Michigan Small Estates: the small estate affidavit
The short answer
Michigan calls its simplified route the small estate affidavit, and it is set out in MCL 700.3983 (adjusted per MCL 700.1210). This is the amount for deaths in 2026. It changes every year. It can't be used if there is any real estate. You have to wait a set number of days after the death before using it. It does not transfer real estate. A house in the person’s sole name needs the court process instead. The current limit and the date we last read the statute are on the card below.
Michigan’s small estate affidavit
Michigan sets this out in MCL 700.3983 (adjusted per MCL 700.1210). This is the amount for deaths in 2026. It changes every year. It can't be used if there is any real estate. The figure itself, and the date we last read that statute, are on the card below.[1]
Michigan
- Procedure:
- small estate affidavit
- Limit:
- $53,000
- Wait:
- 28 days
- Real estate:
- not covered
This is the amount for deaths in 2026. It changes every year. It can't be used if there is any real estate.
MCL 700.3983 (adjusted per MCL 700.1210) — official page read September 18, 2026
It does not transfer real estate. A house in the person’s sole name needs the court process instead.[1]
The small estate affidavit is one piece of settling an estate in Michigan. Answer a few questions and Go Forward builds the rest of the list for your situation — the notifications, the accounts, the paperwork — in the order it needs doing.
Build my plan →Steps this page connects to: Check whether probate is required · Order certified death certificates · List what the estate holds
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Creditor claims under MCL 700.3801, 700.3803
Above the limit it is a regular Michigan probate case, and whoever the court appoints has to publish a notice to creditors in a local newspaper. The window for claims is 4 months after the notice is published. Without notice, 3 years after the death.. Paying anyone out before that window closes can leave the person who paid personally liable.[2]
Michigan
- Published notice:
- required
- Claim window:
- 4 months after the notice is published. Without notice, 3 years after the death.
MCL 700.3801, 700.3803 — official page read September 18, 2026
Sources
- MCL 700.3983 (adjusted per MCL 700.1210) (small estate affidavit) — Michigan — official statute or court self-help page. Read September 18, 2026.
- MCL 700.3801, 700.3803 (notice to creditors) — Michigan — official statute or court self-help page. Read September 18, 2026.
Each state above links to the statute or court page we read, with the date we read it.
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