Is there a homestead right after a death in Tennessee?

Yes. The homestead inures to the surviving spouse, a minor child or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability and is set apart by the court's procedure (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201); where it cannot be set apart the realty is sold and $35,000 is invested or paid outright (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-209).

What about a home held in a trust?

A home titled to the trust passes under the trust's terms, and the trustee holds the powers of an owner to manage, sell or convey it subject to the fiduciary duties (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-815); a deed from a successor trustee is an instrument affecting title, and where a trustee resigned or was removed the recording of Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-1-101 precedes it.

Can the settlor's creditors reach a trust-held home?

After the death, the property of a trust revocable at the death — a home included — is subject to the settlor's creditors' claims, the costs of administration and the funeral expenses (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-505(a)(6)).

Does a Tennessee homestead protect a living owner's home from creditors?

Up to a limit. An individual may claim a homestead exemption of up to $35,000 in a principal residence the individual owns — $52,500 combined for joint owners claiming in the same proceeding — not subject to execution, attachment or sale during the owner's life; it does not operate against public taxes, the purchase-money debt for the home, or a debt secured by the home where the exemption was waived in writing, and a deed of trust or mortgage conveys the property free of it (Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301). On the death of a head of family it inures to the surviving spouse and a minor child, or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability, while they live there. Fact-specific questions belong with a licensed Tennessee attorney.

The Home After a Death in Tennessee

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What “homestead” means in Tennessee

Tennessee has no homestead devise rule. After a death, its law speaks of the homestead that inures to the surviving spouse, a minor child or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability, set apart by the court's procedure (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201) — and, where it cannot be set apart, the realty is sold and $35,000 invested or paid outright (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-209); a living owner's homestead exemption against creditors is in Title 26 of the Code, outside the Tennessee statute library. Who inherits the home is decided by the will, the trust, the deed or intestacy.

Who gets the home

In Tennessee the home passes like the decedent's other property — under the will or the trust, by the deed, or by intestacy, real property vesting in the heirs at the death (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-2-104(a); Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-2-103) — with the surviving spouse's and the children's statutory rights set apart from the estate ahead of the creditors (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201; Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 30-2-101, 30-2-102):

With a will or a trust that disposes of the home, it passes as the instrument says — subject to the homestead set apart for a surviving spouse, a minor child or a disabled adult child (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201) and to the spouse's elective share of the net estate (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-4-101).
Without one, the home passes by intestacy with the rest of the estate — the whole to the surviving spouse where no issue survives, otherwise one-third or a child's share, whichever is greater, to the spouse and the rest to the issue (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-2-104(a)), divided per stirpes (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-2-106) and vesting in the heirs at the death (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-2-103).
A home owned with a right of survivorship passes to the survivor outside the will; a home deeded to the trust, the deed recorded with the register of deeds (Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-24-101), passes by the trust's terms, and a change of trustee is recorded the same way where real estate is trust property (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-1-101).

Can the home be left by will or by trust? Yes

Tennessee places no restriction on leaving a home by will or by trust. A surviving spouse, a minor child or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability takes the homestead the court sets apart from the estate (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201), and a surviving spouse may elect a share of the net estate — 10 to 40 percent by the length of the marriage, reduced by what passed to the spouse (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-4-101).

Named in a revocable Trust? The family's rights still apply

Holding the home in a revocable Trust changes who holds title, not the family's rights: the Trust answers for the settlor's creditors after the death (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-505(a)(6)), a surviving spouse's elective share is reduced only by what passed to the spouse (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-4-101), and the instrument of a trustee's resignation, removal or appointment is recorded where real estate is trust property (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-1-101). A Trustee who distributes or sells the home before those questions are settled can cloud the title. In a firm-supervised matter, TrusteeClear routes these questions to the attorney before anything moves.

Creditors and the home after a death

After the owner's death, a home in the estate answers for the decedent's debts in the estate's administration, the clerk publishing the notice to creditors (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-306). A home in a trust that was revocable at the death answers for the settlor's creditors' claims, the costs of administration and the funeral expenses, and a claim barred against the estate is barred against the trust (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-505(a)(6)); every claim is barred twelve months after the death (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-310). Liens and mortgages on the home still apply. Whether particular property is reachable is fact-specific attorney territory.

Property taxes

Tennessee real property is assessed by its county assessor, and no statute in the Tennessee statute library reassesses a home because it changed hands at a death. Tennessee's inheritance tax does not reach the estate of a person who dies in 2016 or later (Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-8-318), and no state estate tax applies beyond it (Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-8-314). A Tennessee attorney can confirm what applies.

What should happen next?

Outcomes turn on facts: who survived, how the deed reads, whether minors are involved, whether a spouse elects within nine months of the death (Tenn. Code Ann. § 31-4-102), and whether the homestead can be set apart. This page is general information, not legal advice. A free role check shows you where you stand, and a Tennessee attorney can confirm how the home passes in your situation.

General information about Tennessee law, not legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a homestead right after a death in Tennessee?: Yes. The homestead inures to the surviving spouse, a minor child or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability and is set apart by the court's procedure (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-201); where it cannot be set apart the realty is sold and $35,000 is invested or paid outright (Tenn. Code Ann. § 30-2-209).
What about a home held in a trust?: A home titled to the trust passes under the trust's terms, and the trustee holds the powers of an owner to manage, sell or convey it subject to the fiduciary duties (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-815); a deed from a successor trustee is an instrument affecting title, and where a trustee resigned or was removed the recording of Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-1-101 precedes it.
Can the settlor's creditors reach a trust-held home?: After the death, the property of a trust revocable at the death — a home included — is subject to the settlor's creditors' claims, the costs of administration and the funeral expenses (Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-505(a)(6)).
Does a Tennessee homestead protect a living owner's home from creditors?: Up to a limit. An individual may claim a homestead exemption of up to $35,000 in a principal residence the individual owns — $52,500 combined for joint owners claiming in the same proceeding — not subject to execution, attachment or sale during the owner's life; it does not operate against public taxes, the purchase-money debt for the home, or a debt secured by the home where the exemption was waived in writing, and a deed of trust or mortgage conveys the property free of it (Tenn. Code Ann. § 26-2-301). On the death of a head of family it inures to the surviving spouse and a minor child, or an adult child with a developmental or intellectual disability, while they live there. Fact-specific questions belong with a licensed Tennessee attorney.