A beneficiary deed is one of the probate-avoidance tools covered in Arizona estate planning. This article explains what the deed does, what makes one valid, how it gets recorded, how to name and change beneficiaries, and the limits of what it can accomplish.
What an Arizona beneficiary deed does
Arizona uses the term “beneficiary deed” for what many other states call a transfer-on-death (TOD) deed. Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405, a deed that conveys real property to a named grantee beneficiary and expressly states that it is effective on the owner’s death transfers that interest to the beneficiary when the owner dies. The property passes directly to the beneficiary and does not become part of the probate estate.
During the owner’s lifetime the deed does nothing. The owner keeps full ownership and can sell, mortgage, or give away the property, and the named beneficiary has no legal interest in it. Section 33-405(I) states that the signature, consent, or agreement of the grantee beneficiary is not required for any purpose during the owner’s lifetime, and the owner does not even have to tell the beneficiary the deed exists.
When the owner dies, the beneficiary takes the property subject to every mortgage, deed of trust, lien, and other encumbrance that was in place during the owner’s life. A beneficiary deed transfers whatever interest the owner held, along with the debts attached to it, under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(A).
Requirements for a valid beneficiary deed
A beneficiary deed must do more than name a beneficiary. Four things have to line up for it to work.
- It must state that it is effective on death. The deed has to expressly say the transfer takes effect on the death of the owner. A deed that simply names a future recipient without that language is an ordinary conveyance, not a beneficiary deed.
- It must identify the property by legal description. The parcel’s full legal description, not just a street address, belongs in the deed.
- It must be signed and acknowledged. The owner signs before a notary, the same way any recordable Arizona deed is acknowledged.
- It must be recorded before the owner dies. Under
Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(E), a beneficiary deed is valid only if it is executed and recorded in the office of the county recorder where the property sits before the death of the owner. A deed found in a drawer after death, unrecorded, transfers nothing.
Section 33-405(K) provides a sample form. A deed that follows that form and complies with Arizona’s other recording laws is sufficient, though many owners use a form drafted for the specific parcel and ownership situation.
How to record the deed
Recording happens at the county recorder’s office in the county where the property is located. The process is short, but the details on the face of the deed matter.
Prepare the deed
Draft the deed with the owner’s name, the grantee beneficiary’s name, the property’s full legal description, and language stating that the conveyance is effective on the owner’s death. The statutory sample form in Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(K) shows the required elements.
Sign before a notary
The owner signs the deed in front of a notary public, who completes the acknowledgment. Every owner whose interest the deed transfers has to sign, subject to the multiple-owner rules below.
Note the affidavit exemption on the deed
Most Arizona property transfers must include an Affidavit of Property Value, but a beneficiary deed with only nominal consideration is exempt under
Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-1134(B)(12). Section 11-1134(C) requires the deed to note the specific exemption on its face at the time of recording.Record and pay the fee
File the signed, notarized deed with the county recorder. The recording fee set by
Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-475is $30 per instrument as of 2026. The recorder stamps the deed with a recording date and instrument number, which is the proof the deed was recorded before death.
A standard sale would attach an Affidavit of Property Value, the form used to report a sale price to the county assessor and the state. Because a beneficiary deed is exempt, that affidavit is not filed; the exemption note on the face of the deed takes its place.
Naming beneficiaries, successors, and multiple owners
A beneficiary deed can name more than one recipient. Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(B), multiple grantees can take title as joint tenants with right of survivorship, tenants in common, community property, or another valid tenancy. Unless the deed says otherwise, the interest a beneficiary receives is that person’s separate property, not community property.
The deed can also name a successor beneficiary who takes if the first choice does not survive the owner. Section 33-405(C) requires the deed to state the condition on which the successor’s interest vests. If no named beneficiary survives the owner and the deed provides no alternative, the deed is void and the property stays in the owner’s estate.
Ownership form changes who has to sign. For property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship or as community property with right of survivorship, Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(D) provides that the deed reaches the property only if the last surviving owner signed it. The survivorship rights of a co-owner still come first: a surviving joint tenant or surviving spouse takes ahead of a beneficiary named by an owner who died earlier.
Changing or revoking a beneficiary deed
A beneficiary deed is fully revocable during the owner’s life, which is one of the features that separates it from an outright gift. Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(F), the owner can revoke the deed at any time, but the revocation is effective only if it is executed and recorded with the county recorder before the death of the owner who signs it. Section 33-405(L) supplies a sample revocation form.
Recording a new beneficiary deed is another way to change course. When an owner records more than one beneficiary deed for the same property, section 33-405(G) makes the last one recorded before death the effective deed. The earlier deed is superseded without a separate revocation.
A will cannot undo a beneficiary deed. Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(J) states that a beneficiary deed executed, acknowledged, and recorded under the statute is not revoked by the provisions of a will. An owner who wants to change the beneficiary records a new deed or a revocation; rewriting the will does not reach the property.
What a beneficiary deed does not do
A beneficiary deed handles one parcel of real property. It does not transfer bank accounts, vehicles, or personal property, and it does not replace a broader estate plan. Other assets may still pass through probate, the court process the Arizona Judicial Branch administers for a decedent’s estate.
The deed also does not clean the title. Because the beneficiary takes subject to every lien and mortgage on the property under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(A), an outstanding home loan, tax lien, or judgment lien follows the property to the beneficiary. The transfer moves ownership, not the debt attached to it.
Finally, a beneficiary deed does not give the beneficiary any control while the owner is alive. The owner can sell the property, refinance it, or record a revocation, and the beneficiary cannot stop any of it. The interest exists only if the property is still owned at death and the deed is still on record.
Frequently asked questions
Is an Arizona beneficiary deed the same as a transfer on death deed?
Yes. Beneficiary deed is the term Arizona’s statute uses for what many states call a transfer-on-death (TOD) deed. Both name a beneficiary who receives real property at the owner’s death under the authority of Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405, and both keep the property out of probate.
Does a beneficiary deed avoid probate for the property?
For the parcel it covers, yes, as long as a named beneficiary survives the owner. The property passes directly to the beneficiary under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405 rather than through the estate. Other assets the owner leaves behind may still go through probate.
Does the beneficiary have to pay the mortgage?
The beneficiary takes the property subject to any mortgage, deed of trust, and lien that existed during the owner’s life, under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(A). The debt stays with the property, so a beneficiary who keeps a mortgaged home is responsible for that loan.
Can more than one person be named as beneficiary?
Yes. Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(B) allows a deed to name multiple grantees as joint tenants with right of survivorship, tenants in common, community property, or another valid tenancy. A successor beneficiary can also be named to take if the first choice does not survive the owner.
Is an Affidavit of Property Value required to record the deed?
No. A beneficiary deed with only nominal consideration is exempt from the affidavit under Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 11-1134(B)(12). The deed instead notes the exemption on its face, as section 11-1134(C) requires.
What happens if the deed is signed but never recorded?
It transfers nothing. Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-405(E) makes recording before the owner’s death a condition of validity. A beneficiary deed discovered after death, unrecorded, has no effect, and it cannot be recorded once the owner has died.