Ask your questions
As a settlement services/escrow company in California, most of our transactions deal with properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that we cannot comment on.
Inquires and questions regarding properties in other states should be asked of closing professionals and attorneys in that particular state.
{ 304 comments… read them below or add one }
I am refinancing an apartment building and want to hold title in my living trust. My sister and brother wants to remove their names from title by quitclaiming . However, will that cause reassessment of my property taxes and also would a transfer tax have to be paid?
The re-assessment of property taxes and the payment of transfer tax is required of all transfer of California property ownerships. You can request an exemption of both, if your case can fall into their exemption guidelines. Here is the link to our transfer tax exemption verbiage: http://www.vivaescrow.com/for-your-convenience/faq/documentary-transfer-tax-exemptions.
So depending on why your siblings are removing their names from the property, and if they are getting consideration, you might be able to exempt yourself and put the correct verbiage on the transfer deed. In your case, if your siblings are not getting any money out of the transfer, probably #1 would be the one you would use.
However, as always, I have to disclose that whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption would be up to them. All we can do is recommend how to do it, but it is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can try it and then see what the County Recorder and Tax Assessor say.
If I have a RECORDED deed of trust that contains misspellings in the legal description (ie. quarter is quoerter or subdivision is subdsicvision) when I record the deed of release? Do I use the recorded deed of trust w/ the misspellings or do I correct the errors in the legal description? I am getting conflicting ideas. Or do we go back to the legal description on the orig. policy? What takes precedent? Thank You
If you are recording a legal document on the property you should always use the correct legal description and make sure that the errors are corrected. However, the typographical errors on your original deed of trust really does not affect the legality of the document. The County Recorders file documents according to the Lot, Book Tract number in the legal description as well as the tax assessor’s parcel number (APN), so if those are correct, then the document will record correctly on your property.
Hi
I went through a donation of my timeshare (in El Dorado County, CA) to a company called Property Relief LLC in Oct 2011. I never received the deed that transferred my ownership of Tahoe Seasons timeshare from me to Property Relief LLC. Recently, I have been receiving tax bills again for the timeshare I donated. I checked the El Dorado County website searching under my name and saw a deed recorded that the grantor Property Relief LLC sold/transferred the deed to that timeshare to a Quentin Jones on 2/6/12. On 10/29/12, without my consent or knowledge and of course without my approval granted the deed back in my name. I am in the process of requesting copies of those deeds but I think doing this was not legal. What do you suggest? and can you help me.
Thx
Manny Salinas 310-919-7966
Unfortunately, we don’t handle time shares so I really wouldn’t be able to comment on your issue of having the time share deeded back to your name. I didn’t realize that a grant deed was used in the transfer of time share ownerships, but again, I don’t handle time shares so I would not know.
However, in order to have a valid deed, you must accept the transfer of the ownership back to you. If this transfer was done without your knowledge or acceptance and now the responsibilities for the time share, including taxes and otherwise, would fall on your shoulders, you should then seek legal counsel. I highly recommend that once you get a copy of all the deeds, you take this to a real estate attorney and let them look at it and advise you.
I am sorry that I am unable to be of much help!
I have a property in Ca, and I have the original wet ink Grant Deed stamped and notarized. can this property be foreclosed on when it has been thru so many lenders and loan servicing company’s that all they have left are real bad fax MERS copies of the original loan docs and that company is no longer in business, this was a real bad case of predatory lending, and every company kept dumping the loan to someone else during the meltdown, although I have had and still have the original wet ink Grant Deed?
The Grant Deed is the ownership document which shows who owns the property. The Deed of Trust is the document which shows that the loan that you borrowed was secured on the property. It doesn’t matter if the copies of the Grant Deed and Deed of Trust are bad; a copy of the originals, once they are recorded, can be pulled at any time by anyone from the County Recorder’s office.
As long as the Deed of Trust securing the loan was properly recorded on your property then the loan can be foreclosed on.
Several years ago I sold a vacant property and carried back the loan. The buyers quit paying three years ago so I recently foreclosed. I need to file the trustee’s deed to transfer it back to my name, but wondered if there is an exemption for the documentary transfer tax, and if not, what is the amount on which I have to pay? The property is now worth about 1/2 what is sold for in 2006. Additionally, the buyers did not pay the property taxes for several years and I will have to bring them current. Is there any way to get the back taxes lowered to reflect the current value?
If you foreclosed on the property then the Trustee or the assigned foreclosure company should be issuing the Trustee’s Deed. Hopefully, you did go through a foreclosure company to finalize your foreclosure. I strongly suggest that you ask your foreclosure company about the Transfer Tax, as I don’t beleive there is any to be paid, but there is certain verbiage that needs to be reflected on the Trustee’s Deed upon Sale.
As to taxes, the transfer of the property to you will trigger re-assessment by the Assessor’s office and they should reflect the new taxes in the future based on the current value of the property, which would probably be the foreclosure value. I don’t beleive that the County Tax Assessor will lower the unpaid back taxes, however.
