Deceased Person (with a Will) in Title

When an individual in title is deceased, the first determination to make is whether that person left a Will.  If a valid Will does exist, a standard probate of the Will (often a lengthy process) is not always the only option to clear title.  Oftentimes, the Will can be probated "as muniment of title".  This is a shortened probate process (approximately 3 weeks or less) in which the Will is filed as evidence of the conveyance of the subject property.  In such a case, a deed does not even need to be filed, as the filed Will serves as the conveyance document.  A second (and perhaps even shorter) method by which to clear title is an affidavit of heirship.  This can only be accomplished if the beneficiaries under the Will are the same as the heirs of the deceased would have been had there been no Will at all.