How much does probate cost in Michigan?

How much does probate cost in Michigan?

Verified
31 Jul 2026
§ schedule type: none

Michigan publishes no percentage for the attorney or the personal representative — both are paid reasonable compensation. The one cost the statute does work out to the dollar is the court’s own: an inventory fee on a sliding scale.

On an estate valued at $400,000 that inventory fee is $737.50, on top of the flat $150.00 it costs to commence the proceeding. Mortgage debt on estate real property comes off the value before the inventory fee is worked out, which pulls the figure down for a great many estates. Most informal appointments post no bond at all.

MCL 700.3719 — Michigan Legislature · Verified 31 Jul 2026

Informational only, not legal advice. Figures verified on the date stamped. Details: /disclaimer/

Work it out on your own number

Michigan’s compensation rows have no formula, but the inventory fee does. It is worked out from the value of everything the decedent owned at the date of death, and here is the whole scale.

MCL 600.871 · the inventory fee scale
Under $1,000$5 plus 1% over $500
$1,000 to under $3,000$25
$3,000 to under $10,000$25 plus 0.625% over $3,000
$10,000 to under $25,000$68.75 plus 0.5% over $10,000
$25,000 to under $50,000$143.75 plus 0.375% over $25,000
$50,000 to under $100,000$237.50 plus 0.25% over $50,000
$100,000 to $500,000$362.50 plus 0.125% over $100,000
Each further $100,000 over $500,000$62.50
Each further $100,000 over $1,000,000$31.25

Worked through: an estate valued at $400,000 pays $737.50. An estate valued at $750,000 pays $1,050.00 — the last two part-hundred-thousands above $500,000 each count in full.

Take the mortgage off first. Since 28 March 2013, where real property in the estate is mortgaged or used as security, the debt comes off the value of that property before the fee is worked out. The figures above are what the schedule computes, to the cent; the court collects the fee rounded to the whole dollar. It falls due on or before the closing of the estate, or within one year of the proceeding being commenced, whichever comes first, and the court will not accept a final accounting until it is paid in full and shown in that accounting.

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What each part costs

Every row is one figure, one source, one date. Where Michigan fixes no price, the row says so instead of guessing.

FeeAmount or formulaSet bySourceVerified
Attorney feeOrdinary services No statutory scheduleThe personal representative may employ an attorney to do the necessary legal work and may act on that attorney’s recommendation without going behind it; the attorney is entitled to reasonable compensation. Where the attorney is also serving as personal representative, the statute bites harder — time records must be kept saying who did the work, on what date, for how long and what it was, and handed to any interested person affected by the fees who asks. One narrow cap exists: where estate real property is subject to foreclosure and net sale proceeds exceed $30,000, total fees to everyone employed in connection with that property must not exceed 10% of the net proceeds. Statute — reasonable compensation MCL 700.3715(1)(w) and (2)(d), read with MCL 700.3719(2) 31 Jul 2026
Personal representative feeThe executor or administrator Reasonable compensationNo percentage anywhere — reasonable compensation for the services actually performed. Two Michigan features are unusual. The compensation may be taken periodically as it is earned, without asking the court first. And a compensation clause in the will is not binding: where there was no contract with the decedent about it, the personal representative may renounce the clause before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead. A written contract made with the decedent during life is binding. Statute — reasonable compensation MCL 700.3719 31 Jul 2026
Fee to commence the proceedingPaid to the probate register at filing $150.00 · or $25.00 summaryIt costs $150.00 to start a civil action or proceeding in a Michigan probate court, paid to the probate register at the time of commencing it. Where the proceeding is the small-estate summary route under MCL 700.3982, the fee is $25.00 instead. No fee is charged for a proceeding under the mental health code, and none is payable by the Attorney General, the Department of Treasury, the family independence agency, the state public administrator, the administrator of veterans affairs, or an agency of county government. This is separate from, and additional to, the inventory fee below — a Michigan estate normally pays both. Statute, fixed statewide MCL 600.880(1) and (2) 1 Aug 2026
Inventory feeCharged in every decedent’s estate Statutory sliding scaleWorked out from the value of everything the decedent owned at the date of death and charged as an expense of administration. The full scale is set out above. An estate valued at $400,000 pays $737.50, which is what the schedule computes to the cent; the court collects it rounded to the whole dollar. Mortgage or security debt on estate real property comes off the value of that property first. Statute, statewide scale MCL 600.871 1 Aug 2026
Newspaper publicationNotice to creditors Not fixed by statuteThe law sets the schedule, not the price. On appointment the personal representative publishes notice telling creditors to present claims within four months of publication or be barred forever. Publishing is not the end of it: the notice must also be sent to every creditor known at the time and to any who become known during those four months. A creditor counts as known if the representative could reasonably find them by going through the decedent’s records for the two years before the death and the mail that arrived after it. The newspaper sets its own rate. The newspaper MCL 700.3801 31 Jul 2026
BondPersonal representative’s bond Not required unless orderedMichigan’s default is no bond. A personal representative appointed in informal proceedings gives none at all, with three exceptions: a special personal representative, a will that expressly requires a bond, and a case falling under section 3605. In a formal proceeding the court may order one, but must not where the will relieves the representative of bond unless an interested person asks and the court is satisfied it is desirable. And no bond is needed from a representative who instead deposits cash or collateral with the county treasurer in the amount the court determines. Not required unless ordered MCL 700.3603 31 Jul 2026

