Louisiana Small Succession Affidavit: Passing a Home Without Court

By Donald J. Melancon, Attorney at Law · Last reviewed October 11, 2026

When a parent dies in Louisiana owning a modest house and not much else, the family often assumes a court proceeding is unavoidable. Frequently it is not. The Code of Civil Procedure allows a small succession to be settled by a sworn affidavit that the heirs sign and record, with no petition, no judge, and no judgment of possession. For a decedent who was domiciled in Louisiana, the estate qualifies if the gross value of the property, measured as of the date of death, is $200,000 or less. That ceiling was raised from $125,000 by Act 293 of the 2026 Regular Session, effective August 1, 2026, and it brings a great many family homes in Orleans, Jefferson, and Plaquemines Parishes within reach of the procedure.

What counts as a small succession

Article 3421 defines a small succession three ways. The first is the one most families use: a person who died domiciled in Louisiana leaving property with a gross value of $200,000 or less, valued as of the date of death. The second covers a person domiciled in another state who left property in Louisiana worth $125,000 or less; that figure was not changed in 2026. The third has no dollar limit: if the death occurred at least twenty years before the affidavit is signed, the succession is small regardless of value.

Two points about the number matter. It is gross value, so a mortgage does not reduce it. And it is measured at death, not today, which helps in the twenty-year category and in any estate where the house has appreciated since the owner passed.

Who can use the affidavit instead of a court proceeding

Qualifying as small is only half of it. Article 3431 lists the successions that may skip a judicial opening entirely:

• A person domiciled in Louisiana who died intestate, meaning without a will;
• A person domiciled in Louisiana who died with a will but left no immovable property in Louisiana, provided the surviving spouse, everyone who takes under the will, and everyone who would take without it agree to waive probate;
• A person domiciled outside Louisiana who died intestate, or whose will was probated by court order in another state.

The second category is where families are surprised. If the decedent lived in Louisiana, left a will, and owned a house here, the affidavit route is closed and the will must be probated in court, however small the estate. The affidavit passes a family home only when there is no Louisiana will to probate, or when the will has already been through a court elsewhere.

Who signs

For an intestate decedent, Article 3432 requires at least two signers: the surviving spouse, if there is one, and one or more heirs. With no surviving spouse, at least two heirs sign. With no spouse and only one heir, a second person with actual knowledge of the facts signs alongside the heir. A natural tutor may sign for a minor child, and a curator for an interdict, without a separate court petition.

Where a will exists but there is no Louisiana immovable property, Article 3432.1 is stricter: all heirs and legatees, including the surviving spouse, sign, a copy of the will is attached, and the signers waive any right to challenge it. For an out-of-state will already probated elsewhere, Article 3433 calls for at least two signers, including the spouse and a legatee, with the will and a certified copy of the foreign probate order attached.

What the affidavit must say

The intestate affidavit under Article 3432 is not a form letter. It must state the date of death and the decedent’s domicile; that there was no will; the decedent’s marital status, last residence, and the name of the surviving spouse; and the name, last known address, and relationship of every heir. For any heir who does not sign, it must show either that the heir could not be located after reasonable diligence or that the heir was sent notice by United States mail at least thirty days earlier and did not object.

It then describes the property, stating whether each item was community or separate. Immovable property must be described well enough to transfer it, which means the legal description from the last act of sale, not a street address. It lists the value of each item and the total as of the date of death, states the interest each heir inherits and whether the surviving spouse’s usufruct applies, confirms that the signing heirs accept the succession, and closes with an affirmation under penalty of perjury.

Every one of those recitals is a legal conclusion dressed as a fact. Whether the house was community or separate, who the heirs are under Louisiana’s intestate order, and whether a usufruct attaches are the questions a succession lawyer is paid to answer, and getting them wrong in a recorded affidavit creates a title problem rather than solving one.

Recording it to transfer the house

Article 3434 gives the affidavit its force. A multiple original or certified copy is full authority for a bank or anyone else holding the decedent’s property to pay or deliver it to the heirs in the shares stated, and the heirs’ receipt releases the payer. For immovable property, the affidavit, with any attachments the articles require, must be recorded in the conveyance records of the parish where the property sits. In Orleans Parish that is the Land Records Division of the Clerk of Civil District Court; in Jefferson and Plaquemines it is the Clerk of Court. Recorders and title examiners generally ask for a certified death certificate with the filing even though the current text of the article does not list one, so plan on having it.

Once recorded, the affidavit is prima facie proof of the facts it recites, including who the heirs are and what they own. The article also protects later buyers: a person claiming to be a successor who was left out of the affidavit has two years from the recording date to sue a third party who acquired the property for value.

Why it is popular in Orleans, Jefferson, and Plaquemines

The affidavit fits the most common estate in the river parishes: a long-held family home, a checking account, a vehicle, and no will. Court costs, the delay of a formal proceeding, and the attorney’s fees tied to that proceeding are avoided, and the affidavit can be prepared, signed, and recorded in weeks when the heirs cooperate. It also solves the older problem of a grandparent who died decades ago with the house still in that name; under the twenty-year rule the value no longer matters, and the current generation can clear the chain of title.

Where the affidavit stops working

The limits are real, and they are the reason a conversation with a lawyer before signing is worthwhile. A Louisiana will plus a Louisiana house requires probate; the affidavit is simply unavailable. An heir who objects cannot be worked around: the notice-and-no-objection route covers an heir who is passive or missing, not one who says no, and one objecting heir sends the family to court. Creditors are not cut off; the heirs affirm that they accept the succession, and a mortgage, a medical bill, or a tax lien follows the property, whereas a judicial succession with administration gives a structured way to deal with claims. Title insurance is the practical test: an underwriter asked to insure a sale out of an affidavit succession will read every recital against the public record and may require the affidavit to be supplemented or the succession opened judicially. And value near the line deserves care, since a house in Lakeview, Old Metairie, or along the river in Belle Chasse can exceed $200,000 on its own; an appraisal as of the date of death is worth obtaining before anyone signs.

The alternative: a judgment of possession

When the affidavit is unavailable or unwise, the path is a formal succession in the district court of the parish where the decedent was domiciled. Where no administration is needed, the heirs petition to be placed in possession, and the court signs a judgment of possession that is recorded in the conveyance records just as an affidavit would be. The judgment carries the authority of a court, resolves the questions a title examiner would otherwise raise, and is the document buyers and lenders expect to see. Article 3422 also reduces court costs for a judicial small succession, so the formal route is not as costly as families often fear. For how a full succession works, including forced heirship and the surviving spouse’s usufruct, see Louisiana Successions: What Happens to Property When Someone Dies. If the house was bought during the marriage, the rules in Community Property in a Louisiana Divorce: Who Gets What? decide what share the heirs actually inherit.

For purposes of compliance with the Louisiana Rules of Professional Conduct, the attorney responsible for this content is Donald J. Melancon (105 Field Street, Belle Chasse, Louisiana 70037).