Transfer on Death Deeds in Texas: How to Sell the Land After the Owner Dies
A Texas transfer on death deed passes land to the named beneficiary at the owner’s death, without probate, if it was recorded before the death. Texas has no nine-month filing deadline like Oklahoma, but the land comes with no warranty of title and a 2-year window for estate claims. Here is what that means when you sell.
Updated Nov 3, 2026 · By the Twin Sun Land Company team
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Named on a transfer on death deed for land you may never have seen? Here is what changes when you sell to us.
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The short version
- Valid only if recorded before the owner’s death in the county deed records (Estates Code § 114.055).
- The beneficiary must outlive the owner by 120 hours; then the land passes at the death (§ 114.103).
- A will cannot override it; a later recorded sale by the owner can (§§ 114.057, 114.102).
- Mortgages and liens stay with the land; estate debts can reach it only if the estate is short, within 2 years (§§ 114.104, 114.106).
- Several beneficiaries own equal shares, so every one signs to sell the whole tract.
- If they disagree, family co-owners usually get a 45-day buyout before any forced sale (Property Code §§ 23A.002, 23A.007).
What is a transfer on death deed in Texas?
It is a deed that names who gets the land when the owner dies, without probate. To work, it must read like a recordable deed, say the transfer happens at the owner’s death, and be recorded in the county deed records before the owner dies (Estates Code § 114.055). The beneficiary doesn’t have to be told or sign anything.
No notice, delivery, acceptance or payment is needed (§ 114.056). While the owner is alive, the beneficiary owns nothing: the owner can still sell, mortgage or revoke, and the beneficiary’s own creditors cannot reach the land (§ 114.101). An unrecorded transfer on death deed found in a drawer after the death does not work.
| Question | Texas | Oklahoma |
|---|---|---|
| Recorded before the owner dies? | Yes, in the county deed records (§ 114.055) | Yes |
| Beneficiary filing deadline after the death | None in the statute; the transfer happens at the death (§ 114.103) | Affidavit within 9 months, or the land reverts to the estate |
| Can a will override it? | No (§ 114.057(b)) | No |
| Beneficiary who dies within 120 hours of the owner | That share lapses (§ 114.103(a)(2)) | A beneficiary who dies first: the gift lapses |
| Estate creditors can reach the land | Only if the estate is short, within 2 years (§ 114.106) | See the Oklahoma guide |
Selling Oklahoma land instead? The rules differ, including a nine-month deadline: transfer-on-death deeds in Oklahoma.
How do I sell land left to me by a Texas transfer on death deed?
If you outlive the owner by 120 hours, the land passes to you at the death under the deed (Estates Code § 114.103). Texas sets no affidavit deadline like Oklahoma’s. In practice, a title company will need the death shown in the records before it insures your sale, so call it first and ask exactly what it wants recorded.
- Find the recorded deed. Get a copy from the county clerk where the land is and check that it was recorded before the date of death.
- Get certified death certificates. The title company will start there.
- Ask the title company what it needs. It decides what must be recorded to show the death and who the beneficiaries are before it insures a sale.
- Every beneficiary signs. Two or more beneficiaries own equal, undivided shares with no right of survivorship (§ 114.103(a)(3)), so a buyer of the whole tract needs a deed from each of you.
One point surprises families: a transfer on death deed passes the land without a warranty of title, even if the deed says otherwise (§ 114.103(d)). Title problems from before the death, like an old lien or a missing heir in the chain, are still there. A title search catches them before closing.
Can the owner’s creditors or the estate take the land back?
Only in two ways. You take the land subject to every mortgage, lien and encumbrance on it at the death (Estates Code § 114.104). And if the estate can’t pay its debts, expenses, taxes or family allowances, the personal representative can collect the shortfall from the land, but must start within 2 years of the death (§ 114.106).
A mortgage or tax lien is normally paid off from the sale money at closing, so it rarely stops a sale. The 2-year window under § 114.106 is about unpaid debts of the estate itself: if the owner left large debts and little else, tell the title company and an estate attorney before you sign a contract. Selling Texas land with a lien · land that owes back taxes.
Can a will, a later sale or a divorce cancel a Texas transfer on death deed?
A will cannot (Estates Code § 114.057(b)). A later recorded transfer on death deed or recorded revocation can, if recorded before the death. So can a sale: if the owner deeded the land to someone else and that deed was recorded before the death, the buyer wins (§ 114.102). A divorce judgment revokes it for an ex-spouse.
For the divorce rule, notice of the judgment has to be recorded in the same county before the death (§ 114.057(c)). Joint owners with right of survivorship: if one dies, the land belongs to the survivor, and the deed only takes effect when the last joint owner dies (§ 114.103(b)). For land that passed without a transfer on death deed, see selling inherited land in Texas (heirship and probate).
What if the beneficiaries on a Texas transfer on death deed disagree about selling?
Unless the deed says otherwise, beneficiaries share equally (Estates Code § 114.103(a)(3)), and any one can sue to partition (Property Code § 23.001). Family members with no signed agreement usually hold heirs’ property, so the others get a court value and 45 days to buy out the one who wants a sale (§ 23A.007).
