Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Form

Last validated July 16, 2026 by our Forms Development Team

Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Form

Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Form

Fill in the blank Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) form formatted to comply with all Vermont recording and content requirements.

Document Last Validated 7/16/2026
Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Guide

Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Guide

Line by line guide explaining every blank on the Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) form.

Document Last Validated 7/16/2026
Bennington County Completed Example of the Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Document

Bennington County Completed Example of the Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Document

Example of a properly completed Vermont Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) document for reference.

Document Last Validated 7/16/2026

All 3 documents above included • One-time purchase • No recurring fees

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Important: Your property must be located in Bennington County to use these forms. Documents should be recorded at the office below.

Where to Record Your Documents

Town of Arlington Town Clerk

Address:
3828 VT Route 7A / PO Box 304
Arlington, Vermont 05250

Hours: Monday – Friday 9 AM to 2 PM and by appt

Phone: (802) 375-2332

Town of Bennington Town Clerk

Address:
205 South St
Bennington, Vermont 05201

Hours: Monday - Friday 8AM - 5PM

Phone: (802) 442-1043

Town of Dorset Town Clerk

Address:
112 Mad Tom Rd / PO Box 24
East Dorset, Vermont 05253

Hours: 8:00 to 4:00 M-F or by appt

Phone: (802) 362-1178 Ext 2

Bennington County Clerk (for Glastenbury)

Address:
207 South St
Bennington, Vermont 05262

Hours: M-F 8:00 am - 4:30 pm

Phone: (802) 447-2700

Town of Landgrove Town Clerk

Address:
88 Landgrove Rd
Londonderry, Vermont 05148

Hours: Thurs 9am to 1pm or by appt

Phone: (802) 824-3716

Town of Manchester Town Clerk

Address:
6039 Main St / PO Box 830
Manchester Center, Vermont 05255

Hours: Mon-Fri 8:00 to 4:30

Phone: (802) 362-1313 x1

Town of Peru Town Clerk

Address:
402 Main St / PO Box 127
Peru, Vermont 05152

Hours: Tues, Thurs 8:30am - 4:00pm

Phone: (802) 824-3065

Town of Pownal Town Clerk

Address:
467 Center St / PO Box 411
Pownal, Vermont 05261

Hours: M, T, Th, F 9:30 to 4:00; Wed 9:30 to 2:00

Phone: (802) 823-7757

Town of Readsboro Town Clerk

Address:
301 Phelps Lane / PO Box 187
Readsboro, Vermont 05350

Hours: M,T,Th,F 8:00 to 3:30; Wed 4:30 to 8:30

Phone: (802) 423-5405

Town of Rupert Town Clerk

Address:
187 East St / PO Box 140
West Rupert, Vermont 05776

Hours: Mon 11:00 to 7:00; Tue, Wed 12:00 to 5:00; Thu 8:30 to 3:30

Phone: (802) 394-7728

Town of Sandgate Town Clerk

Address:
3266 Sandgate Road
Sandgate, Vermont 05250

Hours: Mon, Wed 9:30 to 12:30; Tue 9:30 to 11:30; Thu, Fri 9:30 to 12:30

Phone: (802) 375-9075

Town of Searsburg Town Clerk

Address:
18 Town Garage Rd / PO Box 157
Wilmington, Vermont 05363

Hours: Mon 8:00 to 4:00; Tue, Fri 8:00 to noon

Phone: (802) 464-8081

Town of Shaftsbury Town Clerk

Address:
61 Buck Hill Rd / PO Box 409
Shaftsbury, Vermont 05262

Hours: Mon 9:00 to 4:30; Tue - Fri 9:00 to 3:00

Phone: (802) 442-4038

Town of Stamford Town Clerk

Address:
986 Main Road
Stamford, Vermont 05352

Hours: Tue, Wed 11:00 to 3:00; Thu 11:00 to 3:00 & 7:00 to 9:00; Fri 9:00 to 1:00

Phone: (802) 694-1361

Town of Sunderland Town Clerk

Address:
181 South Rd / Mail: 104 Mountain View Rd
Sunderland, Vermont 05252 / 05250

Hours: Mon - Thu 8:00 to 2:00

Phone: (802) 375-6106

Town of Whitingham Town Clerk

Address:
2948 VT Route 100
Jacksonville, Vermont 05342

Hours: M-F 9 to 2; W 5 to 7; Sat 9 to 12

Phone: (802) 368-7887

Town of Winhall Town Clerk

Address:
115 VT Route 30
Bondville, Vermont 05340

Hours: Mon - Thu 7:00 to 1:00 or by appt

Phone: (802) 297-2122

Town of Woodford Town Clerk

Address:
1391 VT Route 9
Woodford, Vermont 05201

Hours: Call for hours or appt

Phone: (802) 442-4895

Recording Tips for Bennington County:
  • Bring your driver's license or state-issued photo ID
  • Verify all names are spelled correctly before recording
  • Avoid the last business day of the month when possible

Cities and Jurisdictions in Bennington County

Properties in any of these areas use Bennington County forms:

  • Arlington
  • Bennington
  • Bondville
  • Dorset
  • East Arlington
  • East Dorset
  • Manchester
  • Manchester Center
  • North Bennington
  • North Pownal
  • Peru
  • Pownal
  • Readsboro
  • Rupert
  • Shaftsbury
  • Stamford
  • West Rupert

View Complete Recorder Office Guide

Hours, fees, requirements, and more for Bennington County

How do I get my forms?

