Your family home may be more than just a piece of real estate to you; it may hold a lifetime of sentimental memories that you wish generations to come to continue to share. So, naturally, when creating or updating your estate plan, your top priority may be to have your house pass down smoothly to your intended loved one. Rest assured, there are several tools you may utilize to make this your reality. For more information, please continue reading to learn how to protect your house through your estate plan and how one of the experienced Butler County deed & property transfer attorneys at Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC, can help you adopt the strategy that works best for your current situation and future goals.
Which estate planning tools can work to protect my house?
It is common for homeowners to want to keep their homes out of probate. This is because the Pennsylvania probate process can take months or longer, involve hefty court fees, and end up in the public record. So if you want to avoid all that, as well, below are examples of estate planning tools you may consider adopting:
- Make a revocable living trust to transfer ownership of your home into the trust during your lifetime.
- Have joint ownership with a right of survivorship to pass your home directly to the surviving co-owner.
- Create a life estate deed to transfer ownership to your beneficiary while allowing you to live in and control the house during your lifetime.
It is worth mentioning that utilizing these alternative methods to a will document does not necessarily sidestep state inheritance taxes as well. That is, your beneficiary may still be expected to file an inheritance tax return within nine months of your date of death, except if they were your spouse. With that, it may be taxed based on its fair market value at the time of your passing.
Can I protect my house through a transfer-on-death account?
You may have heard about the common estate planning tool known as a transfer-on-death account. This type of account is a financial arrangement that typically allows an individual to designate beneficiaries to receive assets directly upon their passing.
However, you may have noticed that we did not list this as an option above. Well, this is because you may not be permitted to use a transfer-on-death account for your real estate property. Rather, this may be exclusively designated for securities and bank accounts.
There is no shame in asking for help, especially when you are dealing with something as serious as a legal matter that could affect your physical, emotional, and financial well-being. So please retain legal assistance from one of the skilled Butler County estate planning attorneys from Heritage Elder Law & Estate Planning, LLC. We will happily lend a hand.
