Transfer a car title after death in California, then sell the car

In California, an heir transfers a car title after the owner dies using one DMV form: the REG 5, Affidavit for Transfer Without Probate. You need the form, a certified copy of the death certificate, and the California title. You have to wait 40 days from the date of death before the DMV will accept it. That is the whole path for most families, and the car does not have to be worth under any dollar limit for it to work.

I'm Joe. I'm a licensed dealer and I buy cars in people's driveways across the San Fernando Valley, Ventura County, and West L.A. A good share of those cars belonged to someone who died. So I fill out REG 5s at kitchen tables, and I watch families lose weeks to a one-page form, usually because somebody on the internet told them they needed probate first.

You almost certainly don't. Here is the short road.

What you actually need to transfer a car title after death in California

Five things. Two of them you already have.

1. A certified copy of the death certificate. Order it from the county recorder in the county where the death occurred. The REG 5 itself only says a copy is required, but I'd still send a certified one, because it's the official version and it leaves nothing to question. Order three or four while you're at it, because the bank, the insurance company, and the DMV will each want one.
2. The California Certificate of Title, the pink slip. If it's lost, file a REG 227 at the same time. It costs $28 (Vehicle Code §9265) and it can travel in the same envelope as everything else.
3. The completed REG 5. Download it at dmv.ca.gov. You certify the date and place of death, that no probate case is open or planned, that unsecured creditors have been paid or their claims discharged, and that you're the person entitled to the vehicle.
4. The signature on the title. You sign the deceased owner's name on the transfer line and countersign with your own, which is exactly how the DMV instructs it. The step-by-step on where each signature goes is in my guide to filling out a California title, and the rules are the same here.
5. $15. That's the transfer fee (Vehicle Code §9255).

That's it. There's no court date, no attorney, and no probate case in the standard version of this.

Does the estate have to be small?

The estate's other property has to be under the small estate threshold. The car does not count toward it. Probate Code §13050(b)(1) excludes vehicles from the calculation, and Vehicle Code §5910(a) hands the transfer to the successor "irrespective of the value of the vehicle." Section 13050 also leaves out other property, such as joint tenancy property, property passing to a surviving spouse, and trust assets, so those don't count either.

That matters more than it sounds, and it's the misunderstanding I end up correcting most often. Families look at an expensive car in the driveway and assume it pushes them over the line into probate. It doesn't. The car is invisible to that calculation. What counts is everything else, and when the house was already in a trust, there's frequently very little left to count.

What the 40-day wait does not block

The 40 days is the one hard delay, and people treat it like a freeze on everything. It isn't. It blocks exactly one thing: the DMV accepting the affidavit.

Inside those 40 days you can order the death certificate, find the title, call the lender for a written payoff figure, get the car appraised, get a firm offer in writing, and agree on a price. Everything except the filing.

So the practical timeline for most families is not "40 days, then start." It's "start today, file on day 41." Plenty of my estate visits run that way: I come out while the clock is still going, we agree on a number, and I come back after the 40 days with the paperwork.

If you want a real number to work with while the clock runs, call or text me at (818) 325-7535. I'll come out, look at the car, and give you a firm offer. Nothing has to happen that day and there's no cost for the visit.

Do I have to put the car in my name before I sell it?

No. This is the part that saves families the most time and almost nobody prints it.

The successor endorses the title, and the buyer goes on as the next transferee in the same packet. The DMV calls this a multiple transfer: a vehicle sold more than once without a new title being issued in between (VIRP §11.115, Vehicle Code §5750). A transfer fee is due for each buyer in the chain, and when you sell to a dealer, the dealer files the chain and pays those fees. That's how I buy estate cars: I go on the title as the next transferee, so the family never has a title issued in their name first.

