Transfer on Death Deeds in Minnesota: Minnesota Home Talk Legal Minute, May 3, 2014

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The April 26 Minnesota Home Talk Legal Minute covered the conveyance of real estate with reservation of a life estate.  This week I discussed an alternative of “estate planning by deed”, the transfer on death deed, or “TODD”.

 

As I wrote last week, tor many people, a primary estate planning concern is how to transfer their home to their children without the need for a probate proceeding but maintaining control of the property.  In those situations, a transfer on death deed may provide the solution.  A transfer on death deed is a deed that is executed and recorded during the grantor’s lifetime but does not make an effective transfer until the grantor’s death.  A key aspect of this type of deed in comparison to a conveyance with retention of a life estate, is that the deed can be revoked during the grantor’s lifetime without the grantee’s consent.  This provides the grantor the flexibility to make alternate arrangements regarding the property during his or her lifetime.

 

Minnesota Statute Section 507.071 sets forth the requirements for a valid transfer on death deed, as well as other provisions related to the use of this type of instrument.

 

Subd. 24 sets for the approved form for a TODD:

 

Transfer on Death Deed

 

I (we) …………………………….. (grantor owner or owners and spouses, if any, with marital status designated), grantor(s), hereby convey(s) and quitclaim(s) to ……………………………. (grantee beneficiary, whether one or more) effective (check only one of the following)

 

…. on the death of the grantor owner, if only one grantor is named above, or on the death of the last of the grantor owners to die, if more than one grantor owner is named above, or

 

…. on the death of (name of grantor owner)

 

……………………………………. (must be one of the grantor owners named above), the following described real property:

 

(Legal description)

 

If checked, the following optional statement applies:

 

….When effective, this instrument conveys any and all interests in the described real property acquired by the grantor owner(s) before, on, or after the date of this instrument.

 


(Signature of grantor(s))

 

 (acknowledgment)

 

Subd. 25 sets forth the approved from for the revocation of the TODD:

 

Revocation of Transfer on Death Deed

 

The undersigned hereby revokes the transfer on death deed recorded on ………., …., as Document No. ………. (or in Book ………. of ………, Page …..) in the office of the (County Recorder) (Registrar of Titles) of ………… County, Minnesota, affecting real property legally described as follows:

 

 (legal description)
Dated:

Signature
(acknowledgment)

 

It should be noted that a transfer on death deed is not necessarily appropriate for every situation, and careful consultation with an attorney knowledgeable in their use is a must.

 

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