It is common for individuals to purchase real estate property in Florida later in life, once they retire. You may have followed this trend, but you may not have given up your other property in the state of your primary residence. That is, you may now let your adult children live in or use that home for certain parts of the year, rent it out from time to time to earn a source of passive income, or otherwise. At any rate, owning multiple properties in multiple states may, unfortunately, complicate your estate plans. Without further ado, please read on to discover how the probate process works for your out-of-state property and how a seasoned Broward County wills lawyer at The Probate Lawyers can work to simplify this as much as possible.
How does the probate process work for my out-of-state real estate property?
You may feel relief learning that the Florida probate court may approve the Last Will and Testament document you established out of state. This is thanks to the United States Constitution’s full faith and credit clause. This clause states that a state court must respect laws and judicial decisions other state courts make. Therefore, if your will aligns with the estate laws in another state, and another state’s probate court declares it valid and enforceable, the Florida probate court should follow suit.
However, this is not to say that the Florida court will not require the in-state real estate property within your will to undergo an additional probate process with them. This is otherwise referred to as the ancillary probate process. So, once your first probate, or domiciliary probate, concludes in another state, your appointed executor may need to obtain a new letter of authority from the Florida probate court. Then, the Florida probate court may reference your “foreign” will to administer your property within its state’s borders.
How can I possibly curb ancillary probate for my out-of-state property?
You may already know the probate process’s reputation for being emotionally draining, time-consuming, and financially taxing. So, you may not want your executor, beneficiaries, and other loved ones to go through this twice. Without further ado, below are a few estate planning strategies that may allow your out-of-state real estate property to evade the ancillary probate process legally, without having to sell it during your lifetime:
- You may place your out-of-state real estate property in a revocable living trust left to one of your beneficiaries.
- You may retitle your out-of-state real estate property to own it jointly with another party (i.e., surviving spouse, child, etc).
- You may establish a transfer-on-death deed to have a beneficiary inherit your out-of-state real estate property upon your passing.
In conclusion, if you find yourself up against this, please do not go through it alone. Instead, pick up the phone and speak with a competent Broward County estate lawyer. Our team at The Probate Lawyers wishes to aid you during this difficult point in time.
