FAQ Friday: Life estate deeds
Friday, January 16th, Attorney, Candice Joy discusses the different life estate options.
There are two types of life estate deeds. One with powers and one without powers.
In a life estate, the grantor is retaining their right to live in the home and giving their right of ownership away to beneficiaries chosen.
A life estate with powers retains the right to stay in the home and also the control to sell the house, refinance the mortgage etc. On your death, everything would pass automatically. It passes by operation of law and makes it a more seamless transition.
If you are trying to get assets out of your estate, a life estate with powers will not accomplish this.
A life estate without powers keeps you in the home, but without control. You wouldn’t be able to sell the house, etc. without their agreement. However, the home would no longer be in that person’s assets when it comes to inheritance tax. Both make for a smooth transition, but accomplish very different goals.
Submit your question
Bring your questions about estate planning and administration to our weekly Facebook Live with Mr. Berger on Fridays at 11am EST. Leave your email if you’d like to receive a notification of our response.