I live in the home that my father is currently selling and is in escrow he is going to Guatemala on an emergency in the middle of escrow can he give me permission to sign the final documents and everything for him
With respect to your question regarding signing documents for your father, depending on how your father’s ownership of the property shows, you can have your Escrow Officer prepare a Power of Attorney, in which he designates you as his Attorney In Fact to sign his paperwork. This can be done only if he owns the property under himself as an individual, not as part of a Trust or in a corporate entity. Ask your Escrow Officer and he/she will prepare one. The document has to be signed in front of a Notary Public, so be sure this is done before your father leaves!
Juliana:
We are purchasing a condo. We’d like to take title using our XXX Family Trust.
My husband and I are trustee’s of the XXX Family Trust.
We would like to record a grant deed to convey title to “XXX Family Trust dated MM/DD/YY” WITHOUT specifying the trustee’s name (our names). Is this acceptable? The reason is that we would like to we remain as anonymous as possible in this litigious world of Google searches. If this is not acceptable, we’d like to specify only his name as the trustee. (he has a more common name) is this OK?
I appreciated you taking the time. Thanks in advance,
Judith C
The proper way for a Trust to take ownership of a property is as “John Doe and Jane Doe, Trustees of the John and Jane Doe Family Trust dated Jan 1, 2013”. The reason why the Trustees names show is because the Trust is an agreement between a trustee and a trustor, and by itself it is not an entity that can own property; it is the Trustees, on behalf of the Trust that give the Trust life and can own and sell property, not the Trust itself.
I have seen many Trusts that don’t specify the Trustees in front of the name of the Trust to own property and it gets put on the Deed that way. It doesn’t invalidate the ownership of the property, it just makes it “incorrectly owned” . I cannot tell you to put your Trustee name on (or not), but I would think that you should consult with your Trust Attorney with regards to this issue. Putting one Trustee name only on it is also incorrect, but again, if you put it that way it doesn’t invalidate the deed.
Again, please consult with your Trust Attorney.
Thank you Juliana for your prompt and useful reply. I have forwarded your reply to my escrow officerand am awaiting her reply and/or comment and/or explanation.
went through the purchase process to acquire condo – got to the last stage – got funding and put all closing costs in escrow – lender put her funding in escrow as well and waited for the sale to be recorded a few days from then- did not happen – turns out that the “deed in lieu” was “improperly done” and the county would not record. I have been waiting ever since – no one will tell me what is wrong with the deed in lieu, who is to correct it and how long it will take. Meanwhile, just heard today that my lender is threatening to take funding out of escrow because her “investor” wants to invest the funds elsewhere since my transaction is not closing and the money is just “sitting there”. Bank of America is the lender that was supposed to have accepted a deed in lieu from the defaulted owner — I presume they have to “correct” it. . This is 3 closing extensions later. and Bank of America has done nothing, says nothing, knows nothing. Can my lender pull funding out of escrow when I have met all conditions and am not in anyway responsible for this delay? Is the seller Fannie Mae not responsible for making sure it has a valid deed to transfer before it puts the property on the market. Somebody somewhere must be responsible for making sure the property is transferable before we get to funding the whole thing and all that is left is the recording. .And what can be wrong with a deed in lieu that can stop closing like that?
Unfortunately, not having the full information on your file, I cannot comment on your question regarding the problem with the deed in lieu of foreclosure. I know this is not what you want to hear and that you are very frustrated, but it could be any number of reasons why the deed in lieu was not accepted. My best recommendation, if you have not done so already, is to call your Escrow Officer and get to the bottom of it. You are saying that the County states the deed was done improperly; that doesn’t sound right. The Title Company should have questioned the deed during the transaction before it even got to the County and before you had your Lender fund the loan.
As to your question regarding your Lender pulling back the funding, yes, they absolutely have the right to do so. It is their funds and if you cannot close escrow and make sure their deed of trust is recorded on the property to secure their loan to you, then they can pull it back.
Please call your Escrow Officer and ask him or her to give you a better analysis of the situation. I am sorry I am not able to help you further.
My husband is the successor trustee in his dad’s estate (California). There is a non prorata clause so wants to take the house and he intends to buy out his two siblings. He will need a loan and then he will make up the difference by giving them the money from the annuities . All parties have agreed. He was laid off of his job and so I (as the wife) will need to secure the loan. The escrow company is now saying I (the wife) cannot be on the title, because I am not part of the trust. But in order to get the loan I (the wife) need to be on the title. Is there anyway around this?
I don’t know the details of your transaction except for what you had stated so hopefully, the comment that I have for you makes sense and you will talk it over with your loan officer and also financial counsel if you are interested in looking into it further.
From what you have described you could do this as a purchase/sale escrow. The Seller is the Trust, with your husband as the Successor Trustee. The Buyer would be you and your husband as individuals. As the Buyer you would obtain a loan and the balance of the purchase would be in the form of the transfer of the money from the annuities. When the Seller gets the net proceeds then it would use these funds to payoff the 2 siblings, if they are Beneficiaries of the Trust.
