Arkansas Estate Planning Checklist: Every Document You Need

Most Arkansas residents know they need a will. Few realize a will alone leaves significant gaps — real property that still goes through probate, financial accounts that freeze at death, and healthcare decisions that default to court-appointed guardians. A complete estate plan coordinates multiple documents and designations to cover every scenario.

Here is the full checklist, organized by priority.

Priority 1: Core Documents

Last Will and Testament

Your will names an executor, distributes assets not covered by other transfer mechanisms, and — critically for parents — nominates guardians for minor children. Under A.C.A. § 28-25-103, a valid Arkansas will requires:

• Written document signed by the testator
• Two witnesses present simultaneously, signing at the testator's request
• Verbal declaration to witnesses that the document is your will
• All parties in the same room throughout the signing

Attach a self-proving affidavit (A.C.A. § 28-25-106) at signing to avoid the need for witness testimony during probate.

Durable Financial Power of Attorney

Under the Arkansas Uniform Power of Attorney Act (A.C.A. § 28-68-301), this designates someone to manage your finances if you become incapacitated. Arkansas powers of attorney are durable by default — the agent's authority continues through mental incapacity unless the document says otherwise.

Must be signed and notarized. If the agent will handle real estate transactions, record the POA with the county recorder.

Healthcare Power of Attorney and Living Will

Authorized under A.C.A. § 20-6-103, this names a healthcare agent to make medical decisions when you cannot. Must be signed and either notarized OR witnessed by two adults (at least one must be disinterested — not a relative, not a beneficiary, not the healthcare agent).

The living will portion states your preferences for life-sustaining treatment if you are terminally ill or permanently unconscious.

Priority 2: Probate Avoidance Instruments

Beneficiary Deeds for Real Property

Under A.C.A. § 18-12-608, a beneficiary deed transfers real property to a named beneficiary at your death without probate. This is the single most effective probate-avoidance tool for Arkansas homeowners.

The deed must be signed, notarized, and recorded with the county recorder before your death. An unrecorded deed is legally void. Recording costs $15 for the first page plus $5 per additional page.

If you own property with your spouse as tenants by the entirety, both spouses must execute the deed.

Separate Deeds for Mineral and Timber Rights

In Arkansas, mineral and timber rights are separate real property interests. If they are not specifically addressed in a beneficiary deed or will, they fall into the probate estate independently of the surface land. Inventory and transfer these rights separately.

Vehicle TOD Designation

DFA Form 108 establishes a transfer-on-death beneficiary for motor vehicles. File with the Department of Finance and Administration. No Social Security number required for the beneficiary (repealed by Act 1376 of 2021).

POD/TOD Designations on Financial Accounts

Contact each bank, brokerage, and retirement account provider to add Payable on Death or Transfer on Death designations. These override your will for these specific accounts — the named beneficiary receives the funds directly, without probate.

Priority 3: Title and Designation Audit

Review Every Deed

Verify how each property is titled:

• Tenancy by the entirety (married couples): automatic right of survivorship, bypasses probate
• Joint tenancy with right of survivorship: passes to surviving owner(s)
• Tenancy in common: deceased owner's share goes through probate
• Sole ownership: goes through probate unless covered by a beneficiary deed

Under Arkansas law (A.C.A. § 18-12-402), a conveyance to a married couple is presumed to create tenancy by the entirety unless the deed states otherwise.

Review Beneficiary Designations

Life insurance policies, retirement accounts (401k, IRA), and annuities pass by beneficiary designation — not by your will. Verify that designations are current, especially after divorce (divorce auto-revokes will provisions for an ex-spouse, but does NOT auto-revoke beneficiary designations on accounts).

Manufactured Home Title Check

If you own a manufactured home, verify whether the vehicle title has been canceled via an Affidavit of Affixation filed with the county recorder. Without affixation, the home remains personal property and requires separate title transfer procedures at death — potentially through both the DFA and probate court.

Priority 4: Ongoing Maintenance

Annual Review Triggers

Review and update your plan when any of these occur:

• Marriage, divorce, or remarriage
• Birth or adoption of a child
• Purchase or sale of real property
• Significant change in asset value
• Death of a named beneficiary, executor, or agent
• Move to or from another state
• Changes in Arkansas law (dower/curtesy, probate thresholds)

Document Storage

Store originals in a fireproof safe or bank safe deposit box. Give your executor and healthcare agent copies with instructions on where to find originals. Do not store the only copy of your will in a safe deposit box that requires probate authority to open — that creates a catch-22.

The Coordination Principle

The most common estate planning failure is not a bad document — it is documents that contradict each other. A will that leaves everything to your children is undermined by a POD designation that sends the bank account to your ex-spouse. A beneficiary deed that transfers the house to your daughter conflicts with a will provision leaving the house to your son.

Every document must point in the same direction.

The Arkansas Basic Estate Planning Kit includes an Asset Alignment Matrix that maps every asset, title, and beneficiary designation onto a single worksheet — making coordination gaps visible before they become probate disputes.

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