See who inherits an estate in Pennsylvania when there is no will, under 20 Pa.C.S. Sec. 2102 and 2103.
Net value of the intestate estate (assets that pass by intestacy, after debts).
Count the decedent's living children (or lines of descent).
Blended families change the spouse's share under 20 Pa.C.S. Sec. 2102.
This only matters when there are no children (issue).
Surviving spouse
Children or other heirs
The first $30,000 spousal allowance is set by statute (20 Pa.C.S. Sec. 2102). This is a general estimate of intestate shares, not legal advice.
Intestacy splits your estate by a fixed formula. A valid Pennsylvania will lets you decide who receives what.
Create my willCreate a clear Pennsylvania will draft in minutes so your estate passes the way you want.
Create your will nowIntestate succession is what happens to your property when you die without a valid will. Pennsylvania then decides who inherits, using a fixed formula in the Probate, Estates and Fiduciaries Code (Title 20 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes). Your wishes do not enter into it. The estate passes to your closest relatives in the order the statute sets, starting with a surviving spouse and children.
Under 20 Pa.C.S. Sec. 2102, a surviving spouse does not always take everything. If there are no children and no surviving parent, the spouse takes the entire estate. If there is a surviving parent but no children, the spouse takes the first $30,000 plus one half of the balance, and the parents take the rest. Where all of the children are also the spouse's children, the spouse again takes the first $30,000 plus one half of the balance, and the children share the other half. The $30,000 figure is set by statute.
If even one of the decedent's children is not also a child of the surviving spouse, the rule changes. In that case the spouse takes only one half of the estate and receives no $30,000 allowance. The other half is divided among all of the decedent's children equally. This surprises many blended families, and a will is the simplest way to set your own split.
When there is no surviving spouse, 20 Pa.C.S. Sec. 2103 sends the estate to the decedent's issue (children and their descendants) in equal shares. If there are no children, it passes to the parents, then to brothers and sisters and their children, and only then to more distant relatives. When there are children but no spouse, the children inherit the whole estate equally.
Answer a few simple questions and get a draft tailored to your situation, instantly as PDF, Word and OpenOffice.
Create your will nowPersonalized · Legally sound · Download instantly