Maricopa County Small Estate Affidavit: Forms and Filing Steps

The Maricopa County small estate affidavit comes in two versions: one for personal property (bank accounts, vehicles, stocks) and one for real estate. The personal property affidavit is notarized and handed to the bank or other holder, with no court filing. The real property affidavit is filed with the Clerk of the Superior Court, certified by the probate registrar, and then recorded with the county recorder. Available 24/7 • Free confidential consultations • (480) 725-2257

The two affidavits at a glance

Both come from A.R.S. 14-3971, but they work very differently. The court’s packet warns to follow only the steps for the affidavit you are using.

The current limits, in short

Arizona raised the limits in 2025. Under the amended A.R.S. 14-3971, the personal property limit is $200,000 (it was $75,000) and the real property limit is $300,000 (it was $100,000). The change came from HB 2116 and took effect on the Legislature’s general effective date of September 26, 2025. A surviving spouse can also use an affidavit to collect up to $5,000 in wages the employer still owed.

Eligibility and valuation are covered in our Arizona small estate affidavit guide. This page covers the paperwork.

Where to get the official Maricopa County forms

The Maricopa County Superior Court’s Law Library Resource Center publishes the forms as one packet called PBSE1, Transfer of a Small Estate by Affidavit. You can get it free from the Law Library Resource Center small estate page or download the full PBSE1 packet (PDF). A Spanish version is posted on the same page. The packet includes:

• PBSE10P, Procedures. The court’s instructions for both affidavits. The packet says not to copy or file the instruction pages.
• PBSE11F. Affidavit for Collection of All Personal Property.
• PBSE12F. Affidavit for Transfer of Title to Real Property.
• PB10F, Probate Information Cover Sheet. Used only with the real property affidavit, and only for new cases.

The court says its forms are current only on the day you get them, so download them close to when you will use them. The Maricopa forms are written for someone who lived in Maricopa County or owned real property there. Other counties publish their own.

Personal property affidavit: how it works

This is the simpler of the two. Nothing is filed with the court and there is no court fee. The court’s procedures sheet says you complete the affidavit, have it notarized, and give it to whoever holds the property.

Under A.R.S. 14-3971(B), you swear that 30 days have passed, no personal representative has been appointed (or one was discharged, or a year has passed since a closing statement), the property is within the $200,000 limit, you are entitled to it, and the funeral and last illness expenses are paid.

Step by step

1. Wait until 30 days have passed since the date of death.
2. Complete form PBSE11F from the current packet, and confirm the total, after liens and loans, is $200,000 or less.
3. If you are named in a will, attach a copy. If other people with equal or greater rights have signed their interest over to you, attach copies of those signed assignments.
4. Sign in front of a notary public. The court’s packet says the Clerk of the Superior Court cannot notarize this form.
5. Present it to each holder: the bank, the broker or transfer agent, the employer for a spouse’s wages, or the Motor Vehicle Division for a car. Under A.R.S. 14-3971(D), MVD transfers the title once you pay its fees.

The statute does not require a death certificate with this affidavit, but holders often ask for one under their own policies.

Real property affidavit: how it works

The real property affidavit (often called an affidavit of succession to real property) is a court filing. Under A.R.S. 14-3971(E), it is filed with the court in the county where the decedent lived. If the decedent did not live in Arizona, it is filed in a county where the property is located.

What you swear to

• Six months have passed since the death, shown by a certified copy of the death certificate attached to the affidavit.
• The Arizona real property, less liens and encumbrances, is worth no more than $300,000, based on the assessment rolls (or the unpaid balance, for a loan secured by real estate).
• Funeral expenses, last illness expenses and all unsecured debts have been paid.
• Your right to the property comes from a will, from being the sole heirs, or from a statutory family allowance.
• No one else has a right to the decedent’s interest in the property.
• No estate tax is due. The statute says federal estate tax. The Maricopa form says federal or Arizona estate tax.

What goes with it

• A certified copy of the death certificate. Always required.
• The original will, if there is one. If the will was already probated in another court, attach a court-certified copy instead.
• Signed assignments, if other heirs have signed their interest over to you.
• A copy of the closing statement, if an earlier probate was opened in a county other than Maricopa.
• The PB10F Probate Information Cover Sheet, with box #204, “Affidavit of Succession to Realty,” marked.

