[gpk111]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

The lady bird is a type of deed for the the property. It is not a trust. The advantage is that it is just a deed, and will potentially save money and time in lieu of paying a lawyer to set up a complicated trust for all of your assets.

When my mother died, I was her only heir and all of her property was held jointly by me and her, except for her house, which she had left to me in her will. So, I legally owned all of her property. But, I had to go to probate court, open an estate, advertise the estate, and wait six months before I could close the estate. The only reason I had to do this was because I could not sell the house. The title company would not transfer ownership to a buyer with just a will. They required a probated estate that legally transferred a clear title to me, even though I owned the house via the will. But, if she had a "lady bird" title, I would have received clear title to the house immediately upon her death and would not have needed to go through probate at all. I hope that makes sense.

retiredguy: makes sense. If the LBT is just a titling change, wondering now how to accomplish that. Don't you need a lawyer to set up a LBT before you just change the title?

[gpk111]

Estate Planning with Sebastian Guerra and Leslie Marenco! - YouTube

Check this out: skip to 51:00. Good and realistic description of Lady Bird Deeds and alternatives.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by gpk111

retiredguy: makes sense. If the LBT is just a titling change, wondering now how to accomplish that. Don't you need a lawyer to set up a LBT before you just change the title?

I think that maybe a title company could do it for you for a few hundred dollars. In my opinion, I think the lady bird deed would be appropriate for a lot of retired people in The Villages, who only have a few assets and no mortgage.

[KRM0614]

Originally Posted by dwsommer330

My wife and I now own a house here in the Villages as well as in Michigan and plan to, at least for the next several years, be snowbirds. We currently have wills but not living trusts. It is my understanding that, should something happen to one of us, the Florida home (at least while we are Michigan residents) would have to go through probate which may be expensive and time consuming. As we are thinking of selling, and replacing, our Michigan residence, I think the time might also be right to create living trusts.

Here is my question — does anyone have experience with the execution (after a spouses or close relative’s death?) of an out-of-state living trust ? If so, was the out-of-state living trust recognized in Florida so as to avoid probate? Does the living trust really need to be drafted by a Florida attorney or are living trusts drafted by out of state attorneys just as good? Thanks in advance for your input

As a Michigan person the best advice is to seek an attorney in Michigan as most of them are licensed in multiple states.thete is the issue of probate and also most legal issues here are settled through arbitration with a 2 yr filing date on civil cases. Please use an attorney up north and get a free visit so you can interview at least 2. Also if the library is open up north do some research in your own. Many things are told to folks here that are not set in stone but they profit off of naive folks.

Good luck.

[Happy Snowbird]

We share our time between TV and Pennsylvania and maintain PA as our residency. Our PA attorney is retired from the Air Force having been stationed in FL. He is licensed to practice law in both states. His advice on a trust......probate is expensive in FL but not in PA; trusts are expensive in PA but not in FL. As long as we remain PA residents a trust is not necessary. Should we change to FL residency he would recommend a trust. So....you may want to discuss the costs of each, probate/trust in Michigan until/if you become a FL resident.

[Eg_cruz]

Originally Posted by dwsommer330

My wife and I now own a house here in the Villages as well as in Michigan and plan to, at least for the next several years, be snowbirds. We currently have wills but not living trusts. It is my understanding that, should something happen to one of us, the Florida home (at least while we are Michigan residents) would have to go through probate which may be expensive and time consuming. As we are thinking of selling, and replacing, our Michigan residence, I think the time might also be right to create living trusts.

Here is my question — does anyone have experience with the execution (after a spouses or close relative’s death?) of an out-of-state living trust ? If so, was the out-of-state living trust recognized in Florida so as to avoid probate? Does the living trust really need to be drafted by a Florida attorney or are living trusts drafted by out of state attorneys just as good? Thanks in advance for your input

Your best to go directly to Estate attorney, they will give you a free hour consultation. I would recommend Eric Millhorn 753-9333 especially if you’re a veteran or his partner Jennifer Henson. Not all golf course talk is correct.
Not all situations are the same....do yourself a favor and spend an free hour on your situation with Eric or Jennifer.

[jaj523]

Originally Posted by manaboutown

You could hold the deed in joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS). That way when one dies the other owns the property without any need to go through probate.

I was told by the closing agent on my house here in The Villages that the Florida equivalent of joint tenants with rights of survivorship is a "ladybird" clause. I executed that at closing, and the deed to my house goes directly to my two children upon my death with no fees or probate required.

[gpk111]

Originally Posted by jaj523

I was told by the closing agent on my house here in The Villages that the Florida equivalent of joint tenants with rights of survivorship is a "ladybird" clause. I executed that at closing, and the deed to my house goes directly to my two children upon my death with no fees or probate required.

Interesting. Never heard of that being so common in FL. Would you mind sharing the name of the closing agent?

Two musings: Taxes and homesteading

TAXES - The consideration for both LBD and a trust would be capital gains taxes. In either of those cases, I'm guessing that the beneficiaries named in the LBD or trust would be responsible for full capital gains when sold.

