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California Now Requires Real Estate Deeds that are Subject to Transfer Tax Show the Tax Amount on the Face of the Deed

Documentary Transfer Tax (AB 1888)

Effective January 1, 2015, pursuant to Assembly Bill 1888, all California County Registrar/Recorder/County Clerk’s Offices will require that “EVERY document subject to tax that is submitted for recordation shall show on the face of the document the amount of tax due and the incorporated or unincorporated location of the lands, tenements, or other realty described in the document” before acceptance for recording.

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Revoking a Transfer on Death Designation Affidavit in Ohio

Ohio Revised Code 5302.23(B)(5) contains the rules for revoking a recorded transfer on death designation affidavit. In short, it states that the owner of real estate previously identified as a transfer on death interest may revoke or change a beneficiary designation at any time before the owner’s death, without the consent of that transfer on death beneficiary. Simply execute and record a new transfer on death designation affidavit, including all information from the prior form, but stating the revocation or change where appropriate.

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Nebraska Statutory Transfer on Death Deed Options

The Nebraska Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act is found at Sections 76-3401 to 76-3423 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes. This useful law provides an option for land owners to convey their real estate after their death, but without the need to include it in a will.

A transfer on death deed (TODD), when lawfully executed, allows property owners to retain absolute title to and control over their land during their lives ( 76-3414). The deeds are also revocable (76-3413). In part, these features are possible because unlike traditional deeds (warranty deeds, quitclaim deeds, etc.), TODDs do not require consideration from or notice to the beneficiary ( 76-3411).

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Georgia Bill Making Filing Fraudulent Deeds a Felony

Georgia’s House of Representatives has unanimously passed a bill cracking down on people who steal houses by recording fraudulent real estate deeds. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Tom Kirby and co-sponsored by Rep. Ed Lindsey. House Bill 985 would protect all Georgia homeowners from those who file fake deeds. The bill also makes filing, signing or witnessing those deeds a felony.

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Dower, Joint Tenancy, and Ohio’s Transfer on Death Instruments

Transfer on death deeds (“TODs”) are used to convey property rights to one or more beneficiaries after the owner dies. Unlike most other assets in an estate, property conveyed in a transfer upon death is not subject to probate distribution. In addition, as nontestamentary instruments, these conveyances are not affected by provisions of the deceased owner’s will. Ohio’s transfer on death instruments are governed by R.C. 5302.22, and were originally introduced as transfer on death deeds in 2002. Revised to the current format of transfer on death designation affidavits in 2009, these documents, when lawfully executed and recorded, provide a flexible and convenient estate planning tool for owners of Ohio real property.

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