If you are married and leave:

Spouse Surviving and No Children or Descendants of Children Surviving:

         All real and personal property to Spouse

No Parent Surviving:

All real and personal property to Spouse

One or Both Parents Surviving:

First $50,000 of personal property to Spouse

One-half of all remaining property to Spouse

One-half of all remaining property to Parent(s)

Spouse Surviving and Children or Descendants of Children also Surviving:

One Child or his or her Descendant(s):

First $30,000 of personal property to Spouse

One-half of all remaining property to Spouse

One-half of all remaining property to Child or Descendant(s)

         Two or More Children or Their Descendants

         First $30,000 of personal property to Spouse

         One-third of all remaining property to Spouse

         Two-thirds of all remaining property to Children or Descendants

If you are single or widowed and leave:

Children or Their Descendants Surviving:

All real and personal property to Children or their Descendants

Parent(s) Surviving, No Children or Descendants:

All real and personal property to Parent(s)

Brother(s) or Sister(s) Surviving, No Children or Descendants or Parent(s):

All real and personal property divided equally to siblings

No Children or Their Descendants, No Parents, No Brothers or Sisters or Their Descendants:

One-half to Paternal Grandparents, but if not surviving, then to Paternal Uncles, Aunts or Their Descendants*

One-half to Maternal Grandparents, but if not surviving, then to Maternal Uncles, Aunts or Their Descendants*

No Relatives:

If there are no children, parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and no descendants of any such persons, the estate goes to the State to be used to aid certain students who are residents of North Carolina and enrolled in public institutions of higher education in North Carolina.

* In the event there is a party on one side who can inherit but none on the other side, such side shall take the whole.

Ways to protect your loved ones with Estate Planning.