If the home is passed on through a will, there is a step up in basis, so the beneficiaries pay no capital gains taxes.

HOMESTEADING - I'm guessing that Homesteading is possible with a LBD. I know it's possible with a Revocable Living Trust, since we currently have one.

[ctmurray]

We went with Andrew Curtis to create ours. We are now FL residents and thought a trust written in FL and following FL laws was the best idea. He is a Villager himself. He advertises in the paper and on this site you should be able to find him. I do suggest getting your answers from a FL lawyer, even if you don't draw up a trust here.

[msu69er]

Originally Posted by dwsommer330

My wife and I now own a house here in the Villages as well as in Michigan and plan to, at least for the next several years, be snowbirds. We currently have wills but not living trusts. It is my understanding that, should something happen to one of us, the Florida home (at least while we are Michigan residents) would have to go through probate which may be expensive and time consuming. As we are thinking of selling, and replacing, our Michigan residence, I think the time might also be right to create living trusts.

Here is my question — does anyone have experience with the execution (after a spouses or close relative’s death?) of an out-of-state living trust ? If so, was the out-of-state living trust recognized in Florida so as to avoid probate? Does the living trust really need to be drafted by a Florida attorney or are living trusts drafted by out of state attorneys just as good? Thanks in advance for your input

My wife and I are also Michigan residents. We set up Revocable Living Trusts in 1995. We have amended the trusts six times since then for various reasons. In 2019 we bought in TV and are snowbirds. Our attorney told us that Revocable Living Trusts are recognized in 49 states regardless of where they were executed. This is because those 49 states are all based in English Common Law, same as US law. The other state, Louisiana, has its law based on French Common Law. Louisiana will not necessarily recognize Living Trusts written in any other state. We have the deeds to our properties in the name of both of our trusts. Hope this helps.

[gpk111]

Originally Posted by msu69er

My wife and I are also Michigan residents. We set up Revocable Living Trusts in 1995. We have amended the trusts six times since then for various reasons. In 2019 we bought in TV and are snowbirds. Our attorney told us that Revocable Living Trusts are recognized in 49 states regardless of where they were executed. This is because those 49 states are all based in English Common Law, same as US law. The other state, Louisiana, has its law based on French Common Law. Louisiana will not necessarily recognize Living Trusts written in any other state. We have the deeds to our properties in the name of both of our trusts. Hope this helps.

MSU: Thanks for the education. I assume the trust was originally created in Michigan?

Also, when you say "We have the deeds to our properties in the name of both of our trusts," I assume you mean that both properties are in your SINGLE trust. ...or did you creaye two trusts?

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by gpk111

Interesting. Never heard of that being so common in FL. Would you mind sharing the name of the closing agent?

Two musings: Taxes and homesteading

TAXES - The consideration for both LBD and a trust would be capital gains taxes. In either of those cases, I'm guessing that the beneficiaries named in the LBD or trust would be responsible for full capital gains when sold.

If the home is passed on through a will, there is a step up in basis, so the beneficiaries pay no capital gains taxes.

HOMESTEADING - I'm guessing that Homesteading is possible with a LBD. I know it's possible with a Revocable Living Trust, since we currently have one.

If you have a lady bird deed, you will retain your homestead exemption, and whomever receives the property when you die will benefit from a stepped up cost basis for capital gains taxes.

[msu69er]

Originally Posted by gpk111

MSU: Thanks for the education. I assume the trust was originally created in Michigan?

Also, when you say "We have the deeds to our properties in the name of both of our trusts," I assume you mean that both properties are in your SINGLE trust. ...or did you creaye two trusts?

We created the trusts in Michigan in 1995. We each have a Revocable Living Trust. We leave things to each other. They are called A/B trusts. The benefit is that there is no inheritance tax when the first party dies regardless of the size of the trust assets.
The deeds to our houses are in the names of both trusts, i.e. instead of John and Jane Doe, it John Doe Living Trust dated May 15, 1995 and Jane Doe Living Trust dated May 15, 1995.

[gpk111]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

If you have a lady bird deed, you will retain your homestead exemption, and whomever receives the property when you die will benefit from a stepped up cost basis for capital gains taxes.

Step up basis in a RLT? Any educated guesses?

[gpk111]

Originally Posted by msu69er

We created the trusts in Michigan in 1995. We each have a Revocable Living Trust. We leave things to each other. They are called A/B trusts. The benefit is that there is no inheritance tax when the first party dies regardless of the size of the trust assets.
The deeds to our houses are in the names of both trusts, i.e. instead of John and Jane Doe, it John Doe Living Trust dated May 15, 1995 and Jane Doe Living Trust dated May 15, 1995.

Thanks for the clarification. Makes sense. In our case, we would have two trusts also, but the assets would be difference and the beneficiaries would be our respective kids, since it's a second marriage. We all look at the world through different lenses, don't we?!