Lower Merion-area homeowners could gain a simpler way to pass property to a family member or chosen beneficiary without going through probate.

State Rep. Tim Briggs, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, sponsored House Bill 2124, which passed the Pennsylvania House 202-0 on Oct. 5. Briggs represents the 149th Legislative District, covering Bridgeport, West Conshohocken, Upper Merion and parts of Lower Merion in Montgomery County.

The bill would create a "transfer-on-death" deed. A property owner would record the deed with the county recorder of deeds where the property sits, naming a beneficiary to receive it after the owner's death. For Lower Merion residents, that means filing with the Montgomery County Recorder of Deeds.

The beneficiary must survive the owner to inherit. The deed would not strip any rights from the owner while alive. Owners could still sell or transfer the property, and they could revoke or change the beneficiary at any time. The named beneficiary would hold no ownership interest until the owner dies.

"This legislation would give Pennsylvanians another tool to make their wishes known and transfer property to the people they choose, while reducing the need for a potentially lengthy and costly probate process," Briggs said in a statement from his office.

Pennsylvania does not currently offer a straightforward way to pass real estate outside of probate, according to the bill's co-sponsorship memo. Life insurance payouts and pension plans already transfer to beneficiaries without probate, but homes do not get the same treatment. For many low- and middle-income families, a home is the most valuable asset in an estate.

The bill also addresses jointly owned property, situations where a beneficiary dies before the owner, and the rights of surviving spouses.

Twenty-two states have already enacted versions of the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act, which was first approved by the Uniform Law Commission in 2009, according to the co-sponsorship memo.

HB 2124 was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, Oct. 13. No Senate hearing date has been announced.