As far as I can see, that might be one way to do this, but you would need to establish a purchase price, which would be the appraised value of the property . The net proceeds derived from this sale would be used to payof the 2 siblings for their shares and the third share would go to your husband, which he can put right back into the purchase as part of his downpayment. Did that make sense to you?
Don’t treat this transaction as a “refinance”; it wouldn’t work that way. Treat it as a sale/purchase.
Do check with your loan officer and your CPA to see if this is feasible, from the standpoint of the Trust (the Trust has to declare income taxes on this sale), as well as from your own standpoint.
I owe a home in San Bernardino County and would like to add my domestic partner to the deed. The home is under prop 13. By adding her to the deed, will this cause the county to reacess the property and raise the taxes? Would it be better to instead just leave her the property in a will or what? I don’t want her to be stuck with nothing if something happens to me. I really need your help, thanks.
Adding a person to the ownership of a property will always trigger a property tax re-assessment. You can try to add her on and request an exemption by typing the following exemption clause on the deed – “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911”. Whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption and not charge a transfer tax or re-assess the property would be up to them. All we can do is point out the possible exemption possibilities, but it is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify.
Leaving the property in a will or if you set up a Trust and put her as Beneficiary will be another way to do this and perhaps a better way. I strongly recommend that you contact an attorney and a financial advisor to get the best possible legal and financial advice, particularly in a domestic partnership situation. Laws regarding this is in a state of flux right now.
Tax law states that as a married couple filing jointly, if my wife and I were to sell our home we can exclude up to $500,000 worth of gain on the sale of the home as long as we’ve both used the property for at least two of the previous five years (we clearly meet that condition) and if AT LEAST ONE OF US has owned the house for two of the previous five years. My questions below relate to that last part.
I purchased a home in California many years ago (1981) as a single man. The last time the deed was changed was in 1990 when I bought out a co-investor and in that time I was still a single man and the deed correctly identified me as such.
Since then I’ve gotten married but we’ve not yet changed the deed either to add my wife or to show me now as a married man so it is still as it was written in 1990.
With that deed still showing me as “a Single Man”, even though in fact today I am “a Married Man”, would I still be considered as the legitimate owner of this property such that we could qualify for the gain exclusion if we sell the home soon???
As an alternative question, should we decide NOW to have the deed redone to include me correctly as a Married Man and to also include my wife (we started that process with a Real Estate lawyer but have that on hold right now as I try to get these more tax related questions answered) might we be facing a situation where my ownership status might start over such that we would have to wait at least two years before we could sell and take advantage of the gain exclusion?? The Real Estate attorney told me that since the deed was last written with my marital status shown as “a Single Man” as the grantee, that if we re-deed the property now to myself and my wife that it would have to be listed as
From my name, a Single Man
To my name, a Married Man and my wife’s name, a Married Woman
We don’t want to have to wait two years to be able to take advantage of the full $500,000 gain exclusion so today we want to know what it is we need to do now (such as do nothing??? change the deed to include both of us and show me correctly as married??) so we can have this full gain exclusion at our disposal if we decide to sell soon.
Your thoughts?? thanks…
I can’t answer our questions regarding tax law; you would have to ask your financial counsel or CPA regarding that. As an Escrow Officer in California who sees a lot of these cases in which parties get married, get divorced, and then get married again without ever changing their ownership of the property, I recommend that you do the deed that changes your marital status to married and add your wife. The deed would be as follows:
From your name, a Married man who acquired title as a Single Man
To your name and your wife’s name, husband and wife as Joint Tenants or Community Property with Rights of Survivorship (choose one or the other)
I would think that whether you added your wife’s name on the title when you first married or you did not, you are presently married and can prove to have been married for the requisite number of years to claim the $500,000 deduction, correct? If that is so, then the gain exclusion would apply when you sell the property no matter if your wife’s name shows on the ownership deed or not.
Please do consult with a CPA regarding the above as we are not allowed to give legal or financial counsel.
A few more questions…If we file either the grant deed or quit claim deed for the 20% will the mortgage company be notified? If so who notifies them? If they are notified will they do anything? My sister and her husband will still be on titles for the amount of the loan. We will only be on title for the 20% which is what was put down in cash. The home actually has equity already. We bought it under the appraised value.
Your mortgage company will not be notified by such a transfer of ownership unless they specifically target your property and look up any changes in title (perhaps if you don’t pay and they have to start foreclosure proceedings). The chances are minimal otherwise that they will check as loan servicers do not have the time and manpower to check the thousands upon thousands of loans in their portfolio.
My sister and her husband got the loan for a house and we put down the 20%. We could not qualify for the loan at this time. We have a lease to own contract. We will live in the home and have full responsibility for it. We are not on the title but want to be added to the title after the close of escrow. We would own 20%. Do we use a quitclaim deed or grant deed? Do we state we paid the 20%? If we state we paid the 20% will we need to pay any additional fees other than the transfer tax? Thank you.
