same flat $295.
Ready to move a Georgia property out of an estate? Start your deed transfer — it takes about 10 minutes, and if you’re missing a document, we’ll tell you before you pay for anything you don’t need.
This article is general information, not legal advice. For guidance on your specific situation, consult an attorney.