Transfer on Death Deeds in Oklahoma, Texas, California and Florida
How transfer on death deeds pass a home without probate in Oklahoma, Texas and California, the recording deadlines in each, and what Florida owners use instead.
Updated November 11, 2026 · Examined Life
Covers: Oklahoma, Texas, California, Florida
A transfer on death deed names who gets your real estate when you die. Nothing passes while you're alive, you keep full control and you can change your mind. At your death the property passes to the beneficiary without probate. The rules on signing, recording and what the beneficiary must do afterward differ by state.
Side by side
| Oklahoma | Texas | California | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recording | Must be recorded with the county clerk before the owner's death | Must be recorded before the owner's death in the county where the land is | Must be recorded within 60 days after the notary's acknowledgment |
| Signing | Signed and acknowledged like a deed | Signed with the formalities of a recordable deed | Signed and dated, two witnesses present at the same time, and notarized |
| Changing it | Record a new TOD deed or a revocation | Record a later deed or revocation; a will can't revoke it | Record a revocation or a later TOD deed |
| After the death | Each beneficiary records an affidavit with a death certificate within nine months, or the property goes back into the estate | Beneficiary typically records an affidavit of death with a death certificate | Beneficiary serves notice on the heirs, then records an affidavit of death and proof of notice |
Oklahoma
Oklahoma's Nontestamentary Transfer of Property Act lets an owner sign and record a TOD deed naming one or more beneficiaries. The beneficiaries don't have to sign it or even know about it. An unrecorded TOD deed has no effect. The step families most often miss comes later: each beneficiary must sign an affidavit verifying the death and record it, with a copy of the death certificate, within nine months. If not, the property goes back into the owner's estate.
Texas
A Texas transfer on death deed needs no delivery or payment, and the beneficiary doesn't have to know about it. It's always revocable, but only by a later recorded deed or revocation; a will can't change it. A final divorce decree revokes it as to a former spouse if notice of the judgment is recorded before the owner's death. The property passes subject to existing liens and can be reached for estate debts if the estate is short.
California
California calls it a revocable transfer on death deed. It needs two witnesses who are present at the same time, plus a notary, and it must be recorded within 60 days after the notary's acknowledgment or it has no effect. After the death, heirs generally have 120 days after the beneficiary's notice to challenge it. The statute is scheduled to be repealed January 1, 2032 unless the Legislature extends it; deeds signed before then remain effective.
Florida: no TOD deed statute
Florida hasn't enacted a statute authorizing transfer on death deeds for real estate, so a deed labeled that way may not work. Florida owners who want to avoid probate usually use an enhanced life estate deed (often called a Lady Bird deed), a revocable living trust, or survivorship ownership. Florida's homestead rules still apply to all of them.
A deed doesn't remove a mortgage. Transferring property doesn't release the borrower from the loan, and many mortgages let the lender call the loan if the property is transferred. Talk with the lender and a real estate lawyer first.
The law behind this
- 58 O.S. §§ 1251-1258Oklahoma Nontestamentary Transfer of Property Act; § 1252 sets the nine-month affidavit deadline.
- Tex. Est. Code §§ 114.051-114.106Texas transfer on death deeds: requirements, revocation and effect at death.
- Cal. Prob. Code §§ 5600, 5624, 5626California sunset date, signing requirements and the 60-day recording rule.
- Fla. Const. art. X, § 4Florida homestead protections and limits on devise.
Common questions
Does a transfer on death deed avoid probate?
For that property, yes, in states that authorize it, as long as it's signed and recorded correctly and the beneficiary completes the post-death steps.
Can creditors still reach the property?
Often yes. In Texas, for example, the property passes subject to liens and can be reached for estate debts if the estate is short.
General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Laws, fees and deadlines change; confirm anything time-sensitive with the agency, court or a professional.