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Montana Exempt Property
Support GuideMontana16 min read

Montana Exempt Property

Montana exempt property is up to $15,000 of household goods and vehicles, net of liens, on top of a $22,500 homestead allowance.

By Settled Editorial

Montana lets a surviving spouse take two fixed amounts out of an estate before any creditor is paid and before anything passes under the will: a $22,500 homestead allowance under MCA 72-2-412 and up to $15,000 of exempt property under MCA 72-2-413, counted net of any loan on the items. Where there is no spouse, the children take them under different rules for each. Both figures are printed in the statute and are not indexed.

This guide covers those two allowances: what each one is worth, who takes it, how liens are handled, who picks the property, where the allowances sit against creditors, and how they stack with the will and the elective share. Montana has a third protection in the same part of the code, and the Montana family allowance guide covers it. This is general information about Montana law.

Two Fixed Figures, and a Third That Is Not Fixed

Part 4 of Title 72, chapter 2 creates three separate protections. Here is how they line up.

ProtectionStatuteAmountWho takes itAgainst creditors
Homestead allowanceMCA 72-2-412$22,500Surviving spouse; if none, minor and dependent children split itExempt from and prior to all claims
Exempt propertyMCA 72-2-413Up to $15,000 above security interestsSurviving spouse; if none, all children jointlyPrior to all claims; the make-up right yields to the other two allowances
Family allowanceMCA 72-2-414A reasonable allowance for support during administrationSpouse and supported childrenPrior to all claims except the homestead allowance

Each is in addition to the others. The family allowance has no fixed figure; the personal representative may set it up to $27,000 as a lump sum, or $2,250 a month for a year, without a court order (MCA 72-2-415(1)).

The figures do not move with inflation. The Uniform Probate Code has a cost-of-living section, and some states that adopted the code index these amounts by year of death. Montana's Title 72 has no such section, so $22,500 and $15,000 are the amounts in the 2025 Montana Code Annotated. Both sections were last amended by Chapter 313, Laws of 2019.

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The $22,500 Homestead Allowance

MCA 72-2-412 gives the decedent's surviving spouse a homestead allowance of $22,500. Three rules shape it.

  • With no surviving spouse, only minor and dependent children share it. Each minor child and each dependent child takes $22,500 divided by the number of minor and dependent children. Three minor children take $7,500 each. A self-supporting adult child takes nothing under this section.
  • It comes ahead of every claim. The statute says the allowance "is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate."
  • It is on top of the inheritance. It is in addition to any share passing to the spouse or child by the will, unless the will provides otherwise, by intestate succession, or by elective share.

The name misleads people. The homestead allowance is a value out of the estate, not a right to a house. The estate does not need to own a home, and no declaration is recorded. MCA 72-2-415(1) lets the personal representative pay any part of it in cash.

The $15,000 Exempt Property Allowance

MCA 72-2-413 gives the surviving spouse, in addition to the homestead allowance, a value of up to $15,000 in five kinds of property:

  • household furniture
  • automobiles
  • furnishings
  • appliances
  • personal effects

With no surviving spouse, the decedent's children take the same value jointly. That clause has no age or dependency test, which is the main difference from the homestead allowance. An adult child who lives on their own shares in exempt property.

Liens Come Off First, Then the Estate Fills the Gap

The $15,000 is value "in excess of any security interests." A lender's lien stays with the property. Here is how the arithmetic runs.

A surviving spouse selects a truck worth $20,000 with a $14,000 loan against it, and $4,000 of furniture with no lien.

ItemValueLienCounts toward $15,000
Truck$20,000$14,000$6,000
Furniture$4,000none$4,000
Total$10,000

The spouse is $5,000 short. MCA 72-2-413 says that when encumbered items are selected and their value above the liens, plus other exempt property, is less than $15,000, or the estate does not hold $15,000 of qualifying property, the spouse or children may take other assets of the estate to make up the $15,000. So the spouse can take $5,000 from a bank account in the estate.

Where the Allowances Sit Against Creditors

The allowances come out before the creditors' order of payment starts.

  1. Homestead allowance. Exempt from and prior to all claims (72-2-412).
  2. Family allowance. Exempt from and prior to all claims except the homestead allowance (72-2-414(1)).
  3. Exempt property. Priority over all claims (72-2-413). The right to other assets that make up a shortfall abates as needed so the homestead allowance and family allowance are paid first.

