Owe doc stamps on the deed when transferring real property to a living trust?
My wife and I are married live in Florida and we own our home free and clear. We have a Warranty Deed. We would like to create a revocable (living) trust with a pour over will in our names and transfer our homesteaded primary residence to the trust. I asked the county where we live if we could still claim homestead exemption if our home was in the trust and they said yes we could.
Will we have to pay doc stamps on the deed for the transfer?
Should I contact my title insurance provider to see if the transfer of the property to the trust has an affect on the title policy?
In most instances there are no restrictions on the transfer of you home into a revocable living trust. I do not know of any in the State of Florida. I do not know of any restrictions on the homestead exemption either. Not being a Florida attorney I do not know anything about doc stamps in FD. You may contact your title insurance provider for an endorsement of the policy on your policy but you should expect a charge if they do an endorsement. An estate planning attorney practicing in FD should hav the definative answers for you.
The short answer is you will have to pay minimal doc stamps ( about 70 cents) plus per page recording charge. In my experience you will have to pay around $20 in recording fees. Just make sure the deed is drafted correctly. Some lawyers believe that putting your homestead in a living trust is a bad move while others think its completely fine. Ask the lawyer that drafting it for you what his or her opinion is on the matter.
It always help to contact the title company. Also, make sure you contact the company that insures your home to make sure they will provide coverage and whether they need to add you Trust as an additional insured.
If you'd like to discuss these issues or others, feel free to contact our office for an appointment.
Steve Riley
THE STRATEGIC COUNSEL, L.C.
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Our office has prepared over 30,000 trust docuents and have transferred the homestead to the majority of those trusts. Special language is used in deeds and trusts to maintain the protections offered under Florida homestead law.
Otherewise-the probate procedure for homesteads is called-Petition to Determine Homestead.
I agree with Mr. Shulman's response. Before transferring your homesteaded property into a living trust, speak with an attorney experienced at dealing with such issues. There are cases where Florida courts have held that transferring the homesteaded property into a living trust terminated the homestead protections. If you do decide to transfer the property to a living trust, documentary stamps fees should not be assessed. The Recorder's Office may try to assess the fee as many of the employees are not aware of this exemption, which is provided by Florida law.
Douglas R. Coenson, Esq.
[email protected]
(561) 315-2120
Jupiter, FL
There should be no doc stamp taxes on the transfer.
However, you should really talk to an estate planning attorney to see if it is is a good idea to transfer a home that you (presumably) currently own as tenants by the entirety into a revocable trust.
I don't know your individual circumstances, but generally, in almost all cases, it's a bad idea.