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
To put yourself on the ownership of the property you can use either a quitclaim deed or a grant deed, although a grant deed is preferred simply because of the inherent warranties it gives. Your sister and her husband would grant to you as to a 20% interest and them as to 80% interest, all as “Tenants in Common”. You don’t need to state that you paid the 20% anywhere in the document; just calculate the transfer tax based on your 20% of the equity portion of the value of the property when you first purchased it.
Hi Juliana,
I’m a co-signer for my son’s when he brought his house in Dec. 2012. now when i refinance my own house the mortgage company need to add my son’s income to my refinance loan and in the Title also in other to be qualify due to co-signer of his house. Can i deleted him in the Title later on ( i just want him to help for the loan only) or do i need to fill out a PCOR form, Thanks!
Cindy
If you add your son to your house now in order to qualify for your refinance, you can remove him later, but remember that he will have to sign the deed (not you) that transfers the ownership back to you. When he does this Deed you will also need to attach a PCOR form.
Does an investment agent who acts as buyer and is President of a company which is filed as a Statement & Designation By Foreign Corporation, have to legally put his own name only or indicate that he represents an investment group on the deed in a short sale in California?
Normally, when we have a corporation as a Buyer, the name of the Corporation will appear on all our paperwork as a the Buyer. The name of the corporate officer who is authorized to sign on behalf of this corporation will appear below the signature line.
If you are an investment agent acting for the corporation, and the Buyer is the corporation, then it is the corporation name that appears. If you are an individual who is acting as the Buyer, as you stated in your question, whether you are acting for yourself or on behalf of your investment group/corporation, it will be your name that will appears on all the documents.
I hope I answered your question.
Hi, Love the site. I’ve read a lot of the previous questions and boy there are a lot of various transaction. However, I did not see one that was an exact fit to my situation. I am completing a Grant Deed and now I’m confused on the wording of the deed. My situation; my parents are gifting their primary house to my brother and I. My brother and I are the only children and we are both married with children. We all want our wives to complete the Quitclaim Deed. And my brother and I to hold the property as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship. Whats the best wording for this?
Currently, I have down as
“Dad and Mom, Husband and Wife as Joint Tenants” hereby grant(s) to “their sons ‘Brother and Ricky’ as “Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship”
How should the Quitclaim Deed read? Would there be 2 quitclaim deed, one for my wife and one for my sister-in-law? Can these be recorded at the same time as the Grant Deed? or does the Grant Deed to be recorded first, and then submit this at a later date?
Also, the Claim for Reassessment Exclusion for Transfer Between Parent and Child form, is this to be submitted at the same time as the recording? or After?
Thank you for your guidance.
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
Here is how the deed from you parents would read:
“Dad and Mom, husband and wife as joint tenants” hereby grants to “Son 1, a married man as his sole and separate property, and Son 2, a married man as his sole and separate property, as Joint Tenants”. Put the transfer tax exemption on the deed: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between parents and children, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911”. Be sure you check the correct box in Part 1 of the first page of the preliminary change of ownership form.
Here is how the 2 quitclaim deeds from the spouses would read (yes, each spouse needs to sign a separate one):
“Jane Doe, a Married woman and spouse of Grantee herein” quitclaims to “Son 1, a Married Man as his sole and separate property”. Put the transfer tax exemption verbiage on the deed: “This conveyance establishes sole and separate property of a spouse, R&T 11911.” Be sure you check the correct box in Part 1 of the first page of the preliminary change of ownership form also.
The deed from parents is recorded first, then the 2 quitclaim deeds from the spouses. Attach a separate preliminary change of ownership form with each deed.
The claim for reassessment exclusion form is normally sent by the County Assessor’s office to you directly after recording the Deeds along with a Change of Ownership form. You would then complete it and send it in.
Hello,
My parents own a condo in San Francisco that they would like to gift to me and my husband. There is a small mortgage on it, which my husband and I will begin paying. Can we avoid the San Francisco transfer tax since it is a gift from parent to child? Or is it not a gift because we’re going to have to get our own mortgage to pay off my parents’ balance first? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
A transfer between parent and child with no consideration involved can be considered a gift and therefore exempt from the payment of Transfer Tax as well as from property tax re-assessment. The Grant Deed from the parent should have the correct verbiage typed on it: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer from parents to children, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911.”. The preliminary change of ownership form should also be checked correctly in Part 1. Whether you are taking over their mortgage or getting your own loan in the future does not affect the present transfer of property and transfer tax exemption.
Thanks so much for the prompt and informative response! Does a change in title mean that we will own the property, even if there is a mortgage under my parents’ names still on it? Could we continue to just pay off that mortgage instead of going through the hassle of getting our own loan?
When your parents deed the property to you, then you will own the property, even though the mortgage is still under your parents’ name. If you don’t pay, the lender will start foreclosure proceedings against the property, you may lose the house and it will affect your parents’ credit. I suggest that you continue to pay that mortgage so that you don’t get into that kind of trouble.
