Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California
Grant deed / gift deed? Trust to joint tenants ?
Real property in LA County, CA, held in trust; trust/trustee/orig grantor, an unmarried indiv, wants to deed the property to herself outside the trust and to another unmarried person as joint tenants with right of survivorship. Are 2--name removed--deeds needed, one to take out of trust, and then a gift deed to add the joint tenant? Or can one deed accomplish it all (in which case the trust can have love and affection for its trustee and for a third party, which seems odd!?) - and if so, is this a gift deed, or a--name removed--deed? What am I missing here?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Grant deed / gift deed? Trust to joint tenants ?
If the trust is revocable, and the trustee is the trustor, there is no problem with the trustee conveying the property out of the trust and back to herself and someone else as joint tenants. Only one deed is needed.
If the trustor and the trustee are one and the same, a deed was not originally required, but rather the declaration of trust with the property description and recording would have been sufficient to establish the trust in the first place.
Keep in mind that a trust must have trust property to be valid. If all of the property (what is known as the trust res) is conveyed out of the trust, the argument can be made that the trust has been completely revoked and has ceased to exist.
Very truly yours,
Anthony Roach, Esq.
Re: Grant deed / gift deed? Trust to joint tenants ?
It might be a taxable event, however, if the property is deeded to a "stranger." Make sure to consult a tax advisor before making the change.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