Forms are available for immediate download after payment. The Bennington County forms will be in your account ready to download to your computer. An account is created for you during checkout if you don't have one. Forms are NOT emailed.

Are these forms guaranteed to be recordable in Bennington County?

Yes. Our form blanks are guaranteed to meet or exceed the applicable formatting requirements used for recording in Bennington County, including margin requirements, font requirements, and other layout standards. This guarantee applies to formatting, not to the legal sufficiency of information entered by the user or the suitability of a form for a particular transaction.

Can I reuse these forms?

Yes. You can reuse the forms for your personal use. For example, if you have multiple properties in Bennington County you only need to order once.

What do I need to use these forms?

The forms are PDFs that you fill out on your computer. You'll need Adobe Reader (free software that most computers already have). You do NOT enter your property information online - you download the blank forms and complete them privately on your own computer.

Are there any recurring fees?

No. This is a one-time purchase. Nothing to cancel, no memberships, no recurring fees.

How much does it cost to record in Bennington County?

Recording fees in Bennington County vary. Contact the recorder's office at (802) 375-2332 for current fees.

Questions answered? Let's get started!

On this Vermont enhanced life estate deed, the grantee line does not name an heir; it names a trustee. One owner conveys a contingent remainder to a named individual as trustee of an identified trust, and not individually, while reserving a common law life estate and the unrestricted right to convey the property during life. The form prepares that trustee grantee configuration under 27 V.S.A. chapter 6, the Enhanced Life Estate Deed Act, the statute behind what Vermont practice has long called a lady bird deed or Medicaid deed.

A remainder that lands in a trust, not an estate

An ordinary Vermont ELE deed sends the property to individual grantees at the owner's death. This deed sends it into a trust: if the property has not been conveyed away during life, title vests at the grantor's death in the trustee of the identified trust then serving, subject to encumbrances of record, and the trust instrument takes over from there. Probate administration of the property is bypassed, and so is the individual-grantee question of what happens when a remainder holder dies first. During the owner's life the arrangement stays dormant; 27 V.S.A. § 654 states that a validly executed and recorded ELE deed transfers no present right, title, or interest, so the property is not a trust asset while the owner lives and the owner's creditors and homestead position stay exactly as they were.

Lifetime control the statute spells out

Chapter 6 writes the reserved powers into defined mechanics. The grantor may sell, mortgage, lease, or give away the property, or any portion of it, without joinder by, consent from, agreement of, or notice to the trustee. Revoking the deed means recording a deed from the grantor back to the grantor; revising it means recording a new ELE deed naming a different or additional grantee, which supersedes and replaces the prior one. The trustee holds a contingent remainder that cannot be conveyed during the grantor's life, and the statute keeps the property clear of the grantee's creditors. The deed itself carries the § 660 statutory form language, including the operative words GIVE, GRANT, SELL, CONVEY, AND CONFIRM and the reservation of a common law life estate with exclusive use, possession, and enjoyment.

The successor trustee section

Section 658 of the Act supplies default rules when a named grantee dies before the grantor, and it opens with the words unless the ELE deed provides otherwise. This form provides otherwise. Its successor trustee section ties the remainder to the office of trustee rather than to the individual: if the named trustee dies, resigns, is removed, or otherwise stops serving before the grantor's death, the contingent remainder follows the successor trustee determined under the trust instrument, and at the grantor's death title vests in whoever then holds the office. A change of trustee inside the trust does not call for a new deed.

Signing and recording in Vermont towns

The grantor, who must be a natural person under § 653(4), signs before a notary public; the trustee does not sign, because § 655 makes the deed effective without the grantee's acceptance. The form carries a homestead joinder signature block and second acknowledgment certificate for the spouse of a married grantor, tied to the joinder statutes at 27 V.S.A. §§ 141 and 349. Recording happens at the town level, with the clerk of the town or city where the land lies, at the statewide fee of $15.00 per page, and the town clerk cannot accept the deed unless a completed Vermont Property Transfer Tax Return, Form PTT-172, comes with it. An executed and recorded ELE deed is subject to the property transfer tax, and where the deed is later revoked or revised, 32 V.S.A. § 9617(8)(B) supplies a refund petition route.

The package contains the enhanced life estate deed as a fillable PDF built for Vermont recording standards, a completed example showing every section filled in for a realistic Chittenden County fact pattern, and a plain language guide that walks through the form section by section, the notarization details, and the town recording process including the transfer tax return. The materials are informational and are not legal advice.

Important: Your property must be located in Bennington County to use these forms. Documents should be recorded at the office below.

This Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) meets all recording requirements specific to Bennington County.

Our Promise

The documents you receive here are guaranteed to meet or exceed the applicable Bennington County recording format requirements. If there is a rejection caused by our formatting, we will correct the issue or refund your payment. This guarantee applies to document formatting only and does not extend to information entered by the user, the selection of the form, or the legal effect of the completed document.

Save Time and Money

Get your Bennington County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) form done right the first time with Deeds.com Uniform Conveyancing Blanks. At Deeds.com, we understand that your time and money are valuable resources, and we don't want you to face a penalty fee or rejection imposed by a county recorder for submitting nonstandard documents. We constantly review and update our forms to meet rapidly changing state and county recording requirements for roughly 3,500 counties and local jurisdictions.

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