Why family land usually qualifies: Chapter 23A covers shared land with no agreement in a record binding all the co-owners, where at least one co-owner took title from a relative, living or deceased, and relatives hold at least 20% of the interests or make up at least 20% of the co-owners (Property Code § 23A.002(5)). A parent who names two or three children on a transfer on death deed meets all three tests. “Relative” includes blood, marriage and adoption (§ 23A.002(9)). The deed itself can change the split: if it gives one child half and the others a quarter each, those are the shares.
A court case runs for months: appraisal and objections, the buyout window, then division or a broker sale. Agreeing in writing to sell together, or to let one beneficiary buy the others out at an agreed price, is almost always faster and cheaper. The full process, with a worked buyout example: inherited Texas land with heirs who disagree. Oklahoma is different: its statute sets no default split, and a beneficiary who never records loses the share to the estate (Oklahoma TOD beneficiaries who disagree).
What is the fastest way to sell land after a Texas transfer on death deed?
Find the recorded deed, get death certificates, and ask the title company what it needs recorded. Then get a written cash offer: with no appraisal or loan approval, the title work sets the pace. Beneficiaries in other states can sign by mail or with a mobile notary.
If you sell to us: We pay all closing costs (title, closing fee, notary and recording), and there is no commission. Texas has no transfer tax or deed stamps. Only a mortgage, liens or back taxes owed on the land come out of the sale proceeds, paid off by the title company at closing. Tell us on the first call that the land came by a transfer on death deed and whether anything has been recorded since the death. How selling land in Texas works · what Texas land is worth per acre.
Please note. General information, not legal advice. Laws change and every title is different, so confirm your situation with a Texas attorney or your county tax office before you act.
Who wrote this. Twin Sun Land Co. is a direct cash buyer of vacant and rural land in Oklahoma and Texas. We are one of the options on this page, so we have a stake in the answer. Our mission: Twin Sun Land Company exists to serve landowners: we make selling land simple, transparent, and fair, so every owner walks away with the most value their property can bring. The Texas rules here come from the Texas statutes linked in the sources.
Frequently asked questions
Does a transfer on death deed avoid probate in Texas?
Yes, if it was recorded in the county deed records before the owner died (Estates Code 114.055). The land passes to the beneficiary at the death.
Is there a deadline to record anything after the owner dies in Texas?
The statute sets none; the transfer happens at the death (Estates Code 114.103). The title company still needs the death shown before it insures a sale.
Can a will override a transfer on death deed in Texas?
No. A will cannot revoke or replace it (Estates Code 114.057(b)). Only a later recorded deed or revocation can.
Can the owner sell land that has a transfer on death deed on it?
Yes. The owner keeps the full right to sell or mortgage, and a buyer whose deed is recorded before the death takes the land (Estates Code 114.101, 114.102).
What if two people are named on the transfer on death deed?
They own equal, undivided shares with no right of survivorship (Estates Code 114.103), so both must sign to sell the whole tract.
Can one beneficiary force a sale of land left by a Texas transfer on death deed?
Any co-owner can sue to partition (Property Code 23.001). If the co-owners are relatives with no signed agreement, the others first get a court value and 45 days to buy that share (Property Code 23A.002, 23A.007).
Can creditors take land passed by a transfer on death deed?
Mortgages and liens stay with the land. Unsecured estate debts can reach it only if the estate is short, in a proceeding started within 2 years of the death (Estates Code 114.106).
Sources
Every rule on this page comes from Chapter 114 of the Texas Estates Code, read November 2, 2026, and Chapters 23 and 23A of the Texas Property Code (co-owners who disagree), read November 3, 2026. Laws change, so confirm your dates with the title company or a probate attorney. How to cite: Twin Sun Land Company team, “Transfer on Death Deeds in Texas,” Twin Sun Land Co., November 2026.
- What a valid transfer on death deed needs; recorded before the owner’s death: Estates Code § 114.055
- No notice to, delivery to or acceptance by the beneficiary; no consideration: Estates Code § 114.056
- Revoking it; a will cannot revoke it; divorce; joint owners: Estates Code § 114.057
- The owner can still sell or mortgage; the beneficiary owns nothing until the death: Estates Code § 114.101
- A later recorded sale by the owner wins over the transfer on death deed: Estates Code § 114.102
- At death: the 120-hour survival rule, equal shares, joint owners, no warranty of title: Estates Code § 114.103
- The beneficiary takes subject to mortgages, liens and other encumbrances: Estates Code § 114.104
- Estate claims against the land if the estate is short; 2-year limit: Estates Code § 114.106
- Any co-owner can ask a court to partition: Property Code § 23.001
- When shared family land is heirs’ property; who counts as a relative: Property Code § 23A.002
- The 45-day co-owner buyout before a court-ordered sale: Property Code § 23A.007
More for Texas landowners
Last updated Nov 3, 2026. General information, not legal, tax or financial advice.
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