When someone dies in Oregon, most estates go through probate, a court process that takes time and fees. For small estates, Oregon offers a shortcut called the small estate affidavit. It's a sworn statement filed with the probate court clerk that lets the people entitled to the property, called claiming successors, collect it without opening a full probate case.
To use it, the estate must stay under two limits. Personal property, meaning things like bank accounts, vehicles, and household goods, can't exceed $75,000. Real property, meaning land and buildings, together with any manufactured home, can't exceed $200,000. They're separate caps, not one combined number. Oregon sets them by statute, and they're flat, so they don't rise with inflation.
Two rules about the count catch most people. The values are fair market value on the date of death, and nobody subtracts mortgages or other debts. A $190,000 house with a $150,000 mortgage still counts as $190,000. And the affidavit can't be filed until 30 days after the death.
Who files? A claiming successor does, such as an heir, or the person named as personal representative in the will, if there is one. Debts, funeral bills, and any claims still have to be handled, and the filer swears the information is accurate. Mistakes are the filer's problem, so the sworn part deserves care.
What doesn't count? Property that passes outside probate through a beneficiary designation, like life insurance or a payable-on-death account, is generally not part of this calculation, and that's one reason a beneficiary form can keep a family under the limits. The post on why life insurance skips probate explains why. If there's no will, the state picks the heirs, and that decides who the claiming successors are.
If the estate is over either limit, you'd go the regular route, and what an executor does in Oregon shows what that involves.
I'm a licensed insurance broker, not an attorney, and statutes get amended. Confirm the current limits with the probate court in the county where the person lived, or ask an Oregon estate attorney. Then add up your own list: personal property on one side, real property on the other, using full market value for each.