How Should I Hold Title?

[jessicaerv]

I am about to sign a contract but unsure how to hold the title, and not sure if I should inquire with the broker. Thought I'd check with you all since you seem so knowledgeable.

I am a single (widowed) mother of one minor child (5yo). It looks like there are several options on how to hold title, as follows:

Tenants by the Entirety (husband and wife) - not applicable since there is no husband any longer
Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship - I'm not going to hold the title with anyone else (at least, not at this time - how difficult is it to add someone later if desired?)
Tenants in Common
Other

My inclination would be to check Other, but not sure what legal implications "Other" includes. Advice?

 

[supersnoop]

None of the above. Those only apply when multiple people are listed on the title.

 

[disneynutz]

Problem is if something should happen to you, who gets your estate? Do you have a trust?

Bill

 

[jessicaerv]

Problem is if something should happen to you, who gets your estate? Do you have a trust?

Bill

A Trust is being set up as we speak; my late husband worked at a law firm and they are setting up the trust pro bono. It has been a few months and will likely be several more weeks before it is finalized since paying clients understandably move to the top of the workload.

How difficult would it be (and/or expensive) to change the deed after it has been recorded?

 

[disneynutz]

You should let the lawyer know that you are adding DVC to the trust, it may require special wording. You can change title yourself with DVC's help and I think a small fee and filing fees to the County or you can pay an escrow/title company to do it for you, around $300.

Bill

 

[JimMIA]

Transferring title from you alone to a trust will be more complicated than a simple transfer between family members. The actual titling would be in the names of the trustees, as trustees of XYZ Trust, and you will need a letter from the attorney verifying that the trust is still active. There may be other requirements. It would be FAR easier to have it titled how you want it from the outset.

I would talk to the attorney setting up the trust and see what trust ownership would entail and what it would do for you. With such a young child, I think a trust ownership probably would be beneficial. Our DVC account was in a trust, and when my father passed away, there was no interruption, confusion, or difficulty like you might face in a probate situation. But you will have to have successor trustees who would take over if anything happened to you (you'll have those anyway).

Perhaps the law firm can speed up the process so you can purchase the account through the trust, rather than having to jump through a bunch of hoops later.

 

[Dean]

I am about to sign a contract but unsure how to hold the title, and not sure if I should inquire with the broker. Thought I'd check with you all since you seem so knowledgeable.

I am a single (widowed) mother of one minor child (5yo). It looks like there are several options on how to hold title, as follows:

Tenants by the Entirety (husband and wife) - not applicable since there is no husband any longer
Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship - I'm not going to hold the title with anyone else (at least, not at this time - how difficult is it to add someone later if desired?)
Tenants in Common
Other

My inclination would be to check Other, but not sure what legal implications "Other" includes. Advice?

Ask your lawyer for their recommendations for your situation. If you'll have a current trust (not one formed at death) then holding it in the trust name may be best.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

I am not a lawyer, (but please talk to yours). But I would consider titling your membership in your name. In your will, you can stipulate that the ownership of the points will go to your trust. At that point, your trustee can sell it, or keep it for eventual use by your child. You can write the trust so that the trustee could eventually deed it to your child when they reach an appropriate age so they can manage it without too much red tape.

One factor to consider is that you can pass ownership to a family member without going through a closing. If you pass ownership to a non family member you may have to go through a closing (with associated costs). Have your lawyer check this out.

 

[CarolMN]

I am not a lawyer, (but please talk to yours). But I would consider titling your membership in your name. In your will, you can stipulate that the ownership of the points will go to your trust. At that point, your trustee can sell it, or keep it for eventual use by your child. You can write the trust so that the trustee could eventually deed it to your child when they reach an appropriate age so they can manage it without too much red tape.

One factor to consider is that you can pass ownership to a family member without going through a closing. If you pass ownership to a non family member you may have to go through a closing (with associated costs). Have your lawyer check this out.

I am not an attorney, either and I agree that it's best if the OP talks to hers.

That said, if she takes title in her name, the DVC contract will have to go through probate in Florida. A properly executed trust avoids probate and is often used when there is property in more than one state. Multiple probate processes take time and cost $$.

Again, I agree with all of those who said the OP should talk to the attorney drafting her trust to determine what is best for her situation

 

[FSUSammy]

I am about to sign a contract but unsure how to hold the title, and not sure if I should inquire with the broker. Thought I'd check with you all since you seem so knowledgeable.

I am a single (widowed) mother of one minor child (5yo). It looks like there are several options on how to hold title, as follows:

Tenants by the Entirety (husband and wife) - not applicable since there is no husband any longer
Joint Tenants with Rights of Survivorship - I'm not going to hold the title with anyone else (at least, not at this time - how difficult is it to add someone later if desired?)
Tenants in Common
Other

My inclination would be to check Other, but not sure what legal implications "Other" includes. Advice?