If the car had a Transfer on Death beneficiary named on the title, the statute says it outright. The beneficiary "may transfer his or her interest in the vehicle to another person without securing transfer of ownership into his or her own name" (Vehicle Code §5910.5(f)). If you've been looking for a California DMV transfer on death form, there isn't a separate one. The owner names the beneficiary on the title itself, in the New Registered Owner section: the owner's name on the first line (only one owner is allowed), then "TOD" and a single beneficiary's name on the second, signed by the owner alone, for a $10 fee. After the death, the beneficiary signs the title and adds a Statement of Facts (REG 256) giving the date and place of death (VIRP §11.170).

What that means in practice: you never register the car, never insure it in your name, never renew the tags, never take a smog appointment for a car you don't want. You sign once, and it's gone.

That's most of what I do on an estate car. You sign the title, you sign the REG 5, I take the packet to the DMV. If you'd rather see how the rest of the process works before you decide anything, the inherited car service page walks through what I bring to the house.

The number on the DMV's own form is wrong

Here's the one that costs people real money, and it's the DMV's fault, not yours.

There are four published small estate figures floating around right now, and three of them are stale:

So a family whose parent died in, say, June 2025, leaving $195,000 in non-vehicle assets, downloads the REG 5, reads $184,500, decides they're over the line, and calls a probate attorney. They aren't over the line. The threshold that applies to their death date is $208,850. They qualify for the one-page form.

If your parent died on or after April 1, 2025, the number is $208,850, and the form telling you otherwise is just out of date. If they died before that, use $184,500. The Judicial Council publishes the current schedule on form DE-300, and it's the one that governs, not the printing on the affidavit.

I'm not raising this to score a point against the DMV. I'm raising it because the form itself is what sends families to a probate attorney they don't need, and the form is the document they trust most.

Who is allowed to sign the REG 5?

Being the son doesn't do it by itself. Neither does being the person with the keys.

The form is signed by the successor of the decedent, which California defines precisely (Probate Code §13006). In plain terms, that's one of these:

• Everyone who inherits under the will, when the car is left by will.
• Everyone who inherits under intestate succession (Probate Code §§6401 and 6402), when there's no will.
• The trustee of a trust the decedent set up, acting for the trust (Probate Code §13051).
• The conservator or guardian of the estate of the person who succeeded (Probate Code §13051).

If three siblings inherit equally, all three sign. If one of them is out of state, mail the form. What doesn't work is one sibling signing on everyone's behalf because they're the one who lives closest. That's the failure I see most: a stalled transfer, not because the family disagreed, but because only one person signed.

If there's a second name on the title, the word between the two names decides what happens (VIRP §1.035). If the title reads one name "or" the other, the surviving owner's signature alone releases it, and the DMV doesn't list a death certificate for that case. If it reads one name "and" the other, the deceased owner's interest has to be released, and the title gets signed twice: once by the surviving owner, and once for the deceased owner countersigned by the heir.

Three other labels can follow the names on a title, and each one changes who ends up with the car. "JTRS" (joint tenants with right of survivorship) passes the car to the surviving owner, who signs the title and attaches a copy of the death certificate. "COMPRO" (community property) also leaves the car with the surviving spouse, once the deceased spouse's interest is released by the heir on a REG 5, or by the executor with Letters if there's a probate case. "Tenants in Common" works the other way. The deceased owner's share goes to their estate, not to the other owner, so it moves by REG 5 or Letters like anything else the person left.

That same "and" versus "or" line on the title is what makes selling a car during a divorce in California its own headache, for the opposite reason. Both owners are alive, and getting both of them to sign is the hard part.

What if the car still has a loan on it?

The REG 5 does nothing about the lien. Those are two separate tracks that have to finish in order.

The lienholder releases its interest separately, on a REG 166 if the loan is already paid off, or by releasing the title once you pay the balance. Until that happens, the title can't move, no matter how clean the affidavit is.

The part families are afraid to ask about: you don't personally owe your parent's car loan. Unless you co-signed or you're a community property spouse, the debt belongs to the estate, not to you. The lender's remedy is the car. That's it. Nobody is coming after your paycheck because your mother had 19 payments left on a Highlander.

