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Mississippi Transfer on Death Deed
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Mississippi Transfer on Death Deed

Mississippi transfer on death deed under the Real Property Transfer-on-Death Act (Miss. Code 91-27-1 et seq.): recording before death, revocation, and what passes.

By Settled Editorial

A Mississippi transfer on death deed lets a property owner name who should receive a piece of Mississippi real estate at death, so the land can pass without a chancery court administration for that property. Mississippi enacted this tool as the Mississippi Real Property Transfer-on-Death Act, Miss. Code 91-27-1 and the sections that follow, effective July 1, 2020. So unlike a few neighboring states, Mississippi does have a real-property transfer-on-death deed.

Use this guide as a plain-language planning and record checklist. A deed can affect land title, creditor claims, mortgages, tax records, and later probate questions. Ask a Mississippi real-estate or estate-planning attorney, a title professional, or the chancery clerk when the deed record, ownership type, legal description, or beneficiary plan is unclear.

One scope note up front. A Mississippi transfer-on-death deed covers real property only. It is not a way to retitle a vehicle. Vehicle title transfers after death run through the Mississippi Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Licensing Division, covered in the Mississippi how to avoid probate guide.

What a Mississippi Transfer on Death Deed Does

Under Miss. Code 91-27-9, an individual may transfer their interest in real property to one or more beneficiaries, effective at the transferor's death, by a transfer-on-death deed. The deed is revocable and nontestamentary, meaning it works as a deed rather than as part of a will.

That language matters because a transfer-on-death deed is a lifetime planning document. The owner signs and records the deed while alive. The named beneficiary does not need to sign, consent, agree, or receive notice during the owner's lifetime.

The capacity required to make or revoke a transfer-on-death deed is the same capacity required to make a will (Miss. Code 91-27-15). So this is a planning act for a competent owner, not a fix for title after someone has already died.

To see how a transfer-on-death deed compares with the other ways Mississippi families keep real estate out of court, read the Mississippi how to avoid probate guide. To weigh it against a trust, see the Mississippi revocable living trust guide and will vs. trust.

It Must Be Recorded Before Death

This is the single most important rule. A transfer-on-death deed is effective only if the owner records it, before the owner dies, in the land records of the chancery clerk of the county where the real property is located (Miss. Code 91-27-17). The deed must be executed and acknowledged the way other Mississippi deeds are, under Title 89, Chapter 3.

That means the timing check is not optional:

  • If the owner signs a transfer-on-death deed but never records it before death, it does not transfer the property.
  • If someone has already died, a new transfer-on-death deed cannot be created for that person's land. The family reviews the will, a muniment of title, full administration, or survivorship title instead.

Because the deed is filed with the chancery clerk, the same office that handles the estate file and the county land records, keep the recorded deed, the recording receipt, and the instrument or book-and-page number with the owner's estate-planning records.

What the Owner Keeps During Life

A transfer-on-death deed does not give the beneficiary any present control. Under Miss. Code 91-27-23, during the transferor's life the deed does not affect an interest or right of the owner, and it does not affect a creditor of the owner, even a creditor with notice of the deed. The beneficiary has no interest in the property until the owner dies.

That rule should guide the family conversation. The beneficiary should not treat the property as already theirs. During life, the owner may still:

  • Sell, mortgage, lease, or refinance the property
  • Change the beneficiary by recording a new transfer-on-death deed
  • Revoke the designation entirely
  • Convey the property to someone else, which controls over the transfer-on-death deed (Miss. Code 91-27-25)

A transfer-on-death deed is not the same as adding someone as a current co-owner. A present deed gift can create ownership, tax, creditor, and mortgage issues while the owner is alive. The transfer-on-death deed is designed to delay transfer until death.

Revoking or Changing a Beneficiary

Mississippi law gives the owner a way to change course before death. Under Miss. Code 91-27-21, a transfer-on-death deed is revoked by a later recorded instrument that revokes the deed, by a later transfer-on-death deed that names a different beneficiary, or by an inter vivos conveyance of the property. The revoking instrument must be acknowledged and recorded before the owner's death in the same county land records.

