Dealing with a loved one’s death is not easy. The expenses of a funeral and burial are high enough. Even after the property that person owned still has to be dealt with. The wishes of many parents is to have their children inherit any property left behind, but this is not always as easy as it sounds. In order to ensure this process takes place smoothly, a legal process is needed. There are three ways to make sure property will be transferred upon the death of a loved one.
The typical way of transferring ownership is through probate cases. A probate court will assist in the transfer of property upon death. If there is a will, the process allows mentioned properties to be transferred to the specific people mentioned. If there is no will, state law would determine how the properties would get distributed. After this process, the title to these properties would end up transferring over to the new individual.
Another way to secure the future of your property would be to set up a trust. You would create a trust to include family members so that in the case of death, they would be granted ownership of the property included. They are easy to open and are flexible in options.
The third way would be to file a “transfer on death” deed. This allows for the transfer of ownership of the home to take effect upon your death. It’s important to keep these documents up to date and to change them when necessary. Some title companies do not like these documents. Bankruptcy, Liens, and other title matters can interfere with this process.
Placing your children on titles as joint tenants would be another way to effectively transfer property. They would be granted rights of survivorship and become the owners of the home. There can be tax consequences to this as the sale of the home could result in sales tax. This can be avoided if the house is to be sold at its worth. If it is sold over its worth then sales tax will need to be paid on it.
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Jamison Bonds, VA Accredited Attorney
One of the many benefits of being an elder law attorney is getting to work with selfless clients who act not out of their own self interest, but out of a deep concern for the people they love. That’s why I love helping families enjoy peace of mind and protect their hard-earned assets.
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