Michigan charges twice, and most summaries name only one of the two. The $150.00 commencement fee under MCL 600.880 and the inventory fee under MCL 600.871 are separate charges and a normal estate pays both. Only the summary small-estate route pays the reduced $25.00. Neither figure comes from the State Court Administrative Office fee tables — both are printed in the statute itself.

What changes YOUR number in Michigan

Two court charges, not one
$150.00 to commence the proceeding, paid to the probate register when you file, and then the inventory fee worked out on the date-of-death value. The summary route under MCL 700.3982 pays $25.00 to commence instead, which is the single cheapest way through a Michigan probate court.
Paid as earned, without asking first
Most states make the personal representative wait for a court order before taking compensation. Michigan does not — it may be taken periodically as it is earned. That changes cash flow through the administration, not the total.
The will’s fee clause can be turned down
Where the will fixes the personal representative’s compensation and there was no contract with the decedent about it, the representative may renounce the clause before qualifying and take reasonable compensation instead. A written contract made with the decedent during life is binding and cannot be shed this way. The right to compensation can also be given up in whole or in part, by a written renunciation filed with the court and served on every affected interested person.
When the attorney is also the personal representative
Time records become compulsory: who did the work, the date, the time spent, and what was done. Any interested person affected by the fees can ask for them and must be given them. This is the clearest fee-transparency rule in the database.
The 10 percent foreclosure cap
Where estate real property is subject to foreclosure and the net proceeds coming to the estate exceed $30,000, everyone the personal representative employed in connection with that property — attorney, real estate agent, asset recovery agent — shares a cap of 10% of the net proceeds. Below $30,000 the court simply decides what is reasonable. It is a narrow rule, not a general fee schedule.
Mortgage debt comes off before the inventory fee
Since 28 March 2013, where real property in the estate is mortgaged or used as security, that debt is deducted from the property’s value before the inventory fee is calculated. On a heavily mortgaged house this is the single largest saving available on this page.
The four-month bar, and the search behind it
Creditors have four months from publication to present claims. The real work is the duty behind it: known creditors must be notified individually, and a creditor counts as known if two years of the decedent’s records and the post-death mail would have revealed them. The cost of this step is often the searching rather than the advertisement.
You may not need full administration

The ceiling is $53,000 for a decedent who dies in 2026

Where the funeral and burial expenses have been paid and the rest of the gross estate is worth no more than the ceiling, the court may order the property turned over to the surviving spouse, or to the heirs if there is no spouse. Where those expenses are unpaid, or were paid by someone other than the estate, the court orders them paid or reimbursed first and the balance turned over.

