Wisconsin: Transfer-on-Death Deed Requirements
The short answer
Yes. Wisconsin lets you name a 'TOD beneficiary' who receives your real estate automatically at your death, outside probate, under Wis. Stat. § 705.15. You add a 'transfer on death' (TOD) designation to a deed, sign and acknowledge it before a notary — no witnesses are required — and record it with the county register of deeds before you die. If the home is marital property, both spouses must sign. You keep full control during your life and can revoke the designation any time by recording a revocation or a new TOD document.
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This is the general rule in Wisconsin. Ezel applies current Wisconsin law to your specific facts and answers with citations to the statutes.
| Governing law | Wis. Stat. § 705.15 ('Nonprobate transfer of real property on death'), part of ch. 705 (Nonprobate Transfers). Wisconsin's own real-property transfer-on-death scheme — NOT the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act; it works by recording a 'TOD beneficiary' designation against the property. Chapter 854 (general transfers at death), including its anti-lapse rule, also applies (§ 705.15(6)) |
|---|---|
| TOD deed available? | Yes. An owner may name a 'TOD beneficiary' who takes an interest in real property without probate on the death of the sole owner or the last to die of multiple owners (§ 705.15(1m)). The designation is made with the words 'transfer on death' or 'pay on death' (or 'TOD'/'POD') after the owner's name and before the beneficiary's name (§ 705.15(2)(b)) |
| How to sign it | The owner signs a recordable document making the TOD designation and, because it must be recorded, acknowledges it before a notary (the statute refers to the owner's acknowledgment of the document, § 705.15(3)(a)2.). NO witnesses are required — the two-witness, one-disinterested requirement in the companion farm-implement TOD statute (§ 705.18(3)(c)) does NOT apply to the real-property TOD. If the property is the owner's MARITAL PROPERTY, both spouses who have an interest must sign (§ 705.15(2)(a)4.). Capacity is the same as the capacity to make or revoke a WILL (§ 705.15(7)). The document must state the transfer is effective only on death (§ 705.15(2)(a)3.); the beneficiary does not sign |
| Recording requirement | The designation 'is not effective unless the document ... and any fees required to record the document[] are submitted for recording to the register of deeds office of the county in which the real property is located before the death of the sole owner or the last to die of multiple owners' (§ 705.15(2)(c)). No fixed signing-to-recording deadline, but recording before death is mandatory. The designation may sit on the original deed that passed the property to the owner, or be added later by a separately recorded document (§ 705.15(2)(b)) |
| Revoking it | Revocable before death; the designation 'does not affect ownership of the property until the death of the sole owner or the last to die of multiple owners regardless of whether the document provides otherwise' (§ 705.15(3)(a)). Methods, each a document acknowledged AFTER the owner acknowledged the earlier one and recorded before death: a later compliant TOD document, an instrument of revocation, or an inter vivos deed that expressly revokes (§ 705.15(3)(a)1.–2.). For property held by joint tenants, or by spouses as survivorship marital property, revocation works only if made by ALL living joint tenants or spouses (§ 705.15(3)(b)2.). An inter vivos transfer of the property also defeats the designation (§ 705.15(3)(c)) |
| Eligible property & owner | A range of interests qualify (§ 705.15(1m)): property owned by one individual; a tenant-in-common fractional interest; a spouse's marital-property interest (but not survivorship marital property); survivorship marital property owned by spouses; and property owned by two or more individuals as joint tenants. In every case the transfer happens on the death of the sole owner or the LAST to die of multiple owners, so a co-owner's survivorship interest passes first and the TOD beneficiary takes only what the last owner still holds. You may name one or more primary and one or more contingent beneficiaries (§ 705.15(2)(b)) |
| Beneficiary survival & effect | On the death of the sole owner (or the last owner) the property passes 'subject to any lien or encumbrance against the real property' to the TOD beneficiary or beneficiaries who survive all owners AND to a predeceased beneficiary's ISSUE who would take under Wisconsin's anti-lapse rule, s. 854.06(3) (§ 705.15(4)). If no beneficiary and no qualifying issue survives, the property passes to the owner's estate (§ 705.15(4)). Separately, a claim to recover the transferred property is barred unless a complaint and a lis pendens are filed within 120 days of death (§ 705.15(8)) |
| Creditor & Medicaid reach | During the owner's life the designation creates no ownership interest in the beneficiary and the owner keeps full control (§ 705.15(3)(a)). After death the beneficiary takes 'subject to any lien or encumbrance against the real property' (§ 705.15(4)); a TOD transfer avoids probate but does not put the home beyond the owner's debts. Wisconsin's Medicaid estate-recovery program reaches a decedent's nonprobate property interests broadly, so a TOD transfer is not a shield — confirm with elder-law counsel whether recovery reaches your property |
Compare this rule across all 50 states + DC →
Wisconsin lets you leave real estate to someone without probate by naming a TOD beneficiary —
Wisconsin's version of a transfer-on-death deed — under Wis. Stat. § 705.15. You add a
"transfer on death" designation to a deed for your property, naming who should receive it when you
die. Nothing happens while you are alive: you keep full ownership and control, and the beneficiary
gets no interest at all. When you die (or, if you own with others, when the last owner dies), the
property passes automatically to the person you named.
The rule that matters most: the designation "is not effective unless" the document is recorded
with the county register of deeds before you die (§ 705.15(2)(c)). A TOD designation that is
signed but never recorded, or recorded only after death, does nothing.
