When Is Probate Required in Oregon?

Oregon sets a separate limit of $200,000 for real property. 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 probateORS 93.948 to 93.979Verified Oct 17, 2026View source in Oregon. The Oregon trust vs. will comparison sets the two routes side by side.

In Oregon, 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 deedORS 93.948 to 93.979Verified 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 Oregon, a simple estate typically takes 4 months to 6 months through probate, and an average estate 6 months to 12 months. An estate with a dispute, real estate in another state or an unusual asset runs longer. The creditor claim period of 4 monthsORS 115.005Verified Sep 8, 2026View source sets the floor: final distribution waits for it to run.

The common ways to avoid probate in Oregon are a funded revocable living trust, beneficiary designations on accounts, recording a transfer-on-death deed for real estateORS 93.948 to 93.979Verified 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.