Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Arizona

You will need to go through probate (go to court). Since there was no will or other estate planning document, it is called intestate succession, and her assets will be passed on via state laws. Probably what will happen is that any assets minus debts will be equally divided among the five living children. One of you may volunteer to be the estate representative or you can hire an independent third party to do so.

I am sorry for your loss, and good luck with the probate process.

As stated in the previous answer, you should open a probate of your mother's estate in the county where she resides and owns property. You did not mention if she has a surviving spouse. If there is a spouse and you 5 children, then the estate will be split between the spouse and the children. Probate will require that you give notice to creditors, gather up all the assets of the estate, pay bills, taxes and claims, and then, pursuant to an order of the court, distribute the remaining assets of the estate to the heirs. One of you should apply to be appointed personal representative of the estate. The personal representative is entitled to have counsel/a lawyer, which would be paid for by the estate as a costs of administration.

In general, you would be well advised to have a lawyer guide you through the process, rather than trying to do it on your own.