Dying without a will · New York
What happens if you die without a will in New York
Verified June 7, 2026
Who inherits in New York
When someone dies intestate — without a valid will — New York law sets a fixed order of who inherits. These are the common situations.
| If you are survived by… | Who inherits |
|---|---|
| Spouse only (no children or descendants) | Spouse inherits the entire estate. |
| Spouse and children | Spouse receives the first $50,000 plus one-half of the balance; children share the remaining half equally (per stirpes for predeceased children's issue). |
| Children but no spouse | Children inherit everything in equal shares (per stirpes). |
| No spouse or children | Estate passes to your parents equally, or to the surviving parent; if none, to your siblings and the descendants of deceased siblings per stirpes. |
| No spouse, children, parents, or siblings | The estate passes to the nearest degree of blood relatives; if none can be found, it escheats to the State of New York. |
New York is a common-law (equitable distribution) state — there is no community property. The $50,000 threshold that the spouse receives first is set by statute (EPTL § 4-1.1) and has not been adjusted for inflation in many years, so its practical impact varies widely depending on estate size. Unlike some states, New York does not change the spouse's share based on whether the children are also the spouse's children — the formula is the same regardless.
If no relatives can be located at any degree, the estate escheats to the State of New York. Non-probate assets — joint accounts, beneficiary-designated accounts, and trust assets — are not subject to these rules.
The simplest way to avoid all of this
Intestate succession only takes over when there is no valid, findable will. A will lets you decide who inherits — and keeping it somewhere your family can actually reach is what makes sure your wishes, not the state's default, are the ones that get followed.
Legatus Vault keeps your will and the documents around it in one secure place and releases them to the people you name when the time comes — so your family is handed a clear path instead of an empty drawer.
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