Will Planning: Can My Daughter Skip Probate for My House?

Florida residents might be curious as to how they can help their heirs bypass probate proceedings. Sometimes, the process of bypassing probate is simpler than others, and some very simple estate planning fixes can help individuals do just that for their heirs. What about with regard to a house, though? How can an individual help his or her daughter inherit the family home without having to complete probate proceedings?

One strategy for bypassing probate involves the creation of a revocable trust. Revocable trusts are common throughout the country. Inside the trust, an estate planner can write that his or her home will be inherited by a particular person after the individual dies. With a revocable trust, the creator of the trust reserves the ability to revoke or change the provisions inside it too. In other words, if the trust creator changes his or her mind, the heir of the house could be changed to another person at any time.

A trust is not just limited to a home either, so a variety of assets could be placed inside it, like the family car, art, money, investment accounts, land and other assets. There are other trust-planning strategies that can be completed in order to protect the home from being taken by the daughter’s creditors and/or by the daughter’s spouse.

In order for a Florida resident to create the best estate plan possible, he or she may wish to consult with an experienced estate and will planning attorney. Such an attorney will know what kind of estate plan, trust and/or will is most appropriate for a given client’s situation and needs.

Source: USA Today, “IPersonal finance Q&A: Inheritance minus a will?” Robert Powell, Dec. 25, 2014