Only then does MCA 72-3-807 apply. When the estate cannot pay every claim in full, the personal representative pays administration costs, then reasonable funeral and last-illness medical and hospital expenses, then federal and Montana estate taxes, then current and past-due child support under a support order, then debts with preference under federal and Montana law, then other federal and Montana taxes, then all other claims. The Montana debt payment priority guide covers that order.

Small estates can close without creditor notice. Under MCA 72-3-1103, if the inventory and appraisal show that the entire estate, less liens and encumbrances, does not exceed the homestead allowance, exempt property, family allowance, administration costs, reasonable funeral expenses and last-illness medical and hospital expenses, the personal representative may distribute at once, without notice to creditors, and close under 72-3-1104. That route still needs an appointed personal representative and an inventory. The Montana small estate guide compares it with the affidavit route.

Who Picks the Property

MCA 72-2-415(1) sets the selection rules.

  • The family picks first. The surviving spouse, the guardians of minor children, or children who are adults may select estate property as homestead allowance and exempt property.
  • The personal representative steps in if they are unable or fail to select within a reasonable time, or if a minor child has no guardian.
  • Specific gifts are protected. If the estate is otherwise sufficient, property the will leaves as a specific gift (a "specific devise") may not be used to satisfy the homestead allowance or exempt property. The car left by name to a nephew is reached only after the rest of the estate runs out.
  • Paperwork. The personal representative may sign an instrument or deed of distribution to establish ownership of the property taken.
  • Disputes go to the district court. The personal representative or any interested person aggrieved by a selection, payment or failure to act may petition the court.

Part 4 sets no day count for making the selection. The limit is "a reasonable time," after which the personal representative may choose. The Montana executor duties guide covers the rest of the personal representative's job.

The Allowances Stack on Top of Everything Else

Montana treats the allowances as extra, not as an advance on a share.

  • Will and intestacy. Both allowances are in addition to anything passing by the will, unless the will provides otherwise, and in addition to an intestate share (72-2-412, 72-2-413). The Montana intestate succession guide covers the spouse's share without a will.
  • Elective share. MCA 72-2-232(3) says that if the spouse elects against the will, the homestead allowance, exempt property and family allowance "are not charged against but are in addition to" the elective share and the supplemental elective-share amount. Some states charge the allowances against the elective share, so a source written for another state can get this backwards. The Montana surviving spouse rights guide covers the election and its deadline.
  • Incapacitated spouse. If the elective share is claimed on behalf of an incapacitated spouse, the personal representative may add any unspent allowance amounts to the trust set up under 72-2-242(2) (72-2-415(2)).

Assets Outside Probate Can Be Reached

A thin probate estate does not end the matter. MCA 72-6-112 makes the recipient of a nonprobate transfer, such as a revocable trust or a payable-on-death account the decedent could have revoked alone, liable to the estate for statutory allowances to the spouse and children, to the extent the probate estate is insufficient. Survivorship interests in jointly held real estate are excluded. Two limits apply:

  • The personal representative must first receive a written demand from the spouse or a child (or a creditor).
  • The proceeding must start within 1 year after the death (72-6-112(8)).

A spouse whose allowances are at risk should make that demand early.

Who Loses the Allowances

MCA 72-2-813(2) says an individual who financially exploits the decedent, or feloniously and intentionally kills the decedent, forfeits all benefits under chapter 2, and names the homestead allowance, exempt property and family allowance among them.

Which State's Law Applies

Part 4 applies to the estate of a decedent who dies domiciled in Montana. For a decedent domiciled elsewhere, the rights to these allowances are governed by the law of the domicile at death (MCA 72-2-411). A Colorado resident with a Montana cabin gets Colorado's allowances, not Montana's.

Not the Same Thing as the Montana Homestead Exemption

Montana has two laws that use the word "homestead," and they do different jobs.

