Intestate – What Happens if I Die Without an Estate Plan?

Dying without an estate plan is known as dying “intestate.” Property you owned only in your name will go to your spouse, close relatives and sometimes to more distant relatives. If no relatives are found, a highly unusual circumstance, your property goes to the state! Without an estate plan, Missouri statutes will determine who receives your estate.

If You Are Married at the Time of Your Death

If you are married at the time of your death and you die intestate, your surviving spouse will receive:

1. The entire estate if there are no surviving issue of the decedent;
2. The first $20,000 in value of the estate plus half the balance of the estate if there are surviving issue of the decedent and all of the surviving issue or also issue of the surviving spouse;
3. Half the estate if there are surviving issue, one or more of whom are not issue of the surviving spouse.

Who Gets the Rest of the Estate or What if There is no Surviving Spouse?

After distribution of the portion of the estate to a surviving spouse, the remainder of the estate, or the entire estate if there is no surviving spouse, will go to:

1. The decedent’s children, or their descendants, in equal parts;
2. If there are no children or their descendants, then to the decedent’s father, mother, brother, and sisters, or their descendants, in equal parts;
3. If the decedent has no children, father, mother, brother, and sisters, or their descendants, then to the grandfathers, grandmothers, uncles and aunts, or their descendants, in equal parts;
4. If the decedent has no children, father, mother, brother, sisters, grandfathers, grandmothers, uncles and aunts, or their descendants, then to the great-grandfathers, great-grandmothers, or their descendants,in equal parts;
5. This goes on and on until the nearest surviving relative is found who then gets the estate.

What If There is No Surviving Spouse or Relative?

If there is no surviving spouse or kindred of the decedent, then the whole  estate will go to the kindred of a the predeceased spouse, if there is one. The estate will the pass to the predeceased spouse’s kindred as described above. If there is more than one predeceased spouse then the estate is divided in equal share’s to go to the kindred of the predeceased spouse. If there are no relatives of any kind to be found, including those of predeceased spouses, the estate will go to the State of Missouri.

Even giving a little thought to what could happen if you die intestate reveals scenarios no one would want. The lack of an estate plan could result in all or a portion of your estate going to in-laws of your in-laws or some relative you have never spoken with, much less met. This underscores the importance of putting together a comprehensive estate plan to make sure your wishes are carried out after your death.