Massachusetts Exempt Property Allowance

Which assets and values count

The listed property includes household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects. Section 2-403 measures the value above any security interest in those items. An inventory's gross vehicle value and the value remaining after its secured loan answer different questions.

If qualifying items have a net value below $10,000, other estate assets can make up the deficiency when available. The allowance does not promise cash that the estate lacks. The available assets and their secured obligations affect what can satisfy the right. M.G.L. c. 190B, § 2-403.

How the will affects the right

Exempt-property rights are in addition to a benefit under the will or an intestate share, unless the will provides otherwise. Section 2-403 states that qualification expressly. A proposed selection depends on the will as well as the inventory.

Section 2-405 addresses gifts of particular property. When the estate is otherwise sufficient, property left as a specific gift in the will cannot satisfy exempt-property rights. The Massachusetts surviving-spouse guide explains the separate rights a spouse may have under inheritance law. M.G.L. c. 190B, sections 2-403 and 2-405.

Selection and records

The spouse, guardians of minor children or adult children may select exempt property, subject to section 2-405's restriction on specific gifts. The personal representative may select when those people are unable to do so, fail to act within a reasonable time, or a minor child has no guardian. The personal representative may execute a distribution instrument or deed documenting ownership.

A record of the selected items, their date-of-death values and associated security interests can explain the valuation. Any proposed use of other estate assets to fill a deficiency belongs with that record. This is a way to organize the statutory questions; it does not replace a required court filing. M.G.L. c. 190B, section 2-405.

Creditors and the family allowance

Section 2-403 gives exempt-property rights and assets needed to fill a deficiency priority over unsecured estate claims. The right to deficiency assets can reduce as needed to permit earlier payment of the discretionary family allowance. The Massachusetts family-allowance guide covers that separate support provision.

A personal representative or an interested person aggrieved by a selection, payment, determination or failure to act may petition the court for appropriate relief under section 2-405. A Massachusetts probate attorney can assess the will, assets and family circumstances of an individual estate. M.G.L. c. 190B, section 2-405.

Settled Estate is not a law firm. This page provides legal information. It is not legal advice.

Find local court contact details in the Massachusetts court directory.

Compare gross and net property values

A proposed selection is easier to follow when each item has its own line. Record its description, date-of-death value and any security interest against it. Then show the value remaining after that security interest. A vehicle's listed value alone does not show how much it contributes toward the exempt-property amount.

Consider an illustration, rather than an estate valuation: a vehicle valued at $12,000 with a $7,000 security interest leaves $5,000 above that interest. Section 2-403 uses that remaining value. The $12,000 gross figure would give a different, incorrect picture of the amount counted toward this particular right. Actual estate values and secured balances need their own supporting records.

When the selected qualifying property falls short, record the shortfall separately from any proposed replacement asset. The statute permits other estate assets, if any, to fill the deficiency. That wording leaves the estate's available property relevant; it does not create assets or promise a cash payment. Keep the separate priority for earlier payment of the discretionary family allowance visible when assessing deficiency assets. M.G.L. c. 190B, section 2-403.

Keep temporary occupancy separate

Section 2-403 also permits the surviving spouse to remain in the decedent's house for up to six months after death without a rent charge. That is a separate provision from the listed personal property and its $10,000 net-value limit. The statute describes remaining in the house; that sentence does not state a transfer of ownership of the house.

For a discussion with the personal representative or a probate attorney, distinguish the house question from the proposed furniture, vehicle or other personal-property selection. Identify which provision the request concerns and what the will says. Those distinctions help keep a temporary occupancy question from being mistaken for the personal-property valuation or the broader inheritance calculation. M.G.L. c. 190B, section 2-403.