Answers

How do I avoid probate in Illinois?

By Adam Lysinski, Attorney · Updated May 16, 2026

Probate is avoidable in Illinois. A funded revocable living trust, a recorded TODI, joint tenancy, and beneficiary designations each keep assets out of probate.

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Short answer

You avoid Illinois probate by ensuring assets do not pass under a will. The four reliable tools are: a funded revocable living trust, an Illinois Transfer-on-Death Instrument (TODI) for real estate, joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, and valid beneficiary designations on accounts. A revocable living trust is the most comprehensive because it also manages assets if you become incapacitated.

The four tools

Revocable living trust. Assets titled in the trust pass to beneficiaries at death without probate, are managed by a successor trustee if you become incapacitated, and stay private. The trust must be funded — assets actually retitled into it — to work.

Transfer-on-Death Instrument (TODI). An Illinois-specific recorded deed that transfers a single piece of real estate to named beneficiaries at death. Low cost, simple, but does nothing for incapacity.

Joint tenancy and tenancy by the entirety. Property held in joint tenancy with right of survivorship passes automatically to the surviving owner. Tenancy by the entirety is available to married couples on the principal residence.

Beneficiary designations. Retirement accounts, life insurance, and payable-on-death or transfer-on-death accounts pass directly to the named beneficiary, outside probate — if the designation is current and valid.

The most common mistake

An unfunded trust. A revocable living trust only avoids probate for assets actually titled in the trust's name. A signed trust with the house still titled in the individual's name does not avoid probate for that house. Funding — recording a deed into the trust, retitling accounts — is the step that makes the trust work, and it is the step most often left undone.

Stale beneficiary designations. A designation naming an ex-spouse, or a deceased person, or no contingent beneficiary, can send an asset to the wrong place or back into probate. Designations should be reviewed after every major life event.

Related questions

How do I avoid probate in Illinois?
You avoid Illinois probate by ensuring assets do not pass under a will. The four reliable tools are a funded revocable living trust, an Illinois TODI for real estate, joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, and valid beneficiary designations on accounts and policies.
Is a will enough to avoid probate?
No. A will is a set of instructions that the probate court administers — having a will does not avoid probate, it directs it. To avoid probate you must use non-probate transfer tools such as a funded trust, a TODI, joint tenancy, or beneficiary designations.
Why do people say a trust must be “funded”?
A revocable living trust only avoids probate for assets actually retitled into the trust's name. Funding means recording a deed transferring real estate into the trust and retitling accounts. An unfunded trust — signed but with assets still in the individual's name — does not avoid probate for those assets.
Does a TODI avoid probate for my house?
Yes. An Illinois Transfer-on-Death Instrument recorded with the County Recorder during your lifetime transfers that specific property to your named beneficiaries at death without probate. It does not address incapacity, and it covers only the real estate described in the instrument.

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