Step by step

1. Wait until at least six months have passed since the date of death.
2. Check the assessor’s value for all Arizona real property, subtract liens, and confirm the total is $300,000 or less.
3. Complete form PBSE12F with a description of the property. If an estate was opened earlier, write that probate case number on it.
4. Have every successor sign. The form has extra signature pages for more than one beneficiary, and each signature must be sworn before a deputy clerk or a notary public.
5. Complete the PB10F cover sheet and mark #204.
6. File the originals at a Clerk of the Superior Court filing counter: downtown Phoenix (Old Courthouse or Central Court Building), the Northeast Regional facility in Phoenix, the Northwest Regional facility in Surprise, or the Southeast facility in Mesa. Pay the filing fee.
7. If the probate registrar finds the affidavit complete, the registrar issues a certified copy of the affidavit, without the attachments, under A.R.S. 14-3971(F).
8. Record that certified copy with the county recorder in each county where the property sits. In Maricopa County, that is the Maricopa County Recorder.

Fees for the real property affidavit

• Court filing fee. The statute says the normal filing fee applies unless the court waives or defers it under A.R.S. 12-301 or 12-302. The Clerk’s current probate fee chart (dated March 1, 2026) lists $306 for “Probate, Informal / Affidavits.” The court’s packet does not state the amount, so confirm it with the Clerk before you file.
• Recording fee. Under A.R.S. 11-475, county recorders charge $30 per document for most recordings. The Maricopa County Recorder lists the same $30 fee.

Common reasons an affidavit gets rejected

• Filed or presented too early. Personal property needs at least 30 days. Real property needs six months.
• Value over the limit. For real estate, the measure is the assessor’s figure, not a sale price.
• Missing attachments. No certified death certificate, no original will, or missing assignments from other heirs.
• Not every successor signed. If two or more people inherit, each needs to sign or assign their share.
• No notary. The personal property affidavit must be notarized, and the Clerk will not do it.
• Wrong county. The real property affidavit belongs in the county where the decedent lived (or, for a non-Arizona resident, where the property is).
• Debts not paid. Funeral and last illness costs, and for real property all unsecured debts, must be paid before you sign.
• The asset already passed another way, such as by beneficiary deed, payable-on-death designation, survivorship or a trust. See what to do with a beneficiary deed after death.

If a holder refuses, A.R.S. 14-3972 matters. A holder that pays out on an affidavit is released from liability and does not have to check the statements. If it still refuses, the person entitled to the property can bring a court proceeding to make it pay or deliver, but must prove the right to it. Whoever receives property this way stays answerable to a later personal representative or anyone with a better right.

When people bring in an attorney

Many families handle this on their own. People typically bring in an attorney when:

• Values are close to the limit, where a small valuation error can make the affidavit false.
• Other heirs object or will not sign or assign their share.
• There is real estate in more than one county.
• The bank or title company refuses the affidavit.
• The estate does not qualify, and informal or formal probate is the next step.

Frequently asked questions

Do I file the personal property affidavit with the Maricopa County court?

No. The court’s packet says the personal property affidavit is not filed with the court and there is no court fee. You sign it before a notary and give it directly to the bank, broker, MVD or other holder of the asset.

Can the Clerk of the Superior Court notarize my affidavit?

Not the personal property affidavit. The court’s packet says the Clerk cannot notarize that form, so you need a notary public. For the real property affidavit, the form allows signatures to be sworn before a deputy clerk or a notary.

What value counts for the $300,000 real property limit?

The statute uses the value shown on the assessment rolls, less liens and encumbrances, as of the date of death. It is the total for all of the decedent’s Arizona real property, not each parcel. A sale price or online estimate is not the measure.

The house is in Pinal County but my parent lived in Mesa. Where do I file?

Under A.R.S. 14-3971(E), you file in the county where the decedent lived, here Maricopa. The certified copy is then recorded in the county where the property sits, here Pinal.

Can I use the old form I downloaded last year?

Check it first. The limits changed on September 26, 2025, and a form showing the old $75,000 or $100,000 limits is out of date.

Related guides

• Arizona small estate affidavit: eligibility and limits
• Arizona estate planning overview
• Informal vs formal probate in Arizona
• Beneficiary deed after death
• Personal representative duties

Disclaimer: Arizona Estate & Family Law Resource Center is an independent legal referral service, not a law firm. We do not provide legal advice and do not employ attorneys. No attorney-client relationship is created by contacting us or submitting a request through this website. All attorneys in our referral network are independent licensed professionals. Verify attorney credentials through the State Bar of Arizona.