I'm also a widow with a 7yr old. My contract said single on it, none of those other options you mentioned apply to us.

 

[JimMIA]

That said, if she takes title in her name, the DVC contract will have to go through probate in Florida. A properly executed trust avoids probate and is often used when there is property in more than one state. Multiple probate processes take time and cost $$.

I strongly agree with this. One of the main purposes of a trust is to avoid probate and ensure continuity and accessibility of the assets.

A LOT of people mistakenly think that simply filling out some form they bought at Office Depot gives them some benefit. But a trust is just a piece of paper expressing your wishes until you put assets into the trust by re-titling/transferring them. Writing down what you want to happen only provides some guidance for the future.

I can tell you from experience that the process of transferring assets into a trust can be a very lengthy and tedious process under the best of conditions. When my Dad and I established his trust, he had more than 30 different accounts -- some individually held, some joint, some in "Office Depot trusts." It took almost a year to bring some order to that mess. Without the trust owning the assets, anything owned by the person becomes part of their estate and is subject to probate -- which could be a nightmare. Because of the work we did 7-8 years earlier, when my Dad passed, everything went very smoothly and we completely avoided probate.

That's not to say that a trust is the best answer for OP. She needs to talk to the lawyers to see what's best in her specific situation.

 

[jessicaerv]

Thanks, everyone.

I did speak with my attorney who advised that I cannot title the deed into my trust because the trust has not yet been executed. She did say she is hoping to have the drafts to me in the very near future. What I will end up having to do is go through the process (and cost) of re-recording the deed into the trust sometime in the future. While this is not the most efficient way to handle things, it is what it is.

I'm just excited to be a new owner in the next few months!

 

[disneynutz]

Thanks, everyone.

I did speak with my attorney who advised that I cannot title the deed into my trust because the trust has not yet been executed. She did say she is hoping to have the drafts to me in the very near future. What I will end up having to do is go through the process (and cost) of re-recording the deed into the trust sometime in the future. While this is not the most efficient way to handle things, it is what it is.

I'm just excited to be a new owner in the next few months!

Can your attorney execute a striped trust so you can correctly title your deed. Then when she gets the complete trust completed she can just modify the striped trust and you won't need to touch the deed?

Bill

 

[jessicaerv]

Bill, I'm sure she CAN do that, but I'm not sure that she can (or will) do that in a timely fashion. Remember, the trust is being done pro bono, so I'm not really in a position to push too hard. And frankly, since the loss of my husband, I am less inclined to stress about something that can be fixed down the road. I've seen what stress can do (it's a killer).

Thanks again for your help and comments; I really appreciate your time and experience!

 

[disneynutz]

Bill, I'm sure she CAN do that, but I'm not sure that she can (or will) do that in a timely fashion. Remember, the trust is being done pro bono, so I'm not really in a position to push too hard. And frankly, since the loss of my husband, I am less inclined to stress about something that can be fixed down the road. I've seen what stress can do (it's a killer).

Thanks again for your help and comments; I really appreciate your time and experience!

Understood, sorry for you loss by the way.

You might want to contact DVC Admin and see what's required to re-title to the trust later.

Bill

 

[FSUSammy]

I actually just reached out to my attorney since I'm waiting to finalize closing on my DVC. Really wish I would have known about this before. I actually already do have a Living Trust set up.

This is what she said to me:

"It would be best to own it in your trust or else it becomes a probate asset at your death. They may already have a form for you to transfer your ownership interest to your living trust, as this question, I imagine, must come up in Florida for other members/owners. Contact the agent you dealt with for the purchase and explain that you have a living trust and that your timeshare was supposed to be owned in the trust. If they need a copy of the trust, you can give it to them or we can prepare for you a Certificate of Trust as evidence that you are the trustee/legal owner and beneficiary/equitable owner of any assets in the trust during your lifetime."

 

[JimMIA]

You would not have to provide a full copy of the trust, and you may not want to for privacy reasons. When we've done transactions, we've just provided the first page (legal name of the trust and names of the trustees) and the last page (notarized signatures), and the certification of the trust by the attorney. That has always sufficed.

 

[FSUSammy]

You would not have to provide a full copy of the trust, and you may not want to for privacy reasons. When we've done transactions, we've just provided the first page (legal name of the trust and names of the trustees) and the last page (notarized signatures), and the certification of the trust by the attorney. That has always sufficed.

My attorney wasn't sure what exactly is needed but I already talked to the title company I'm using and they will tell me exactly what I'll need so that I can get it switched over. Just wish I would have done this from the get go.