A transfer on death deed form is available free from your county recorder’s office or state bar association website, and for a fee from online legal document services like DeedClaim. Before you download anything, confirm your state recognizes these deeds — roughly 31 states and Washington, D.C. do, sometimes under names like “beneficiary deed” or “transfer on death instrument.” Once you have the right form, the work is filling it out accurately, executing it correctly, and recording it with the county before you die.
Confirm Your State Allows TOD Deeds
Not every state recognizes these deeds. States that do include Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, among others. The list keeps growing as more legislatures adopt a version of the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act.
If your state does not allow them, joint tenancy with right of survivorship, community property with right of survivorship (in community property states), and revocable living trusts can keep real estate out of probate through different mechanisms.
Where to Get the Form
County Recorder and State Bar Websites
The county recorder’s office in the county where your property sits — sometimes called the clerk of court or register of deeds — is the most reliable free source. Many county websites post downloadable forms or link to a state-approved template. State judiciary sites and state bar associations also publish fill-in-the-blank forms designed to comply with local statutes. The Illinois State Bar Association, for example, publishes a free TOD instrument form, and Illinois Legal Aid Online runs a guided questionnaire that generates a completed document you can print.
These free forms carry a limitation. The offices that provide them cannot give you legal advice about how to fill them out or whether a TOD deed fits your situation. You get a blank template, not personalized guidance.
Paid Online Services
Several online platforms sell customizable TOD deed forms that walk you through a questionnaire and produce a state-specific document. DeedClaim and similar providers offer attorney-designed templates, typically between $50 and $250 depending on the service and complexity. You get a more guided experience than a blank government form, with prompts built around your state’s requirements.
Legal Aid or an Attorney
Legal aid organizations help income-eligible people prepare TOD deeds and may provide the form directly. For everyone else, a real estate or estate planning attorney is the safest route, especially if you already have a will or trust. A TOD deed that conflicts with the rest of your estate plan can create real confusion for your heirs.
What to Gather Before You Fill It Out
Pull these together first:
- Your legal name as it appears on your current deed, exactly. If you co-own the property, every owner’s legal name goes on the TOD deed.
- The property’s legal description from your existing deed or a title report. This is not your street address. It typically includes lot numbers, block numbers, and subdivision names, or a metes-and-bounds description. Your county recorder can provide a copy if you don’t have the current deed on hand.
- The full legal name of each beneficiary, plus mailing addresses (most forms ask). Some states let you specify equal shares or designated percentages among multiple beneficiaries.
Getting the legal description wrong is one of the most common mistakes on self-prepared TOD deeds, and it can render the whole document ineffective. Copy it character by character from your existing deed. Don’t paraphrase.
Naming Beneficiaries and Backups
Most forms let you name one or more primary beneficiaries. Some state forms include a line for contingent (backup) beneficiaries, and some do not. Check your form carefully. If your state’s form has no contingent beneficiary line, you cannot add one yourself and expect it to be honored.
This creates a real problem if your only named beneficiary dies before you do. The TOD deed typically becomes void for that beneficiary’s share, and the property passes through your probate estate as if the deed never existed. Anti-lapse statutes, which sometimes redirect a deceased beneficiary’s share to their children, generally do not apply to assets that pass outside probate. If your beneficiary dies before you, record a new TOD deed naming a replacement. Don’t assume the property will go to anyone in particular.
Signing, Notarization, and Witnesses
Every state that allows TOD deeds requires the grantor — the property owner — to sign. Beyond that, requirements vary. Most states require notarization, meaning you sign in front of a notary public who verifies your identity and stamps the document. Some states also require two witnesses in addition to the notary. Illinois requires both, and a TOD instrument without both is void under Illinois law.
Your beneficiaries do not need to sign the deed. They do not even need to know about it. The TOD deed is your document, and you can revoke or change it at any time while you are alive. Don’t skip notarization or improvise on witness requirements. A deed that is not properly executed under your state’s rules will fail when it matters.
Record the Deed With the County
A TOD deed is not effective until it is recorded with the county recorder’s office in the county where the property sits, and it must be recorded before you die. A signed but unrecorded TOD deed sitting in a drawer does nothing. This is a hard requirement in every state that allows these deeds.
Bring or mail the original signed and notarized document to the county recorder. You will pay a recording fee, which varies by county but commonly falls between $15 and $50 per page. Some counties charge a flat fee for the first page and a smaller amount for each additional page. The clerk stamps the document, assigns it a recording number, and returns a copy to you. Keep that recorded copy with your important papers so your beneficiaries can find it later.
Changing or Revoking the Deed Later
You can revoke a TOD deed any time before your death. There are generally three ways: record a new TOD deed naming a different beneficiary, which automatically supersedes the old one; record a standalone revocation instrument that explicitly cancels the earlier deed; or record a standard deed transferring the property to someone else during your lifetime. Whichever method you use, the revocation or replacement must be recorded before your death to count.
One point trips people up constantly. A provision in your will cannot override a recorded TOD deed. If your TOD deed names your daughter but your will leaves the same property to your son, the daughter gets it. TOD deeds operate outside probate and take priority over anything your will says. Updating your will alone is not enough.
What Your Beneficiary Inherits
A TOD deed transfers the property subject to any existing mortgages, liens, or judgments. Your beneficiary does not receive the property free and clear. If you owe $200,000 on your mortgage when you die, your beneficiary inherits a property with a $200,000 mortgage attached and will need to refinance, pay it off, or sell the property to satisfy the debt.
The transfer itself will not trigger a due-on-sale clause. Federal law prohibits lenders from accelerating a residential mortgage when the property transfers because of the borrower’s death.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 U.S.C. 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions Your beneficiary can keep the existing loan in place and continue making payments.
On taxes, property passing through a TOD deed qualifies for a stepped-up basis under federal law. Your beneficiary’s cost basis for capital gains purposes resets to the property’s fair market value on the date of your death, not what you originally paid.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S.C. 1014 – Basis of Property Acquired From a Decedent If they sell shortly after inheriting, the capital gains hit can be minimal or zero.
When a TOD Deed Isn’t Enough
A TOD deed only covers real estate. It does nothing for bank accounts, investments, vehicles, or personal property, and it provides no plan for managing the property if you become incapacitated during your lifetime. For a straightforward situation and property in a single state, a TOD deed paired with beneficiary designations on financial accounts can handle the basics of probate avoidance. For property in multiple states, blended family dynamics, minor beneficiaries, or significant assets, a revocable living trust gives you more control. It costs more to set up but can hold all types of assets, name successor managers, and provide detailed distribution instructions. A TOD deed cannot.
If you receive Medicaid-funded long-term care, whether a TOD deed shields the property from estate recovery depends on how your state defines “estate” for recovery purposes. Some states limit recovery to probate assets; others reach non-probate transfers. Talk to an elder law attorney before relying on a TOD deed for Medicaid planning.