Will, debts, heirs, bond. How a Texas court sorts an estate into four procedures

The choice among Texas probate procedures is not really a choice made by the family. It is made by four facts that exist before anyone files anything: whether there is a will the court will admit, whether the estate owes money beyond a lien on the homestead, whether every heir agrees, and whether a bond can be waived. A careful reader works those four facts out on paper first, then reads the procedures against them, because filing the cheap one and having it rejected costs more than filing the right one at the start.

Muniment of title and the small estate affidavit, side by side

These are the two short paths, and they are short for opposite reasons. Muniment of title requires a valid will and requires that the estate have no unpaid debts other than a lien secured by the homestead; the court admits the will as evidence of title and appoints nobody, so there is no executor, no letters, and no inventory in the ordinary sense. The small estate affidavit runs the other way: it requires that there be no will at all, that assets other than the homestead exceed known liabilities, and that the value clear of the homestead and exempt property stay under the statutory ceiling.

The practical difference shows up when someone tries to use the affidavit on an estate with a will sitting in a drawer, or muniment on an estate carrying a credit card balance and a car note. Both fail, and they fail after the filing fee is paid. The other constraint on the small estate affidavit is that title companies and banks accept it unevenly, so an estate that qualifies on the numbers can still stall when a buyer's underwriter wants letters testamentary instead of a stamped affidavit.

Independent administration, the ordinary answer

Most Texas estates that need a representative go through independent administration, and the reason is that the court's involvement stops almost entirely after the executor is appointed. The will usually names an independent executor and waives bond, which is what makes the path cheap; the executor files an inventory, appraisement and list of claims, publishes notice to creditors, notifies beneficiaries, and then sells property, pays debts and distributes without asking permission for each step. Where there is no will, independent administration is still available if all the distributees agree in writing and ask the court to appoint one, which is why heir agreement belongs on the checklist beside the will.

Dependent administration, and why a bond appears

Dependent administration is the version where the court supervises. The administrator posts a bond set by the judge, then returns for an order before selling real property, paying most claims, hiring counsel or making distributions, and files annual accountings until the estate closes. It is the default when there is no will and the heirs do not agree, when a creditor forces the issue, or when the will fails to waive bond and no one can obtain a waiver. The cost difference is not subtle: bond premiums recur, and every court order is drafted, filed, set and heard.

No will means heirship comes first

When someone dies without a will and the estate is not small enough for an affidavit, the court cannot appoint anyone until it knows who the heirs are. A proceeding to determine heirship runs alongside or ahead of the administration: an application, citation by posting and sometimes by publication, an attorney ad litem appointed to represent unknown or unlocated heirs, and testimony from two disinterested witnesses who knew the family. In El Paso County that ad litem fee is a real line item, paid from the estate, and it is charged whether the heirs agree or not.

What a careful reader checks before filing

Pull the deed and confirm the homestead lien is the only secured debt. List every unsecured creditor, including medical balances that have not yet been billed. Ask whether the will waives bond in words, not by implication. Confirm that every heir will sign, and that no heir is a minor or incapacitated, because that alone can force dependent administration. Then check the tax side, since the IRS is responsible for the federal filings an estate may owe, including a final individual return and, where the estate earns income during administration, its own return under an employer identification number.

The procedure that survives contact with the court is the one whose conditions the estate actually meets on the day of filing, and those conditions are knowable in an afternoon with a deed, a credit report and a phone call to each heir.