diff --git a/examples/async-data/app.js b/examples/async-data/app.js
index f37a1d119d..14f4d59a04 100644
--- a/examples/async-data/app.js
+++ b/examples/async-data/app.js
@@ -114,7 +114,7 @@ var Index = React.createClass({
 
 var routes = (
   <Route name="contacts" path="/" handler={App}>
-    <DefaultRoute handler={Index}/>
+    <DefaultRoute name="index" handler={Index}/>
     <Route name="contact" path="contact/:id" handler={Contact}/>
   </Route>
 );
diff --git a/modules/__tests__/Router-test.js b/modules/__tests__/Router-test.js
index 8e59fa5287..db8161aace 100644
--- a/modules/__tests__/Router-test.js
+++ b/modules/__tests__/Router-test.js
@@ -198,10 +198,6 @@ describe('Router.run', function () {
     });
   });
 
-  describe('RouteHandler', function () {
-    it('throws if called after the router transitions to a new state');
-  });
-
   describe('locations', function () {
     it('defaults to HashLocation', function (done) {
       var routes = <Route path="/" handler={Foo}/>
diff --git a/modules/components/__tests__/RouteHandler-test.js b/modules/components/__tests__/RouteHandler-test.js
index 8382e27e6b..11fd8bcca2 100644
--- a/modules/components/__tests__/RouteHandler-test.js
+++ b/modules/components/__tests__/RouteHandler-test.js
@@ -1,14 +1,72 @@
 /** @jsx React.DOM */
-
 var assert = require('assert');
 var expect = require('expect');
 var React = require('react');
 var Router = require('../../index');
 var Route = require('../Route');
 var RouteHandler = require('../RouteHandler');
+var TestLocation = require('../../locations/TestLocation');
+var {
+  Bar,
+  Foo
+} = require('../../__tests__/TestHandlers');
+
 
 describe('RouteHandler', function () {
 
+  it('uses the old handler until the top-level component is rendered again', function (done) {
+    var updateComponentBeforeNextRender;
+    TestLocation.history = [ '/foo' ];
+
+    var Root = React.createClass({
+      componentDidMount: function () {
+        updateComponentBeforeNextRender = function (cb) {
+          this.forceUpdate(cb);
+        }.bind(this);
+      },
+
+      render: function() {
+        return (
+          <div>
+            <h1>Root</h1>
+            <RouteHandler/>
+          </div>
+        );
+      }
+    });
+
+    var routes = (
+      <Route name="root" handler={Root} path='/'>
+        <Route name="foo" handler={Foo} path='/foo'/>
+        <Route name="bar" handler={Bar} path='/bar'/>
+      </Route>
+    );
+
+    var div = document.createElement('div');
+    var steps = [];
+
+    steps.push(function(Handler, state) {
+      React.render(<Handler/>, div, function () {
+        expect(div.innerHTML).toMatch(/Foo/);
+        TestLocation.push('/bar');
+      });
+    });
+
+    steps.push(function(Handler, state) {
+      updateComponentBeforeNextRender(function() {
+        expect(div.innerHTML).toMatch(/Foo/);
+        React.render(<Handler/>, div, function () {
+          expect(div.innerHTML).toMatch(/Bar/);
+          done();
+        });
+      });
+    });
+
+    Router.run(routes, TestLocation, function () {
+      steps.shift().apply(this, arguments);
+    });
+  });
+
   it('renders after an update', function (done) {
     var Nested = React.createClass({
       componentDidMount: function () {
diff --git a/modules/utils/createRouter.js b/modules/utils/createRouter.js
index fb8abc0f88..6aa91cb463 100644
--- a/modules/utils/createRouter.js
+++ b/modules/utils/createRouter.js
@@ -138,6 +138,12 @@ function createRouter(options) {
   var onError = options.onError || defaultErrorHandler;
   var onAbort = options.onAbort || defaultAbortHandler;
   var state = {};
+  var nextState = {};
+
+  function updateState() {
+    state = nextState;
+    nextState = {};
+  }
 
   // Automatically fall back to full page refreshes in
   // browsers that don't support the HTML history API.
@@ -302,11 +308,11 @@ function createRouter(options) {
             if (error || transition.isAborted)
               return callback.call(router, error, transition);
 
-            state.path = path;
-            state.action = action;
-            state.routes = nextRoutes;
-            state.params = nextParams;
-            state.query = nextQuery;
+            nextState.path = path;
+            nextState.action = action;
+            nextState.routes = nextRoutes;
+            nextState.params = nextParams;
+            nextState.query = nextQuery;
 
             callback.call(router, null, transition);
           });
@@ -327,7 +333,7 @@ function createRouter(options) {
           } else if (transition.isAborted) {
             onAbort.call(router, transition.abortReason, location);
           } else {
-            callback.call(router, router, state);
+            callback.call(router, router, nextState);
           }
         }
 
@@ -384,10 +390,12 @@ function createRouter(options) {
     },
 
     getInitialState: function () {
+      updateState();
       return state;
     },
 
     componentWillReceiveProps: function () {
+      updateState();
       this.setState(state);
     },