A few points families get wrong:

  • A will cannot revoke a recorded transfer-on-death deed. Review the deed and the will together so they do not point to different people.
  • Beneficiary consent, agreement, signature, or notice is not required to revoke.
  • A later recorded transfer-on-death deed for the same property controls over an earlier one.

What Passes at the Owner's Death

When the owner dies, the property transfers to the designated beneficiary, but the beneficiary's interest is contingent on surviving the transferor (Miss. Code 91-27-27). The recording of the deed is treated as occurring at the transferor's death.

The beneficiary does not take the land free and clear. Under Miss. Code 91-27-27 and 91-27-29, the beneficiary takes the real property subject to all conveyances, encumbrances, assignments, contracts, mortgages, liens, and other interests to which the property is subject at the owner's death. The property also remains subject to the owner's creditors to the same extent as other real property the owner held at death.

So a transfer-on-death deed can change who takes the owner's interest at death, but it does not make the property debt-free or sale-ready. A mortgage, tax lien, judgment, lease, or title defect can follow the land to the beneficiary.

When It May Not Fit

A transfer-on-death deed can be a poor fit when the title record or family plan is complicated. Get legal review before using or relying on a Mississippi transfer-on-death deed when:

  • The owner owns only part of the property, or holds it with survivorship language
  • The property has a mortgage, tax lien, judgment, lease, or HOA issue
  • The beneficiary is a minor, an incapacitated person, or a person receiving needs-based benefits
  • Multiple beneficiaries may disagree about a sale, occupancy, expenses, or repairs
  • The owner may later sell, refinance, move, marry, divorce, or change the estate plan
  • The deed and the will name different people
  • The property is part of a farm, a mineral interest, or a multi-county parcel

Those facts do not always block a transfer-on-death deed. They do mean a short form and a recorder's receipt are not enough to call the plan done.

The Statutory Form and a Checklist

Mississippi includes an optional statutory form for a transfer-on-death deed (Miss. Code 91-27-33), and a separate optional form to revoke one. Using a form without title review can still cause problems, because the deed has to name the right owner, describe the right real-estate interest, use the right county recording office, and fit the owner's estate plan.

Use this checklist before signing or after finding a recorded transfer-on-death deed:

  1. Pull the latest deed and confirm the exact owner name and how title is held.
  2. Confirm the county where the land is located.
  3. Match the legal description to the deed and parcel records.
  4. Check for mortgages, liens, leases, easements, and tax issues.
  5. Confirm whether the owner holds sole title, partial title, trust title, or survivorship title.
  6. Record the deed with the chancery clerk before the owner's death if the owner chooses this path.
  7. Keep the recorded deed and receipt with the estate-planning records.
  8. If the owner wants a change, record a revocation or a later transfer-on-death deed before death.
  9. After death, confirm the beneficiary survived the owner, and have a title professional review the chain of title before any sale or refinance.

How This Fits Into Your Estate Plan

A transfer-on-death deed is one probate-avoidance tool among several in Mississippi. Most plans use it alongside, not instead of, the core documents:

For the full menu of non-probate transfers and how they fit together, read the Mississippi how to avoid probate guide, and for the whole document set, start with Mississippi estate planning basics.

The Bottom Line

Mississippi has a real-property transfer-on-death deed under the Real Property Transfer-on-Death Act, Miss. Code 91-27-1 and the sections that follow, effective July 1, 2020. It lets an owner name a beneficiary for real estate, keep full control during life, and revoke or change the deed before death, with the land passing without a chancery court administration when the deed is recorded before death.

The thing to remember: the deed only works for real property, it must be recorded with the chancery clerk before death, it cannot be revoked by a will, and the beneficiary takes the land subject to existing liens and the owner's creditors. Treat it as a real-property document with probate effects, not a casual shortcut, and review it with a Mississippi attorney or title professional when the title or family plan is complicated.

Sources

This guide is general information about Mississippi estates. It is not legal advice. Confirm anything that affects your situation with the chancery clerk, a title company, or a licensed Mississippi attorney before you sign.

It is not legal advice.

Information current as of June 20, 2026

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Mississippi can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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