  • The figure in force is $53,000 for a decedent who dies during 2026, certified by the State Treasurer on 30 January 2026 using the 2023 cost-of-living factor of 1.057. For a decedent who died during 2025 it was $51,000.
  • The Code itself prints $50,000, then orders that figure adjusted every year — so the printed number has not been the live number for years. The year that counts is the year of the death, not the year of the filing.
  • An heir who takes property this way stays liable for 63 days for the decedent’s unpaid debts, up to the value of what they received. A surviving spouse who qualifies for allowances, and minor children, are outside that rule.
  • Since 1 January 2024, mortgage debt on real property in the estate, up to $250,000, comes off the value of that property before the ceiling is applied — which brings a good many houses inside the route.
  • There is a second route, collection by sworn statement. Where an estate qualifies for both, nobody except the court may insist on one rather than the other.
  • The summary route also cuts the court’s own charge: $25.00 to commence instead of $150.00.

Check the year, not the statute. The ceiling moves every January and the Treasury notice is published each year. A page or a form still printing $50,000, or printing $53,000 without naming a year, is not telling you enough to rely on.

MCL 700.3982, read with MCL 700.1210 — Michigan Legislature — and the Department of Treasury notice certified 30 Jan 2026, Table B · Verified 1 Aug 2026

Three tools, in the order most people need them

Estate-Value EstimatorLive · open the tool → Statutory Fee CalculatorLive · open the tool → Small-Estate Threshold CheckerLive · open the tool →

Michigan probate cost questions

Does Michigan set probate attorney fees by statute?

No percentage schedule exists. The attorney is entitled to reasonable compensation. Two specific rules do apply: an attorney who is also the personal representative must keep and hand over time records, and where estate real property is sold out of foreclosure for net proceeds above $30,000, total fees connected with that property are capped at 10% of the net proceeds.

How much does the personal representative get paid in Michigan?

Reasonable compensation for the services actually performed, with no percentage in the statute. Michigan lets it be taken periodically as it is earned without a prior court order, and lets the representative renounce a compensation clause in the will before qualifying, unless there was a written contract with the decedent.

What does it cost to open a probate case in Michigan?

$150.00, paid to the probate register when the proceeding is commenced. The small-estate summary route under MCL 700.3982 costs $25.00 instead. That fee is separate from the inventory fee, and most estates pay both.

What is the Michigan probate inventory fee?

A statutory sliding scale worked out from the value of everything the decedent owned at the date of death. An estate valued at $400,000 pays $737.50; one valued at $750,000 pays $1,050.00. Those are the amounts the schedule computes to the cent, and the court collects the fee rounded to the whole dollar. Mortgage or security debt on estate real property is deducted from that property’s value before the fee is calculated.

How much is the newspaper notice in Michigan probate?

Michigan sets no price; the newspaper does. What the statute fixes is the four-month bar running from publication, and the duty to notify creditors who are known or who a search of two years of the decedent’s records and the post-death mail would reveal.

What is the small estate limit in Michigan?

$53,000 for a decedent who dies during 2026, certified by the State Treasurer on 30 January 2026. The Code prints $50,000 and then adjusts it every January for the cost of living, so the printed figure is not the figure in force; for a 2025 death it was $51,000. Since 1 January 2024, mortgage debt on estate real property, up to $250,000, is deducted before the ceiling is applied.

Sources & verification

Every figure on this page was checked against the official source on the date shown. Statutory figures are re-checked annually.

Researched and verified by John Terra · Methodology

This page is information, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws and fee schedules change; every figure here was verified on the date stamped beside it. For advice about your own situation, consult an attorney licensed in Michigan. Full terms: /disclaimer/

Every state, one standard: How much does probate cost? →

Nearby and often compared: Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and North Carolina

When a figure changes, know first

Statutes get amended and fee schedules get updated. Once a month, we send a short note listing every figure that changed and every page we re-verified. Reference, not marketing.