Mark W. Bidwell, Attorney at Law
4952 Warner
Suite 235
Huntington Beach, CA 92649
ph: 714-846-2888
Mark
Person responsible for this website is Mark W. Bidwell
You have a trust AND own real property such as a home or a house.
But your real property is not owned or titled into the trust
Why? Trusts are often unfunded due to refinancing or omitted transfers of real property.
This means that any property not titled into the trust is at risk for Probate...
Probate is a court action, costing about 5% of gross assets and taking about one year to complete. Probate is the transfer of assets from a person who has died to heirs under the supervision of the probate court.
Contact Mark at 949-474-0961 or email Mark@DeedAndRecord.com
"How A Trust Helps You Avoid Probate..."
Make sure your property is not at risk...
Have questions? Contact us via email at Mark@DeedandRecord.com or call 949-474-0961.
Deed And Record will prepare a quit claim deed to fund your living trust, file all the necessary and required transfer tax exemptions and record your deed with the proper county recorder in California or in Hawaii, the Bureau of Conveyances.
Receive Personal Service
Now home owners can use the internet to verify title and fund trusts. Homeowners can stay at home while at the same time receive personal service from a real person.
We do it all . . .
Title search to determine the precise legal description of your real property, including map, block and lot number
Research to determine how you hold title
Documents required by the County Recorder or Bureau of Conveyances to keep the deed free of transfer and property taxes
Filing the deed with the County Recorder's Office or Bureau of Conveyances
"Thank you very much for a job well done." -- Ellen B.
"Thank you for your assistance with my trust. Because of it, I feel much at ease knowing that the day I buy the farm, my kids will have no problems with my estate." -- Daniel G.
Definition of "Revocable Trust"
Trusts are like wills. Trusts state what happens to assets on the death of the owner. In California a trust is often referred to as “revocable trust.” A revocable trust is a trust that the person who creates it, generally called the settlor, can revoke during the person’s lifetime. Revocation restores the person to where he or she was before the trust was created.
A revocable trust can also be amended or restated. Amendment can change just one sentence or many paragraphs. Restatement changes the entire trust document. Only the name of the trust remains the same in a restatement.
The terms ‘revocable’ and ‘trust’ are often used together. This is to distinguish from irrevocable trusts. Irrevocable trusts are permanent and cannot be changed without an order from the court. Irrevocable trusts are created to reduce estate taxes.
Fund Your Trust with a Deed
Trusts provide for the after-death transfer of assets at a minimum cost and effort. But a trust cannot just be created, it must also be “funded.” An unfunded trust does not avoid probate. An unfunded trust is a common and very costly mistake. “Funding a trust” is a change in how the assets is owned. It is not a change of owners. Instead of owning an asset in name only, the asset is owned by the same person as ‘trustee’ of a revocable trust.
Change in how California real property is owned is by deed. The deed changes title from an individual as an owner in name only to an individual as trustee. The deed is recorded with the County Recorder.
Why Record the Deed?
The deed must be part of the public database maintained by each county in California. The deed is “recorded” in the county where the real property is located. This puts the world on notice how title is held and is the final word on ownership.
Tax Savings Opportunity for Community Property States
Trust transfers of real property by a married couple have a unique problem. A transfer out of joint tenancy into a trust may not be treated as community property by the IRS for a full step-up in basis and the opportunity to avoid or reduce capital gains tax is missed.
If community property treatment is desired, the more conservative approach is in writing expressly state the real estate is community property. The easiest way to do this is to place community property affirmation directly on the deed terminating the joint tenancy to fund the real property into the trust.
The “community property” designation reduces or eliminates capital gains tax. The surviving spouse receives a full step-up in basis on real property. “Community property” designation has legal issues in the event of divorce or dissolution of marriage. Separate property interest in real property designated as community property may lose its separate property interest and the other spouse obtains a one-half ownership in the real property in the event of a divorce.
Why Preliminary Change of Title Report?
Each county assessor's office in California reviews all recorded deeds for that county to determine which properties require reappraisal under the law. Proposition 13 requires the county assessor to reassess the property to its current fair market value as of the date the change.
Since property taxes are based on the assessed value of a property at the time of acquisition, a current market value higher than the previously assessed Proposition 13 adjusted base year value will increase the property taxes. But there are exclusions.
Transfers in and out of a trust are exempt. To obtain the exclusion, the grantee fills out a form for the county assessor entitled Preliminary Change of Ownership Report (PCOR).
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Questions? E-mail to Mark@DeedAndRecord.com or call 714-846-2888
Mark W. Bidwell, Attorney at Law
4952 Warner
Suite 235
Huntington Beach, CA 92649
ph: 714-846-2888
Mark