Getting a new loan under your name is a good thing because it will take your parents out of the equation, but it is not absolutely necessary, as long as you continue to pay on your parents’ behalf and the Lender does not find out. If the Lender finds out that the property got transferred to you and you are now making the payment they may “call the loan due”, ie. force you to pay them off and get a new loan under your name. However, the chances of them doing so are rather small; they don’t have the time and manpower to keep track of all their loan files.
My parent live in San Gabriel area, my mother transferred her house ownership to me as a solo owner on 12/31/2012, and there was no money exchange involved.
- Is this transferring of the house ownership considered as a gift from parent to children?
- If so, do I have to pay gift tax?
- Any other taxes are required in this kind of transferring?
Thanks
A parent to child transfer can be considered a gift if there was no money exchanged. If the correct verbiage was put on the Grant Deed from your mother to yourself then the transfer tax upon recording of the Deed can be exempted as well as the property tax re-assessment.
As to gift tax, you will need to ask your own CPA for his financial counsel to answer that question. There should be no other tax consequences.
Hello,
In 2004 I sold my home in Camarillo, moved and placed all the equity into a new home. My soon to be husband had no assests into the purchase of the home. We had title as a unmarried women and unmarried man, realizing that was not in my best interest my husband quick claimed off the home in 2006. Unknown to us child support had placed a lien on the home in 2004 he was current in his support order at that time. I refinanced the home in my name only in 2009 and had to have him again sign a second quick claim plus other paperwork that stated he had released all rights of ownership to the home and it was my sole ownership for the title company. I am in the process of refinancing again and the new title company is saying I have to get the lien released. I told them I did not have to due that during my last refi and my husband is not on title nor on the mortgage and that everything is in my name. Any suggestions or guidance would be greatly appreciated. My husband has been out of work and now owes significant arrears in his child support and his ex is far from ever being cooperative. I have no desire to not be able to refi to a lower rate for a debt that is not mine. Thank you for your time.
Hello and thank you for visiting our Viva Escrow website and leaving a question.
Child support and other liens are very tricky. Like a computer virus, once it attaches to a person it follows the person and attaches to everything he subsequently owns. The only way to take if off is to get a Release. From what it sounds like, the child support lien attached to the property when he first came into title in 2004. Even though he quitclaimed in 2006 it was already too late and the lien attached. Unless you got a Release of Judgment from the District Attorney’s office and recorded this Release in your previous refinance in 2009, this child support lien would still show on the chain of title today.
Since your husband is in arrears on his child support, it is doubtful the D.A.’s office would issue any kind of withdrawal, even though he is not an owner on the property now. You might want to call the office from which the judgment was issued and see if you can work something out with them.
I am sorry, child support judgments are a headache for escrow companies and since the D.A is acting on behalf of minors, they are very, very tough.
my father bought a house in brooklyn between him and one of brother name is on the deed but my father fell sick had stroke about 7 years ago and my other brother talk father in to transferring 100% of the deed to him without the brother whose name is on the deed knowledge is that legal now that brother who did that is dead and his wife is seeking ownership saying my whose name was on the deed from the day the house was bought has no right is this legal…yes the brother who is dead name come up on the deed now but i want to know if what he did was legal…
In response to the question you left on our website regarding the status of ownership on the property after the original owners passed away, we are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
We are sorry that we are unable to help you.
Cindy : I have a house property as bonafid gift from my cousin 2004 , i have a_quitclaim deed- from my husband on my property, did not file taxes cause i had no job and no money that time……fresh from bankruptcy…….. i am still married.my husband is undergoing B.O.E. state audit , we filed together for 3 years hoping to lower my interest rate and it did not succeed. the question is if he owe to the state do they come after me too . do they put lien on the house???? i have been from tax attorney to real estate attorney to estate planing attorney , to many different attorneys with no luck again hope u can help. thank you
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
If your husband owes taxes to the State of California or the State Board of Equalization (B.O.E.), they will put a lien against him personally. This lien, once it is filed, will attach to anything that he owns. If he is part owner of your property then it would affect your property and when you go to sell or refinance, these taxes would have to be paid off. If he is not an owner of your property (you mentioned that he quitclaimed any interest already), then his lien should not affect you or your property.
Whether or not the State will come after you personally for the money owed I would not know. That is something you would need to ask the government agencies.
I bought a home from a lady that was getting ready to lose it to auction it had already been certified by the state. We had a warranty deed drawn up it has already been deeded for around seven months. Now I am getting messages from her wanting more money and wanting me to sign a contract. It was my understanding that once it had been recorded and there was never a contract for deed befor it was done that she can’t ask me to sign a contract for deed when the property is already mine. I guess my question and it may sound stupid is can i be made to pay her more money or can she take my house back… I just want to be sure i am no attorney..
We are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state. From your question it sounds like the property is in a state other than California.
If this property is in California and you purchased it in an auction and the Deed was recorded, the property is yours and the previous owner would not have any right to ask you for funds as she lost it already.