Probate homestead allowanceHomestead exemption
StatuteMCA 72-2-412Title 70, chapter 32
Who holds itSurviving spouse or minor and dependent childrenA living owner of the dwelling house or mobile home they live in
What it doesTakes $22,500 of value out of the estate ahead of claimsProtects the declared home from execution or forced sale (70-32-201)
Amount$22,500, fixed$350,000 in 2021, rising 4% every calendar year after 2021, set by Department of Revenue rule (70-32-104(3))
PaperworkNoneA declaration of homestead, acknowledged like a deed and recorded with the county clerk where the land sits (70-32-105, 70-32-107)

We do not print a current value limit for the exemption. MCA 70-32-104(3)(a) makes the Department of Revenue's administrative rule the operative figure, and we have not read the current rule. Multiplying $350,000 by 4% a year gives an estimate, not the rule's number. The exemption also has exceptions: a mortgage signed by both spouses, or recorded before the declaration, can still be enforced against the home (70-32-202). The Montana State Law Library links an unnumbered "Homestead Declaration" form on its end-of-life forms page.

What to Document

Next steps for a personal representative or a surviving spouse:

  • A list of the items selected as exempt property, with a value for each and the lender and balance on any loan.
  • The arithmetic showing the equity total and any shortfall taken from other assets.
  • Who selected, and when. If the personal representative selected, a note that the family did not act within a reasonable time.
  • A deed or instrument of distribution for titled items such as vehicles.
  • For children, the age of each child and whether each is dependent, since that decides the homestead allowance split.

The Montana probate guide covers how the estate is opened in the district court, and the Montana courts page lists each county's clerk of district court.

When to Call a Montana Attorney

Talk to a licensed Montana attorney when the estate may not cover the allowances and the claims, when children from different relationships share the allowances, when the family and the personal representative disagree about a selection, when nonprobate assets may need to be reached under 72-6-112, or when an elective share is on the table.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is Montana exempt property?

Up to $15,000, under MCA 72-2-413. The figure is value in excess of any security interests, drawn from household furniture, automobiles, furnishings, appliances and personal effects. Montana prints a fixed amount: the Montana Code has no cost-of-living section that indexes it, so $15,000 is the figure for any death under the 2025 code.

What is the Montana homestead allowance?

A $22,500 entitlement under MCA 72-2-412. It goes to the surviving spouse. With no surviving spouse, each minor child and each dependent child takes $22,500 divided by the number of minor and dependent children. It is exempt from and has priority over all claims against the estate, and it is a value out of the estate, so it needs no house and no recorded declaration.

Does Montana exempt property count the car loan?

Yes, the loan comes off first. MCA 72-2-413 measures the property at its value in excess of any security interests, so a $20,000 truck carrying a $14,000 loan counts as $6,000. If the equity in the selected items falls short of $15,000, or the estate does not hold $15,000 of qualifying property, the spouse or children may take other estate assets to make up the difference.

Who gets Montana exempt property if there is no surviving spouse?

The decedent's children, jointly, under MCA 72-2-413. The exempt property section has no age or dependency test. The homestead allowance does: with no spouse, MCA 72-2-412 splits it only among the minor and dependent children, so a self-supporting adult child shares in exempt property but takes no homestead allowance.

Do the allowances come ahead of creditors in Montana?

Yes. The homestead allowance is exempt from and prior to all claims under MCA 72-2-412, and exempt property has priority over all claims under MCA 72-2-413. The one give is the make-up right: the claim to other assets that fill a shortfall in exempt property abates as needed so the homestead allowance and family allowance are paid first.

Does electing against the will reduce Montana exempt property?

No. MCA 72-2-232(3) says that when a surviving spouse elects, the homestead allowance, exempt property and family allowance are not charged against the elective share and supplemental amount, and are in addition to them. Several other states charge the allowances against the elective share, so an out-of-state source can get this backwards.

Is the Montana homestead allowance the same as the homestead exemption?

No. The $22,500 allowance in MCA 72-2-412 is a probate entitlement of the surviving spouse or children. The homestead exemption in Title 70, chapter 32 protects a living owner's declared residence from execution up to a value limit that MCA 70-32-104 set at $350,000 in 2021, rising 4% each calendar year after 2021 by Department of Revenue rule, and it depends on a recorded declaration.

Related Guides

Sources:

This guide explains the Montana homestead allowance and exempt property in general terms, from the Montana Code Annotated 2025. Confirm how they apply to a specific estate with the district court handling the estate or with a licensed Montana attorney. It is not legal advice.

Information current as of September 27, 2026

Settled Estate is not a law firm, and this content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Probate laws and procedures in Montana can change. Consult with a qualified attorney for advice specific to your situation. Full disclaimer.

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