Quick answer: no solely owned real estate, personal property at or under $40,000 — the affidavit. Any solely owned real property, or personal property above $40,000 — full probate. Check your own numbers with the Connecticut small estate checker.
A categorical bar, not a value exclusion
Survivorship ownership is the exception
Property already held in a way that passes automatically to a surviving co-owner — survivorship real estate — doesn't count against this rule and doesn't block the affidavit, unlike solely owned real property.
No deed-based workaround exists here
Some states let an owner name a beneficiary directly on a Transfer on Death deed to route around exactly this kind of problem. Connecticut doesn't recognize TOD deeds for real property at all, so there's no equivalent planning tool available.
Even the shortcut runs through the court
Unlike states with a true out-of-court, bank-counter small estate affidavit, Connecticut's version is still filed with, and authorized by, the Probate Court — there's no path here that bypasses the court entirely.
The decision, in order
- Is any real estate jointly titled with survivorship? → Doesn't block the affidavit.
- Is there any solely owned real estate remaining? → Full probate required, regardless of value.
- Personal property (solely owned) at or under $40,000, no solely owned real estate? → Affidavit in Lieu of Probate.
- None of the above fits → Full probate.
A local probate attorney can review your estate — many offer a free consultation.
Whichever track applies, filing happens with the Probate Court in the decedent's district — Hartford, Stamford, and New Haven among the busiest of Connecticut's 54 districts.