If the payoff is higher than the car is worth, that gap has to be closed before the title moves, and my guide on negative equity covers who pays it and how. If you'd rather not deal with the lender at all, that's a normal part of a dealer purchase. I call for the payoff, I pay the lender directly, and whatever is left over goes to the estate.

Selling a living parent's car with power of attorney

Mom is in assisted living and asked you to handle the Camry. While she's alive, you can sell it with a power of attorney. The DMV accepts its own REG 260 or a general power of attorney (VIRP §1.125). One limit: a POA can't disclose odometer mileage, so your mother signs the odometer line herself and you sign the rest.

The day she dies, that power of attorney is void (Probate Code §4152(a)(4)), durable or not. From then on the car goes through the REG 5 route above, which needs no signature from her. The full walkthrough, signatures included, is in selling a living parent's car with power of attorney.

The situations that change the path

One situation the table leaves out, because it changes the sale rather than the transfer: a title that comes back branded. I wrote up selling a salvage or rebuilt title car in California separately, because the buyer list and the disclosure rules are different there.

What it costs and how long it takes

Two deadlines worth getting right, because both belong to the person receiving the car and not to you.

Whoever takes the car has 10 days from receiving the endorsed title to send it to the DMV with the transfer fee, which is the transferee's duty under Vehicle Code §5902. The DMV states the same rule plainly: any change in ownership has to be reported within 10 days. The penalty clock is separate and longer. A private-party buyer has 30 days from the date of transfer to pay the transfer fee before the $15 transfer penalty attaches (VIRP §11.015), and a licensed California dealer gets the same 30 days, counted from the date of sale (VIRP §3.050, Vehicle Code §9553(c)(1)). None of this attaches to the 40-day waiting period, and none of it is your problem once you've signed and handed over the car to a dealer.

What is still your problem until the title actually moves: keep insurance on the car. An uninsured car sitting in a driveway is a real exposure, and it's the thing families forget while they're dealing with everything else.

If you'd rather just be done with it

Some people want to keep the car. Some want to give it to a grandchild, and if that's you, gifting a car in California covers the tax side, and transferring a title to a family member covers who qualifies for the exemption.

Most people I meet want it gone. Not because they didn't love the person. Because the car is sitting in the driveway with the registration ticking, and every time they walk past it, it's a thing they haven't handled yet.

That's the part I can take. I'm a licensed dealer, I come to your house in the San Fernando Valley, Ventura County, or West L.A., and I bring a firm offer, guaranteed to match or beat any CarMax offer. If the number works, I write you a check on the spot and take the car with me. You sign the title and the REG 5, and I handle the DMV.

You don't need to know anything about the car, and you don't need to clean it, photograph it, list it, meet strangers, or leave the house. And if you're not ready yet, that's fine. Some families call back months after the first visit. The car waits.

Condition is the other thing families apologize for. You can't vouch for a car you never drove, and nobody expects you to. My guide to selling a car as is in California covers what a seller does still have to disclose.

Plenty of estate cars are old with real miles on them, or stopped running months before anyone got to it, and families assume that means the car isn't worth selling. It usually still is. What dealers pay for a high-mileage car has clearer breakpoints than people expect, and if the reason it's parked is a bad transmission, that one has its own math.

Call or text (818) 325-7535 whenever you're ready. The price I quote is the price you get.

This is part of the How to Sell a Car in California series.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I transfer a car title after the owner dies in California?

File DMV form REG 5 (Affidavit for Transfer Without Probate) with a certified copy of the death certificate and the California title, once 40 days have passed since the date of death. You sign the deceased owner's name on the title's transfer line and countersign with your own. The transfer fee is $15. No probate case is required as long as the estate's non-vehicle assets are under the small estate threshold for the death date, and the vehicle itself is excluded from that calculation under Probate Code §13050(b)(1).

Can you sell a deceased person's car without probate in California?

