Is it true that a will is not required in NC if only property is involved?

A will is never "required." However, it is a good idea to have one regardless of what assets are owned. However, your post is confusing and seems to suggest that there is a will which was never submitted for probate. Further, there is more than just land involved because there was a cd. Power of attorney ends at death so the power of attorney is irrelevant. If the sister-in-law is out of state then she needs to probate an estate in NC if there are assets justifying probate. Wills need to be filed even if probate is not justified. You or any other beneficiary/creditor could compel your sister-in-law to produce the will and file it if it is in her possession. And you are not quite correct. A non-resident executor can appoint a resident agent in North Carolina or else renounce their right and let someone in NC handle this (like you if you reside here). There are attorneys or others who will agree to be the agent for service of process purposes. Were all debts/claims of the estate paid? How was the land titled? What is it worth? What about the cd Assuming that the land was titled in the mother-in-law's name solely when she died, then the land would pass to your wife and her sister in equal shares. Since your wife died, your wife's 50% would pass to her estate and would be distributed as per your wife's will or via the intestacy laws. Same with the cd if it was payable to your wife and her sister equally. If the land was owned by your mother-in-law and her daughters as a joint tenancy with right of survivorship, then your sister-in-law would solely own the land. Regarding the cd, you need to see how it was payable, but your wife should have been entitled to 50% if she was a named beneficiary. If the cd had a transfer/pay on death designation and if the sister-in-law only was named as the designee then she would own this solely. And if the cd was made payable to both your wife and the sister-in-law, then it goes to both of them, not just your wife. If the sister in law wants to gift her half to your wife's estate or renounce that is different (renunciations have to be made within 9 months of death and your sister in law is running out if time if she needs to do that). There are 2 issues here - one is the estate for your mother-in-law and one for your wife. Both of these need reviewed by a probate attorney who practices in the county where each woman lived at the time of her death.