I currently own a rental property with my son as tenants in common and he holds title as Married Man Sole and Separate Property, an undivided 50% interest. His wife signed a interspousal transfer deed signing off all of her interest to the property years ago so he legally can transfer his share. He is now transferring back to me his 50% interest and I will now hold title as unmarried woman my question is when he transfers his 50% interest what wording does he have to use to make it legal? For a Valuable Consideration, His name, Married Man Sole and Separate Property hereby grants to or Married Man, Sole and Separate Property, undivided 50% interest, Tenants In Common hereby grants to? I want to make sure it is done correctly so there is no question that he is transferring back his entire 50% share and I am unsure if he has to even mention 50% and tenants in common. Thank you!
We are a settlement services company in California, so my answer below is predicated on the assumption that your property is located in California. Other states have different deed forms and regulations and that we cannot comment on.
When your son is granting his 50% share to you, he grants out as follows:
“John Doe, a Married Man as his sole and separate property”
hereby grants to “Jane Smith”
“his undivided 50% interest in and to”
the following described real property in the County of …..State of California.
I usually type “his undivided 50% interest in and to” right on top of the preprinted statement on the form – “the following described real property in the County of …… State of California:”
Hope this answers your question.
I bought my condo in Newark, CA 9 years ago and got married 6 months ago. My husband is not on the title or loan. I’m trying to refinance and he is out of the country and not available to sign. We want to keep the title and loan solely in my name. What is our best option? Should we do a quit claim deed? If so, would we owe any tax? Is there a better option since he is not available to sign?
Thank you very much for the information,
Anna
Due to California’s community property laws, now that you are married, there is no way to get out of getting a signature from your husband. As you want to keep the ownership solely under your name you will need to have your husband sign a Quitclaim Deed. This form needs to be signed in the presence of a Notary Public at the American Consulate wherever he may be. Once he signs the deed then he will not have to sign anything else and you would get the loan just under your name. Please talk to your escrow officer who is handling the refinance for you and let him/her know about the change in your marital status. There would be no transfer tax or re-assessment due to the change as long as the correct exemption verbiage is put on the deed.
My Father wants to give me a house he owns, if we do a quit claim deed and he puts the wording to ME as a married man as his sole and separate property, does my wife have to sign the deed also. Also how about my sister does she have to be in the loop and or sign off on the transaction also?
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different laws and regulations that we cannot comment on.
If you are married and you are receiving property from another person, your wife will need to sign a separate quitclaim deed so that she acknowledges that she is relinquishing her interest in the property under California’s community property laws. Once she does then you can own the property as a “married man, sole and separate property”. Your sister doesn’t have to sign anything unless she is co-owner of the property with your father.
Hi
My client owed money $110k to his brother in law . My client did sign a deed of trust and his brother in law did not record the deed of trust.
If My clients refinance and cash out .Escrow can pay off his brother in law as long as I agree to and that $110k pay off will be appear in the closing statement from escrow .
What form escrow need to have the party fill out ??
The Lender of the $110,000 (the brother in law) can submit the request for payoff to the escrow officer for payment at the closing of the refinance. The escrow officer will need a formally written demand to payoff as well as the original Note and the original Deed of Trust. Please have the brother in law contact the escrow officer as soon as possible, and provide the information so that the escrow officer can see what else is needed. In addition, the escrow officer will need to alert the new lender that there is another loan to payoff with the cash out funds.
Hi, I purchased a townhouse with my brother in Orange County, CA and would like to quit claim the property to him to exclude my income from a loan modification. We have both since gotten married and I have also changed my name. My questions are:
1. Do I have to do a separate grant deed to change my name and marital status before I do the quit claim, or can I write it somehow on the quit claim? Also, would my brother need to separately fill out a grant deed to change his marital status? It is currently “WW, an unmarried man, and VW an unmarried woman, as joint tenants.” What I would like title to reflect is “WW, a married man, as his sole and separate property.”
2. Am I subject to paying any taxes? What do I put in the “Documentary Transfer Tax” line, or is that something the recorder’s office calculates and fills in?
3. The county requires a Preliminary Change of Ownership form to be filled out, but we don’t seem to fall under the categories listed (they have parent-child, grandparents, etc., but no sibling-sibling). Do I write it somewhere, or (if you are familiar with the form), is there an appropriate section that applies to us?
Thanks for your help!
The Deed from you to your brother and to change the marital status of both should read as follows:
“WW, a married man, who acquired title as an unmarried man, and VW, a married woman, who acquired title as an unmarried woman, hereby grants to WW, a Married Man as his sole and separate property”
On the Documentary Transfer Tax line you would type in “NONE”. Then, under the legal description section you would put down the exemption verbiage as follows – “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and the Grantor received no consideration in return, R&T 11911”.
On the Preliminary change of ownership form you can check “H” on Part 1 of page 1, if you were a co-signer on the loan with your brother. I would also hand write at the bottom of the form a statement that “this is a transfer between siblings and there is no consideration involved.