Yes, in most cases. Once 40 days have passed since the date of death, the heir uses the REG 5 (Affidavit for Transfer Without Probate): they sign the deceased owner's name on the title, countersign with their own, and send the REG 5 and the death certificate with it. The car's value doesn't matter, because vehicles don't count toward the small estate threshold that the rest of the estate has to stay under. If a probate case is already open, the executor or administrator signs instead, using Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. Either way, the heir doesn't have to put the car in their own name first. The buyer goes on the title as the next transferee in the same packet.

What is the REG 5 form?

REG 5 is the California DMV's Affidavit for Transfer Without Probate, authorized by Vehicle Code §5910. It's one page, signed under penalty of perjury, in which you certify the date and place of death, that no probate proceeding is open or has been conducted, that unsecured creditors have been paid or discharged, and that you're entitled to the vehicle as a successor, trustee, or conservator. It applies only to California-titled vehicles and vessels.

Can you legally drive a deceased person's car?

The registration doesn't expire because the owner died, so the car isn't automatically illegal to drive. Insurance is the real problem. The policy covered the person who died, and most carriers won't extend coverage to an heir driving the car before the title transfers. Call the insurer before anyone turns the key. Driving without evidence of financial responsibility is its own violation under Vehicle Code §16028, separate from anything to do with the estate.

Do I need to notify the DMV of a death?

For the vehicle, the notification happens through the title transfer itself. The DMV does have a form for reporting the death, DMV 22 (Reporting a Deceased Person), which you mail to DMV, PO Box 942869, MS C271, Sacramento, CA 94269-0001. If the person had a disabled-person placard, mark an X on both sides of it and mail it in with the form. DMV 22 doesn't update vehicle registration records, so the title transfer is still what moves the car. The DMV's Reporting a Death of a Family Member or Friend page has the current address and instructions.

Do both parties need to be present for a title transfer in California?

No. California doesn't require the buyer and seller to appear together at a DMV office, and the title doesn't need to be notarized. The seller signs the release section, the buyer completes the new owner section, and the paperwork gets submitted. When you sell to a licensed dealer, the dealer submits it, so you don't go to the DMV at all.

Do I have to put the car in my name before I sell it?

No. The successor endorses the title and the buyer becomes the next transferee in the same packet. The DMV processes this as a multiple transfer, a vehicle sold more than once without a new title being issued in between (VIRP §11.115, Vehicle Code §5750). A transfer fee is due for each buyer in the chain, and a dealer handles the filing and those fees. For a vehicle with a Transfer on Death beneficiary, Vehicle Code §5910.5(f) says the beneficiary can transfer their interest "without securing transfer of ownership into his or her own name."

Does a power of attorney still work after my parent dies?

No. A power of attorney ends when the principal dies (California Probate Code §4152(a)(4)), so after a parent's death the heir uses the REG 5 affidavit route this page covers once 40 days have passed, or the executor or administrator signs with Letters if a probate case is open.

What is the estate value limit for a REG 5 transfer?

For deaths on or after April 1, 2025, the limit is $208,850 in non-vehicle assets. For deaths between April 1, 2022 and March 31, 2025, it's $184,500. The DMV's posted REG 5 form (rev. 12/2024) still prints $184,500, and one chapter of the DMV's registration manual still says $150,000, so check your death date against the current Judicial Council schedule rather than the printing on the form. The vehicle itself never counts toward the limit (Probate Code §13050(b)(1)).

Can multiple heirs sell an inherited car together?

Yes, and all of them have to sign. The REG 5 is signed by everyone who succeeded to the vehicle, whether under the will or under intestate succession (Probate Code §§6401 and 6402). One sibling can't sign for the others because they live closest. If heirs are genuinely in dispute over who owns the car, that's one of the few situations where probate is the path, and it's worth a phone call before anyone signs anything.

En español: Cómo transferir el título de un carro cuando el dueño falleció.

This guide covers California law as of October 2026 and is general information, not legal advice. Estate situations vary. For a contested estate or one with significant creditor claims, talk to a probate attorney.