Blog

When creating your estate plan, you’ll want to ensure your home is passed down to your intended beneficiaries without an elongated process or hefty taxes. Florida offers several options to give your real estate property to others after you pass away. Your estate planning lawyer can help you determine the best way to give your home to your intended beneficiaries after you pass away. Below, we answer some of the most common questions about homeowner estate planning in Orlando:

What Happens to Your House When You Die?

What happens to your home after you pass away depends on the estate plan you created before your death. You could place your home in a trust, give the property to your surviving spouse, transfer ownership to a joint deed owner, or designate someone to inherit the property in your will. Your estate planning attorney can help you decide which avenue is best for you.

Can You Live in A House That’s in Probate?

If your beneficiary, children, or spouse currently live in the home when you pass away, they can continue living there. Your spouse and children can reside in the house for their entire lifetime. If a beneficiary is set to inherit the property through your will or trust but doesn’t live there when you pass away, they must wait for the probate process to conclude before moving. If your home is in a trust, your intended beneficiary may take over property ownership once the trustee concludes that all requirements have been met.

How Long Does it Take to Inherit a House After Death?

If you left your home to a beneficiary in your will, your property must pass through the probate and creditor claims process before it’s given to your intended beneficiary. If you place your home in a trust, ownership is automatically transferred upon death. Property ownership is also automatically transferred if your beneficiary is listed as a “transfer upon death” heir on the deed or co-owned the property with you.

How Do I Avoid My Home Going Through Probate?

You can use several estate planning tools to pass your home to a friend or family member without going through probate. Here are the most common ways to avoid probate as a homeowner:

Homestead property

Your primary residence is exempt from probate if your surviving spouse or children currently reside in the home through Florida’s homestead exemption. You can also exempt personal property up to $20,000, including appliances, furniture, and jewelry. You can also exempt two vehicles that family members regularly use.

Living Trust

Placing your home in a trust is one of the most common ways to transfer property ownership without going through probate. Once the property is placed in a trust, ownership is automatically transferred to the beneficiary.

Lady Bird Deed

A Lady Bird Deed, or Enhanced Life Estate Deed, allows you to automatically transfer property ownership to intended beneficiaries without placing it in a trust or going through probate. During your lifetime, you retain all ownership rights to the property without the approval of the beneficiaries, including the right to sell or refinance the property. Florida is one of only five states that allow this type of property transfer in estate planning.

Assets with Right of Survivorship

If you jointly own property with someone else listed on the deed or designated as a “transfer upon death” beneficiary, property ownership will be given to the remaining property owner upon your passing. This process is automatic and not part of probate.

What Happens to My Mortgage If I Pass Away?

If the mortgage has a co-signer, they’re automatically responsible for the mortgage when you pass away. If you specify a beneficiary to receive the property in your will, they are responsible for the mortgage after probate is over. While the property is in probate, your estate’s personal representative is responsible for making timely mortgage payments.

What’s the Best Way to Leave A House to My Child?

Your child can inherit your property in several ways after you pass away. If you have a will, you can divide property ownership amongst your children. To avoid probate, you can put your home in a living trust and list your children as beneficiaries. You can also list them as beneficiaries of your deed or co-owners of the property.

What Happens to My Home if I Pass Away Without a Will?

If you pass away without a spouse or a will, your eligible heirs will inherit your estate (including your property) following Florida’s Intestate Laws. Who’s entitled to your property follows Florida’s intestate line of succession, which starts with your surviving spouse, passes to any living children, and then blood relatives.

Boutty Law Firm: Estate Planning in Orlando

Your home is most likely the largest asset you own. Ensure it’s passed to your heirs as you desire with the proper estate planning tools. Call our office at 407-622-1395 to speak with our Orlando estate planning attorneys at the Boutty Law Firm. Our new office location in Sanford allows us to serve residents of Seminole and Orange counties.