There are 2 things I need to mention to you:
First of all, as you are both now married, your spouses really need to sign a quitclaim deed to relinquish any interest they have in the property. Also, your brother can put his wife on the title with him as husband and wife, instead of as a “married man as his sole and separate property”. So your Deed can read as follows:
“WW and spouse, husband and wife, who acquired title as WW, an unmarried man; VW and spouse, wife and husband, who acquired title as VW, an unmarried woman, hereby grants to WW and spouse, husband and wife as joint tenants (or WW, a married man as his sole and separate property)”
This way it takes care of pretty much everything.
Secondly, if you were the co-signer with your brother on that loan that he is seeking to modify, you may want to find out from the loan officer if taking your name off the ownership means that you won’t be involved in the loan modification at all. We don’t handle loan modifications so I don’t know what the Lenders’ parameters are with regards to approving a loan mod.
I hope I didn’t confuse you!
Thanks for your quick reply! Sorry, I have some follow-up questions.
So if my brother (WW) wants to keep his wife off title and I (VW) want to cover my bases with deeding it to him and quit claiming my husband off the property, what would the wording be? In other words, what would the vesting be if I just want the property solely in his name and relinquishing the spouses from their interest? I’m guessing it is a combination of the wording between the two that you wrote?
If I use the first vesting you mentioned, “WW, a married man, who acquired title as an unmarried man, and VW, a married woman, who acquired title as an unmarried woman, hereby grants to WW, a Married Man as his sole and separate property,” is it absolutely necessary for the spouses to do quit claim deeds? Or is it only a precautionary protection for my brother and I? Are there any issues if they don’t sign quit claim deeds?
If it is necessary for the spouses to sign quit claim deeds, is there a way to do it in this same recording, or do I need 3 separate deeds (one to quit claim to my brother, one for the wife, and one for the husband)?
Regarding the modification, I was told that quit claiming only excludes my income but does not remove me from the loan. In order to remove me from the loan my brother would have to refinance solely in his name. Would there be any issues in taking me off the loan if he refinanced after I have quit claimed? I know it is backwards!
Thanks for your help!
As a follow up to you second posting on our website,
If your brother wants to keep his wife off of the title then she should be signing a quitclaim deed.
If you and your husband are relinquishing your interest then you would grant out as “VW and husband, wife and husband who acquired title as VW an unmarried woman”.
It is not absolutely necessary right now for the spouses to quitclaim, but in the future, when your brother is selling or refinancing, the chain of title will show that the spouses never quitclaimed, so at that time the escrow company will ask both of your spouses for it. It’s a matter of sooner or later.
As mentioned in my previous e-mail and posting, you can do one deed and take care of everything. The deed would show as follows:
“WW and spouse, husband and wife, who acquired title as WW, an unmarried man; VW and spouse, wife and husband, who acquired title as VW, an unmarried woman, hereby grants to WW and spouse, husband and wife as joint tenants (or WW, a married man as his sole and separate property)”
To remove you from the loan totally does require your brother to refinance the existing loan into a new loan just under his name. He can do that in the future, even if you are no longer an owner of the property.
I hope I answered all your questions.
Hello,
My grandfather has paid off his home in Northern California and would like to do a Grant deed naming me as the sole beneficiary. My grandfather has three adult children who are all married and no longer live with him on the property or in the home and do not own or are named any where on his deed or title. We had begun the process to complete the Grant deed yet were told by the notary that my aunts and uncles had to be notified prior to completing the paperwork and would not notarize the Grant deed until this was done. Due to the expense of a real estate lawyer and no low income programs for the elderly in this area we have not been able to consult with an attorney to confirm that this information is true? What do you advise?
Thank you for your time.
Doing a Grant Deed to name you as sole Beneficiary is not a good way to do asset planning. I understand that you may be limited by the expense of hiring a Probate Attorney to do a Trust for your grandfather, but really, that is the best way to do this and escape probate in the event he passes away.
However, if he does not want to do a Trust and just wants to do a Grant Deed, please note that doing a Grant Deed is changing the ownership of the property. If he is adding you to the Grant Deed as “Joint Tenants” with him then you and he will be co-owners and when he passes away you will get the property automatically without having to go through probate. He does not need to get the authorization of anyone else (I don’t know why the notary public said that unless he knows something that you have not put in your question) but it is always a good practice for family relationships that he discloses to all his children what he is doing so that they don’t contest this in the future when he passes away, leaving you with a problem on your hands fighting claims from other family members.
Again, I sincerely recommend that you get good financial and legal advice before any changes are made. Everyone has different financial and other considerations which a third party may not know of and those should be taken into account before an irrevocable step is made.
I received a deed of reconveyance for a timeshare I owned some years ago. Someone who is not longer at the company did not transfer the conveyance and now the owner would like me to sign the document. What happens is I refuse to sign the document?
