If you read about "transfer on death deeds" or "TOD deeds" in another state, Arizona has the same tool under a different name: the beneficiary deed, created by A.R.S. § 33-405. It does exactly what you are hoping - your home passes directly to the person you name, at death, with no probate - and it costs about as much as recording a document.
What the deed route costs to record
$25
in the neighborhood of a recording fee - against the $5,000 to $15,000 in typical attorney fees a probated home can generate. Few documents buy more protection per dollar.
How Arizona's version works
- You record the deed with the county recorder before death - an unrecorded deed in a drawer is void.
- Nothing changes while you are alive: you own, sell, refinance, or revoke at will. The named beneficiary has no rights until death.
- The last deed recorded controls, and a will cannot override a recorded beneficiary deed.
- You can name a backup beneficiary in case your first choice dies before you.
The full mechanics, including the survivorship trap that voids some deeds on jointly held property, are in the complete beneficiary deed guide.
What it cannot do
One asset class, one move: Arizona real estate, transferred at death. No staging for young beneficiaries, no incapacity management, no protection for an heir mid-divorce, nothing for the accounts. It solves the single biggest probate trigger - the house - and leaves the rest of the plan to the other routes or a living trust. The comparison: beneficiary deed vs trust.
Source
- A.R.S. § 33-405 (beneficiary deeds) (full text, checked 2026-07-26)
Educational information only, not legal advice. Deed forms and recording have statutory specifics - have the document prepared or reviewed by a licensed professional.