Keep It Legal

“Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” might be a great AC/ DC song, but it’s not a great way to transfer real estate. While you’d like to think that doing something on your own is better than doing nothing, that’s not always the case. Google’s legal advice and a free download could actually cause more trouble than if you’d done nothing at all. Here are just a few of the problems we’ve seen with doit- yourself real estate work: -Putting someone else’s name on your deed does not mean that if you die, they automatically get 100% of your house. No, not even your spouse. We have to prove what percentage of the house that person owned and where that percentage is supposed to go after their death. Yes, even between spouses.

-A transfer on death deed (TODD) is not the answer to all your problems. There’s a sneaky little part of the law that says that real estate that was transferred with a TODD is still subject to creditors for two years after the original owner’s death. What does that mean? It means that the house might not be able to get title insurance which means you might not be able to sell it for two years.

-A “Ladybird Deed” is also a favorite of Google’s legal advice, but it also has some problems that could sneak up on you. A “Ladybird Deed” is really called an Enhanced Life Estate Deed which is based on about 600 years of English common law that turned into American common law. Common law is court created while statutory law is actually in the legal codes of countries, states, and municipalities. What does that mean? It’s not really written anywhere in the law what a Ladybird Deed really is, so banks and title companies have their own interpretations of what it means and that gets messy.

-Finally, simply calling the county’s Appraisal District and saying that you own the property does not transfer title. It really means that the tax bill is going to be addressed to you. Little to nothing on your county’s CAD website is going to be correct from ownership to the legal description of the property.

We’ve seen some heartbreaking cases of DIY deeds gone wrong. We had to tell someone that they didn’t actually own the house they’ve lived in for over 40 years because they made a mistake with a free deed download. Doing things correctly with an experienced attorney might cost more than what Google has to offer, but it’s certainly cheaper than tens of thousands of dollars to explain to the District Court judge who really owns your house.