Unfortunately, he did not sign it so it was not binding in the state of Arizona.
I never told my siblings he planned to pass it on to me, as I did not want them to think I had acted inappropriately, although I think they would have believed me if I had.
Both my brother and sister agreed to sign the house over to me using a Small Estate Affidavit (SEA) but I told them I would share the proceeds with them. (I provided them a notarized statement I would share the proceeds.) The only way to avoid probate court was to use the SEA - going through probate with an attorney would have eaten up most of the value of the real estate, which was his only asset.
