Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in Missouri

The beneficiary deed controls over any designation in a will. This is because , by statute, the transfer of title conveyed by the beneficiary deed occurs at the moment of death such that upon death, the grantor of the beneficiary deed no longer owns the real estate, so the will provision is not applicable to the real estate.

Mr. Burcke is exactly correct. Whoever takes under the beneficiary deed owns the property at the moment the prior owner dies, and so the property is not owned by the decedent at the time of death. This assumes, of course, that the beneficiary deed was properly done, delivered, and is legally enforceable.