If a homeowner owns real estate (either raw land or a home) in Texas and that homeowner dies, their real estate is subject to the probate process in order to transfer the title to a new owner. Many people don’t realize that the new owner can be the surviving spouse, the kids or an unrelated buyer. There still needs to be some sort of legal procedure to transfer the deceased homeowner’s interest in their real estate. The property does not automatically transfer to the spouse.The three best ways to transfer real estate while avoiding probate are (1) transfer the real ...