Franklin County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Form
Last validated July 16, 2026 by our Forms Development Team
Franklin 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.
Franklin County Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) Guide
Line by line guide explaining every blank on the Enhanced Life Estate Deed (Trustee Grantee) form.
Franklin 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.
All 3 documents above included • One-time purchase • No recurring fees
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Additional Vermont and Franklin County documents included at no extra charge:
Where to Record Your Documents
Town Clerk of Bakersfield
Bakersfield, Vermont 05441
Hours: M - F 9:00 to 12:00 & 7:00 to 8:00
Phone: (802) 827-4495
Town Clerk of Berkshire
Enosburgh, Vermont 05450
Hours: M & Tu 8-12, 1-5; W & Th 9-12, 1-4
Phone: (802) 933-2335
Town Clerk of Enosburgh
Enosburgh Falls, Vermont 05450
Hours: M - F 8:00 to 3:30
Phone: (802) 933-4421
Town Clerk of Fairfax
Fairfax, Vermont 05454
Hours: M - F 9:00 to 4:00; 1st & 3rd Mon 6:00 to 8:00
Phone: (802) 849-6111
Town Clerk of Fairfield
Fairfield, Vermont 05455
Hours: M, Tu, Th, F 8:00 to 3:00; W 10:30 to 5:30
Phone: (802) 827-3261 x1
Town Clerk of Fletcher
Cambridge, Vermont 05444
Hours: M 8 - 3:30 & 6:30 - 8:30; Tu - Th 8 to 3:30
Phone: (802) 849-6616
Town Clerk of Franklin
Franklin, Vermont 05457
Hours: M, Tu, F 8:30 to 3:30; W 8:30 to noon; Th 8:30 to 6:00
Phone: (802) 285-2101
Town Clerk of Georgia
St. Albans, Vermont 05478
Hours: M-F 8:00 - 4:00
Phone: (802) 524-3524
Town Clerk of Highgate
Highgate Ctr, Vermont 05459
Hours: M-F 8:30 to 12 & 1:00 to 4:30
Phone: (802) 868-4697 X201
Town Clerk of Montgomery
Montgomery, Vermont 05471
Hours: M 8-12 & 1-6; Tu, Th, F 8-12 & 1-4
Phone: (802) 326-4719
Town Clerk of Richford
Richford, Vermont 05476
Hours: M - Th 8:00 - 5:00; F 8:00 - noon
Phone: (802) 848-7751 x3
City of St. Albans Clerk
St. Albans, Vermont 05478-0867
Hours: M-F 7:30 - 4:30; last Sat 9:00 - 12:00
Phone: (802) 524-1501 x264
Town of St. Albans Clerk
St. Albans Bay, Vermont 05481
Hours: M-F 8:00 - 4:00
Phone: (802) 524-2415
Town Clerk of Sheldon
Sheldon, Vermont 05483
Hours: M 8:00 to 6:00 & Tu-F 8:00 to 3:00
Phone: (802) 933-2524 x3
Town Clerk of Swanton
Swanton, Vermont 05488
Hours: M-F 7:00 to 5:00
Phone: (802) 868-4421
Recording Tips for Franklin County:
- Double-check legal descriptions match your existing deed
- Documents must be on 8.5 x 11 inch white paper
- Leave recording info boxes blank - the office fills these
- Recording fees may differ from what's posted online - verify current rates
Cities and Jurisdictions in Franklin County
Properties in any of these areas use Franklin County forms:
- Bakersfield
- East Berkshire
- East Fairfield
- Enosburg Falls
- Fairfield
- Franklin
- Highgate Center
- Highgate Springs
- Montgomery
- Montgomery Center
- Richford
- Saint Albans
- Saint Albans Bay
- Sheldon
- Sheldon Springs
- Swanton
Hours, fees, requirements, and more for Franklin County
How do I get my forms?
Forms are available for immediate download after payment. The Franklin 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 Franklin County?
Yes. Our form blanks are guaranteed to meet or exceed the applicable formatting requirements used for recording in Franklin 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 Franklin 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 Franklin County?
Recording fees in Franklin County vary. Contact the recorder's office at (802) 827-4495 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 Franklin 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 Franklin County.
Our Promise
The documents you receive here are guaranteed to meet or exceed the applicable Franklin 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 Franklin 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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