2026-09-09 · Alaska · Legislation

A unit in an Alaska condominium or homeowners association can now be passed at death by a transfer-on-death deed, under a bill that became law without Governor Mike Dunleavy's signature on June 18, 2026. SB 104 was enrolled as Chapter 12, SLA 2026, and took effect July 1, 2026.¹

The change is small in word count and easy to miss. It is one subparagraph added to a definition in a probate statute — and it did not appear in the bill as introduced.

What the measure does

Alaska adopted the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act at AS ch. 13.48, which lets an owner record a deed naming a beneficiary who takes the property automatically at the owner's death, outside probate. The owner keeps full control while alive and can revoke the deed at any time.

Section 5 of SB 104 amends the definition of “property” in AS 13.48.190(5), adding a new subparagraph covering “an ownership interest in a unit, and all rights, obligations, and interests appurtenant to the unit, in a common interest community, or a leasehold interest in a leasehold common interest community subject to AS 34.08, which is transferable on the death of the owner.”²

Two phrases carry the weight. “Subject to AS 34.08” ties the provision to the Alaska Common Interest Ownership Act, the statute that governs most Alaska condominiums and planned communities. And “all rights, obligations, and interests appurtenant to the unit” means the transfer is not of the four walls alone: the membership, the voting rights and the assessment obligations travel with it.

It arrived as an amendment to a boat bill

SB 104 was introduced on February 19, 2025 by Senator Scott Kawasaki of Fairbanks as a vehicle-and-boat measure — it creates transfer-on-death titling at the DMV for cars and vessels. The common interest community language was added more than a year later, by the Senate Finance Committee, in a committee substitute reported on March 4, 2026. The committee's own explanation-of-changes document records the amendment plainly, including the addition to the bill's title.³

It then moved without opposition: the Senate passed it 20–0 on March 9, 2026, and the House 40–0 on May 16. It was transmitted to the governor on June 1 and became law without his signature.

1. SB 104, 34th Alaska State Legislature — bill detail, status and history (Chapter 12, SLA 2026; became law without signature June 18, 2026; effective July 1, 2026) ↩
2. CSSB 104(FIN), enrolled text — Section 5 amending AS 13.48.190(5), Alaska State Legislature ↩
3. Senate Finance Committee, Explanation of Changes, version A to version G, SB 104 (adding the common interest community language and the title change) ↩
4. Community Associations Institute, 2026 Alaska End of Legislative Session Report (June 3, 2026) ↩