When Is Probate Required in Nevada?

Real property cannot be transferred through this procedure in Nevada — an estate that includes real estate uses a separate process. Real estate held in a trust, or otherwise titled to pass outside the probate estate, transfers without probate. A transfer-on-death deed recorded before death also passes real estate outside probateNRS 111.655 to 111.699Verified Oct 17, 2026View source in Nevada. The Nevada trust vs. will comparison sets the two routes side by side.

In Nevada, the assets that pass outside probate are property held in a living trust, accounts with a named beneficiary (retirement accounts, life insurance, payable-on-death bank accounts), real estate with a recorded transfer-on-death deedNRS 111.655 to 111.699Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, and property owned jointly with right of survivorship. Everything the decedent owned alone, with no beneficiary named, is the probate estate.

In Nevada, a simple estate typically takes 4 months to 6 months through probate, and an average estate 6 months to 9 months. An estate with a dispute, real estate in another state or an unusual asset runs longer. The creditor claim period of 3 monthsNRS 147.040Verified Sep 8, 2026View source sets the floor: final distribution waits for it to run.

The common ways to avoid probate in Nevada are a funded revocable living trust, beneficiary designations on accounts, recording a transfer-on-death deed for real estateNRS 111.655 to 111.699Verified Oct 17, 2026View source, and titling property as joint tenants with right of survivorship. A trust covers every asset titled to it in one document; the other routes work asset by asset.