If an unmarried individual dies without a will or any qualified heir, his or her estate passes to

• A. The decedent's heirs
• B. The state in which the person lived at the time of death
• C. The federal government
• D. The state where the person lived at death

Answer: (B)

When someone dies without a will and with no qualified heirs, there’s no one left to inherit the property. In that situation, the estate escheats to the state. The state receiving the estate is the one where the person resided or was domiciled at death—the place whose laws govern intestate succession for that person. This rule exists to prevent property from becoming ownerless and to let the state manage unclaimed assets that would otherwise have no rightful claimant. So the estate goes to the state in which the decedent lived at the time of death.