The Estate Planning Guide Est. 2026

What Happens If You Die Without a Will in California?

Published June 3, 2026 4 min read

Quick answer

If a married Californian with kids dies without a will, the surviving spouse keeps all community property (typically the house and savings acquired during marriage). Separate property is split: spouse gets 1/3 (with multiple kids) or 1/2 (with one kid); the rest goes to the children by representation.

Educational guide — not legal advice. Intestacy laws change. Confirm specifics with a licensed California attorney before relying on this page.

How intestacy works in California

When someone dies in California without a valid will, Cal. Prob. Code §6400 et seq. decides who inherits. The statute orders potential heirs by their relationship to the deceased — spouse and children first, then parents, then more distant relatives — and specifies exactly what share each one receives.

California is a community property state. On intestacy, the decedent's 1/2 of community property passes to the surviving spouse, so the spouse ends up owning 100% of community property; only separate property is split with children or parents.

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse only (no children, no parents)

Spouse inherits the entire intestate estate.

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and children

This is the most common situation and where California’s rules get specific:

Community property: spouse takes the decedent's 1/2 (so the spouse keeps 100% of community property). Separate property: with one child or issue of one deceased child, spouse takes 1/2 and the child takes 1/2; with two or more children, spouse takes 1/3 and children share 2/3 by representation.

For families where everyone is from the same marriage, the spouse generally gets a meaningful share. For blended families — where one or more children are from a prior relationship — many states change the math substantially. If your situation might fit that, the section above is exactly the rule that applies.

What happens when there’s a surviving spouse and parents (no children)

All community property to spouse. Separate property: spouse takes 1/2; parents (or surviving parent) take 1/2.

What happens when there are children but no spouse

Entire estate to children equally; a deceased child's share goes to that child's issue by representation.

What happens when there’s no spouse and no children

Order of inheritance: parents → issue of parents (siblings and their descendants) → grandparents or their issue → issue of predeceased spouse → next of kin → predeceased spouse's parents → escheat to the State of California.

This is where intestacy starts producing results that often surprise people — distant relatives the deceased may not have been close to can end up inheriting, and a long-time unmarried partner inherits nothing.

A California-specific quirk

Cal. Prob. Code §6402.5 'ancestral property' rule: real property the decedent received from a predeceased spouse within 15 years (or personal property within 5 years) can pass back to that predeceased spouse's heirs if the decedent dies without spouse or issue.

What intestacy can’t do (and why it usually fails most people)

Even when California’s intestacy rules produce a result close to what someone would have chosen, the rules can never:

  • Leave anything to an unmarried partner — intestacy doesn’t recognize unmarried partners regardless of relationship length
  • Leave anything to a step-child you didn’t formally adopt
  • Leave anything to a friend, charity, or specific person outside your family
  • Name a guardian for your minor children — a California judge picks
  • Specify who handles your estate — a court appoints an administrator
  • Identify specific items for specific people
  • Account for blended-family dynamics in nuanced ways
  • Reduce probate costs and time — intestate estates still go through full probate

For most California families, a basic will — costing $300 to $1,500 with a local attorney, or $50 to $300 with an online service — is meaningfully better than the default rules.

What probate looks like in California when there’s no will

If someone dies intestate in California, the estate still goes through probate. A court appoints an administrator (rather than an “executor” — the title is different for intestacy) to:

  1. Inventory the estate’s assets
  2. Notify creditors and pay debts
  3. Identify legal heirs under California’s intestacy statute
  4. Distribute remaining assets to heirs according to the statute

For details on what probate costs and how long it takes in California, see:

What to do this week if you don’t have a will

The most useful single move for any California adult without a will:

  1. Write a basic will. Either through an online service ($50-$300) or a local attorney ($300-$1,500). Name an executor, name a guardian for any minor children, and specify who inherits what.
  2. Update beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance, and POD/TOD bank accounts. These pass outside both the will and intestacy.
  3. Sign a financial power of attorney and a healthcare directive. These handle incapacity (not death) and prevent your family from needing court-appointed guardianship.

For a California family with a typical estate, this whole package usually costs under $1,500 and takes a couple of weeks of intermittent work. It’s substantially cheaper and less stressful than what happens if you don’t do it.

This page explains California intestacy law in general terms as of 2026. It is not legal advice; intestacy provisions, dollar thresholds, and statute citations can change. Confirm current rules with a licensed California attorney before relying on this page. Sources: Cal. Prob. Code §6400, Cal. Prob. Code §6401, Cal. Prob. Code §6402, Cal. Prob. Code §6402.5.

Related guides