Rather than a transfer-on-death deed like many other states use, Ohio's tool of choice is the Transfer on Death Designation Affidavit. It works in a similar spirit — letting an owner name one or more beneficiaries to receive a real-property interest automatically at death — but it's a distinct statutory instrument with its own filing requirements.

Ohio law allows a sole owner, a tenant in common, a survivorship tenant, or spouses holding property as tenants by the entireties to designate all or part of their interest this way. It's a genuinely useful probate-avoidance tool, but it isn't, by itself, a complete Medicaid planning strategy — pairing it with a broader plan matters.

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