Requirements one by one
Signing and notarizing it
You sign the deed carrying the TOD designation and acknowledge it before a notary. Section
705.15 does not spell out "notary" in its list of contents, but it presupposes that the owner
"acknowledged" the recorded document (§ 705.15(3)(a)2.), and a deed must be acknowledged to be
recorded in Wisconsin — so notarization is required in practice. Wisconsin does not require
witnesses for the real-property TOD. (Wisconsin's separate transfer-on-death statute for farm
implements does require two witnesses, one of them disinterested — § 705.18(3)(c) — but that
rule applies to farm equipment, not to your house.) One Wisconsin-specific trap: if the home is your
marital property, "the signatures of both spouses who have an interest in the marital property"
are required (§ 705.15(2)(a)4.). Capacity to make or revoke the designation is the same as the
capacity to make a will (§ 705.15(7)).
Recording before death — the make-or-break step
The designation is effective only if the document and recording fees "are submitted for recording to
the register of deeds office of the county in which the real property is located before the death"
of the owner or last owner (§ 705.15(2)(c)). There is no deadline measured from signing, but it
must be on record before you die. You can put the TOD designation on the deed that first passed the
property to you, or add it later with a separately recorded document (§ 705.15(2)(b)).
Naming beneficiaries and what happens if one dies first
You may name one or more primary beneficiaries and one or more contingent beneficiaries
(§ 705.15(2)(b)). On your death the property passes to the beneficiaries who survive you — and,
helpfully, to a predeceased beneficiary's issue who would take under Wisconsin's anti-lapse rule
(§ 854.06(3)), so a gift to your child who dies before you can still reach that child's children
(§ 705.15(4)). If no beneficiary and no qualifying issue survives, the property goes to your
estate and passes through probate.
Revoking it
The designation does not affect ownership until death "regardless of whether the document provides
otherwise" (§ 705.15(3)(a)), and you can revoke it any time before death. Each method is a
document acknowledged after you acknowledged the earlier one and recorded before you die: a
new compliant TOD document, an instrument of revocation, or an inter vivos deed that expressly
revokes (§ 705.15(3)(a)1.–2.). Simply conveying the property away during life also defeats the
designation (§ 705.15(3)(c)).
Co-owners and survivorship
Wisconsin's statute expressly covers co-owned property — tenants in common, joint tenants, and
spouses holding marital or survivorship marital property (§ 705.15(1m)). But the transfer always
happens on the death of the last owner to die, so a co-owner's right of survivorship comes
first; your TOD beneficiary takes only what is still yours when the last owner dies. For joint
tenants or survivorship-marital-property spouses, a revocation is effective only if all living
co-owners join in it (§ 705.15(3)(b)2.).
Creditors, your estate, and Medicaid
A TOD designation avoids probate; it does not put the property beyond your debts. The beneficiary
takes "subject to any lien or encumbrance against the real property" at your death (§ 705.15(4)),
so mortgages and liens ride along. Wisconsin's Medicaid estate-recovery program reaches a decedent's
nonprobate property interests broadly, so a TOD transfer is not a shield against recovery — ask an
elder-law attorney about your situation. Note also the 120-day window: a claimant challenging the
transfer must file a complaint and a lis pendens within 120 days of death or the claim is barred
(§ 705.15(8)).
What trips people up
- A TOD designation that is never recorded — or recorded after death — does nothing. Recording
with the county register of deeds before you die is what makes it effective (§ 705.15(2)(c)). - If the home is marital property, both spouses must sign. A TOD designation on marital property
signed by only one spouse does not satisfy § 705.15(2)(a)4. - Survivorship comes first. If you co-own with a right of survivorship, the surviving co-owner
takes the property; your TOD beneficiary reaches it only if you are the last owner to die
(§ 705.15(1m), (4)). - Don't confuse the house rule with the farm-equipment rule. The two-witness requirement people
sometimes hear about is in § 705.18 for farm implements, not in § 705.15 for real property.
Common questions
Is a "TOD beneficiary" designation the same as a transfer-on-death deed? Yes, in substance.
Wisconsin uses the "TOD beneficiary" label and a recorded designation instead of a standalone
"beneficiary deed," but it does the same job: real property passes at death outside probate.
Do I need witnesses? No — not for a real-property TOD (§ 705.15). You do need to sign and have
the deed notarized so it can be recorded.
Does my beneficiary get any rights while I'm alive? No. The designation "does not affect
ownership of the property until the death" (§ 705.15(3)(a)); you can sell, mortgage, or revoke it
without the beneficiary's consent.
What if my named beneficiary dies before me? If that beneficiary has issue (children,
grandchildren) who would take under Wisconsin's anti-lapse rule, they receive the share
(§ 705.15(4)); otherwise name a contingent beneficiary so the property does not fall back into your
estate.
Statutes and sources
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(1m) (interests that can be transferred; on death of sole/last owner) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(2) (required contents; TOD/POD wording; both spouses sign marital property; record before death) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(3) (no effect until death; revocation methods and acknowledgment; joint-owner rule) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(4) (passes subject to liens; anti-lapse for issue; to estate if none survive) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(7) (capacity = capacity to make or revoke a will) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.15(8) (120-day claim bar with complaint and lis pendens) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.15 (accessed 2026-07-11)
- Wis. Stat. § 705.18(3)(c) (farm-implement TOD requires two witnesses, one disinterested — contrast; not applicable to real property) — https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/document/statutes/705.18 (accessed 2026-07-11)
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
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