New York probate leads and inheritance data, by county.
If you are researching New York probate leads, the public court file is only one part of the inherited-property market. USLeadList starts with death and property records, typically about five weeks after death, and generates an average of 3751 records a month across New York.
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New York counties
Browse 62 counties.Every New York county has its own page. Highlighted counties currently generate the largest monthly record volume.
How inherited property moves in New York
Verified state rules behind the county data.Probate rules matter because they determine when a public court record appears and which inherited properties never appear in an ordinary probate case.
What changes for an heir
New York puts no recurring pressure on an heir to sell. The class 1 assessment caps in New York City and Nassau County limit annual and five year increases parcel by parcel and carry no change of ownership reset (RPTL 1805), so a tax bill does not jump because title moved, and the state has no acquisition value system. The estate tax reaches almost no one: the basic exclusion amount is $7,350,000 for 2026 deaths and $7,160,000 for 2025 deaths, and Tax Law 952 withdraws the credit entirely once the New York taxable estate exceeds 105 percent of that amount. There is no inheritance tax. The real loss to an heir is the decedent's STAR, Enhanced STAR and senior exemptions, which do not pass with the house and raise the school tax bill until the heir qualifies alone. What keeps New York houses out of Surrogate's Court is the transfer on death deed at Real Property Law 424, in effect since July 19, 2024, which needs two witnesses present at the same time, a notary, and recording in the county clerk's office before the transferor's death.
Where probate records appear
Surrogate's Court WebSurrogate, the free Unified Court System search of estate proceedings and other filings in New York State Surrogate's Courts. It links document images only for filings made on or after February 19, 2014 and suppresses restricted files such as guardianship and adoption. NYSCEF's Search as Guest covers e-filed matters.
Ways property can avoid ordinary probate
Transfer on death deed under Real Property Law 424, in effect since July 19, 2024, requiring two witnesses present at the same time, acknowledgment before a notary, and recording before the transferor's death. Also revocable living trusts, joint ownership with right of survivorship, and SCPA Article 13 voluntary administration for personal property up to $50,000.
Small-estate route
SCPA Article 13, Settlement of Small Estates Without Court Administration, handled by a voluntary administrator. A small estate is one leaving personal property with a gross value of $50,000 or less, exclusive of property required to be set off under EPTL 5-3.1(a) (SCPA 1301, raised from $30,000 by L. 2019, ch. 557, effective November 25, 2019). SCPA 1302 keeps New York real property out of the procedure, but the decedent's ownership of real property does not prevent the estate from using Article 13 for the personal property.
Timing investors should understand
Statutory floor: there is no waiting period before a probate or administration petition may be filed. Under SCPA 1802 a fiduciary who has paid lawful claims, legacies or distributions in good faith is not chargeable for a claim presented later than 7 months from the date letters were first issued, so that 7 month window, running from issuance of letters rather than from death, is the practical floor before an estate is distributed. SCPA 1802 protects the fiduciary rather than extinguishing a late claim. No Unified Court System source publishes a typical duration.
New York inheritance volume
Updated monthly · September 2026 edition.Newly inherited residential properties recorded in New York, from the same database that builds the lists. Published nationally in the Inheritance Property Index.
Biggest New York counties by volume
- Suffolk 4,524
- Erie 4,129
- Nassau 3,480
- Queens 2,779
- Monroe 2,516
- Westchester 2,038
- Onondaga 1,817
- Kings 1,802
Free to cite with attribution: USLeadList Inheritance Property Index, September 2026 edition. See every state and download the data.
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