Articles
Does A Life Tenant Have Responsibilities To Those Holding The Remainder Interest In Property?
A person holding a life estate interest in property is entitled to the exclusive use and possession of the property. The life tenant may utilize the property for his or her benefit and may keep all rents from the property. However, the life tenant may not allow the property to deteriorate or incur liabilities to […]
Read Article >>How Much Does It Cost To Maintain A Trust?
A common question we are asked is “How much does it cost to maintain a trust?” The answer depends on the type of trust, the assets involved, and how the trust is administered. In most cases, a family revocable trust created by a husband and wife has little or no costs to maintain. However, once […]
Read Article >>Deeds – When Does Title To Property Pass To A Survivor?
There are many ways in which title to real property can be held. When held as “joint tenants with right of survivorship” or as “tenants by the entireties”, title to the property will pass to the survivor on title upon the death of the other owner. The survivor will only need to record the deceased […]
Read Article >>Do Co-owners of Property Have To Pay For Their Share of Property Expenses?
Co-tenants are required to pay their proportionate share of expenses incurred on jointly owned property. Florida courts have held that co-tenants have a mutual obligation to pay charges on co-owned property including mortgage payments, taxes, insurance, and required repairs. In partition actions, Florida courts have held that where a co-tenant pays more than his or […]
Read Article >>Can Probate Be Avoided?
Probate is the court directed process used to transfer the assets of a deceased person where such assets are only in the decedent’s name at the time of death and no beneficiary is designated on such assets. Probate can be avoided if accounts are jointly held or the accounts provide that beneficiaries are to receive […]
Read Article >>Can I Rent My Homestead Property?
Florida Statutes permit homeowners to rent all or a portion of their homestead property. These statutory provisions are met with strict conditions so as not to lose the homestead exemption. Examples shown below illustrate rental guidelines. When renting a property, the owner’s residency-based documents such as a driver’s license and voter registration must continually reflect […]
Read Article >>When Can You Probate A Later Discovered Will?
Florida law provides that if a later-discovered last will and testament of the decedent is found, an interested person may petition to revoke the probate of the earlier proceedings and admit the later will to probate. However, as a general rule, this process must occur before the estate is fully administered, as no later will […]
Read Article >>Small Estate Affidavits: Not in Florida
It is very common for financial institutions to request a “Small Estate Affidavit” to process closure of a deceased person’s account. Unfortunately, Small Estate Affidavits do not exist in the State of Florida.
Read Article >>What Types of Risks are Associated with Partition Actions?
A partition action is a legal process used to resolve disputes among co-owners of a property when they cannot agree on how to use or dispose of the property.
Read Article >>Why Should You Have a Revocable Living Trust?
A Revocable Living Trust is most common to avoid probate and important to control the distribution of your estate after your death.
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