Homestead Sweet Homestead

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May 12, 2016
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May 12, 2016
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Q. We want our home to go to our three children. Why can’t we take care of that in our Wills?

A. You certainly can. Not only that, I usually advise my clients to leave their homestead to their children (or nieces, nephews and other blood relatives) in their Wills and do not put the homestead in trust. Why do I say that? The homestead is the single most protected asset anyone has in the State of Florida. So to my way of thinking, it’s best to leave that most protected of assets in the individual names of the homestead owners. Okay. So what if you do that? Well, if the home is in the name of a husband and wife, when one passes on, the other just continues to own it uninterrupted. You don’t have to do anything, although I always recommend that a death certificate be recorded in the public records. It costs ten dollars for that. You should also file the original Will of the deceased. It cost nothing to do that but if you want a receipt for the Will, that costs one dollar. You will not get the Will back but you will get the recorded death certificate back after it’s been recorded. What happens when both pass on? So long as the homestead passes in your Will to blood relatives or to step-blood relatives, they have it free from debts.

 

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