Posted by In the United States, we are faced with the situation of leaving real estate as an inheritance to children and family members. The three most common solutions are:
- write a will
- set up trust
- According to statutory authorization (such as joint property of husband and wife, after one party dies, the other party automatically inherits)
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Leave the property to children, other options for family members
For families with simple financial structures, especially single elders, a question is usually raised, that is,"I want to leave the property to my children, is there a simple and effective way?"
In reality, leaving real estate to children or family members through a will faces a cumbersome probate court process; leaving real estate to children or family members through trusts can avoid the probate process, but it involves costs and the circumstances of the client.
For the average family across the United States,Are there other procedural options to leave the property directly to children, family members, or other beneficiaries without trust or probate?
The answer is yes: In most states and territories, government legislation provides a Tod Deed (aka Beneficiary Deed) document to help residents complete the designated transfer of property upon death.
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What is TOD Deed?
TOD Deed, known as Transfer on Death Deed in English, is a standardized contract document for the designation of the heir to the property.It is a substitute for a will.
Like a will and a trust, TOD Deed allows the homeowner to designate a person, or persons, or institution, to inherit the property upon the death of the homeowner.
Unlike a will, this method does not require the intervention of the estate court and does not require probate.
TOD Deed provides families with a low-cost property inheritance solution.In California, for example, Congressman Mike Gatto (D-Glendale), who introduced the law, argued that:
Just like a person can designate a bank account to go to a loved one upon death, by allowing individuals to transfer property cleanly through a TOD deed, we can avoid the expensive probe process and give families greater peace of mind.
"(Translation) Just as a person can designate a bank account to be left to a loved one after death, by allowing individuals to transfer property deedally through TOD, we can avoid the costly probate process and give families more peace of mind." -- California Congressman Mike Gatto
How to use TOD Deed to leave property to children or family?
Filling out and using the TOD Deed form and leaving the house to your children or family is how TOD Deed is used.
Use TOD Deed to leave the property to children and family, and use POD files as we covered earlierLeave cash in the bank for your children and familyThe process is similar.
put through PODCash deposits for children and family, we need to fill in a characteristic document, indicate the beneficiary of the deposit, and submit the document to the bank, and the transfer and inheritance of cash wealth is completed.
To leave the property to children or family members through TOD Deed is to fill out a characteristic document, identify the beneficiary of the property, go to the county where the property is located, submit and register the document.
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How to get the TOD Deed file?
This simple form document is usually only 1 page (example below).We can contact the registrar of the local county government or get it for free on the local government website.
Frequently Asked Questions about Using TOD Deed to Leave Property to Children and Family
The state government and some regional governments usually make detailed question-and-answer guides (as shown in the example below, provided by the Arizona government website) to solve the legal process problems of local residents about leaving the property to their children or family members.
4 steps to leaving a property to your children or family
Before using this method, you need to understand the latest local legal developments about TOD Deed and understand the precautions.
After using this method to leave property to children and family members, it usually only takes 4 steps to complete:
- Fill in the correct identity and property information
- Fill in your designated property inheritance beneficiary
- Sign, witness, and notarize documents
- Submit documents to local county registrar for registration
Column Summary on Leaving Property to Children or Family
In addition to wills and trusts, TheLifeTank column introduces a way to leave property to children or family members that has gradually entered the public eye-TOD Deed.
This way of leaving the property to the family is more economical than other ways.At the same time, TOD Deed also gives homeowners and beneficiaries flexibility in dealing with the property - the homeowner can update this document at any time during his lifetime, cancel or redesignate the beneficiary of the property.And upon the death of the homeowner, the home will automatically pass to the person named in the TOD Deed, exempting the probate process. (End of full text)