We are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
From your question I can’t tell what is the nature of the actual document that they are requesting you to sign. However, a deed of Reconveyance or a deed of ownership are very important documents. You might want to call the settlement company who did the original timeshare sale for you and find out what is this document and how come it did not get signed originally. Before you refuse to sign I strongly recommend that you ascertain why your signature is now necessary and also consult with an attorney. You don’t want your refusal to result in a lawsuit against you.
Trying to sell my property and was told i have a lien on my name. A payoff was ordered to child support , i am current and owe nothing so how long does it take for the payoff report to come back?
I reside in California
With regards to child support liens, your escrow officer will have to contact the District Attorney’s office where the child support is handled and get them to issue a statement that you are current and get a Withdrawal of Lien for your particular property. As to how long it takes, there is an automated voice system that the escrow officer can go through, but they will need your case information or your PIN number for easier access. I would think it might take about a couple of weeks? I am sorry, I don’t know how quick the response time is now. However, you can call (800)615-8858 for this automated voice system and get some further information.
I live in San Francisco and purchased a condo several months ago from my fiance’s family. It was better for me to have the mortgage solely in my name at the time due to our financial situations, but now that we have closed I would like to add her to the deed as joint tenants. Will this trigger a transfer tax due to the fact we are not spouse’s or domestic partners?
Whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept an exemption from transfer tax and re-assessment when you put your fiancé into the ownership would be up to them. You won’t know until you try. So on the Grant Deed you would type in the exemption that “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received no consideration, R&T 11911” and submit it in with the preliminary change of ownership form. You should grant it to yourself and your fiancé as Joint Tenants. Since you will remain as one of the owners, it stands a good chance that they will accept your exemption.
If they do not accept your exemption claim, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can try it and then see what the County Recorder and Tax Assessor say.
what happens when a deed was recorded and the legal
description of the property excepted therefrom all the property in the deed? Is the deed voided ?
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
If I understand your question correctly, the deed listed the legal description of the property then in the next sentence or paragraph, provided an exception, and this exception is the actual legal description. So basically, the property was not granted at all. I don’t know if this is a correct interpretation of what happened. This does not actually “void” the deed, but it does place a “cloud on the title”, meaning the ownership becomes murky. Perhaps the deed was typed incorrectly? The legal description should be compared to the description on the previous deeds to the property to determine is there was an error made. If it was an error then it has to be corrected and the document re-recorded. If it was not an error, then you would probably need to have a Title Company agent or officer look at the document to interpret the legal description.
I hope I interpreted your question correctly and the answers provide you with some guidance!
What documents to I need in Los Angeles County other than a Quickclaim Deed, to add my new wife’s name on to my property deed.
THANKS
To add your wife’s name to the property you can use a Grant Deed (instead of a Quitclaim Deed) and you will need to attach a Preliminary Change of Ownership form. You can find both of these forms on our website link as follows:
On the Grant Deed, please be sure you type in, under the legal description and property address, the following transfer tax exemption clause, so that you won’t be charged a transfer tax and your property won’t be re-assessed: “This is a bonafide gift, addition of a spouse, and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911”.
On the Preliminary Change of Ownership form you would check Box A in Part 1, cross out Part 2, 3, 4 on page 2, and sign on the Certification at the bottom of page 2.
The documents need to be sent to the Los Angeles County Recorder for recording after they are duly signed and notarized.
Hello,
I changed my name and then created a revocable living trust. Do I have to Quitclaim my property to me using my new legal name then do another Quitclaim to me as trustee of the living trust or is one Quitclaim enough?
As we are a settlement company in California, my answer below is predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on and you might need to ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
Your question is whether you need 2 deeds, one to change your name and one to put the property in a living trust. That is a good question and the answer is no, not really. This is what a simplified sample of your deed would like, combining your old name, your new name and granting it to your new Trust:
“Jane Smith, an unmarried woman who acquired title as Jane Doe, an unmarried woman” hereby grants to “Jane Smith, Trustee of the Jane Smith Living Trust”. You would sign in your new name as “Jane Smith”, and hopefully you have proper identification to reflect your new name.
Please note that you will need to designate the vesting behind your name ( “an unmarried woman” in the sample”). In addition, if there were other people who owned the property with you, then you will also need to reflect them as the Grantors granting out together with you.
Hope this answers your question and did not confuse you unduly.
My mom has lived in a condo in California for 10-12 years now. My mom lives between her 2 homes in California and Illiinois, but has not been back to California in about 2 years. She has not paid on her condo for over a year and a half. She took a reverse mortgage out on her house in Illinois to help pay for her mortgage in California. She called and sent letters to her lending company (Wells Fargo) to find out who or where to make payments to (I guess they may have changed names, per my mom) but according to my mom, they told her not to make any payments. I believe that was in Jan 2012. My mom has been told by Ed Forrester (ENL Investments / San-Diego Home Sles) that her house is in forclosure. He told her he ould help her out, so she signed an authrization of release, not truly understanding that she should give this guy her social. Over these months, my mom has called Wells and they said her property is not in foreclosure because my mom is in bankruptcy. This is not true. This is what concerns me…in May 2012, while my mom was not in California, she apparently signed a grant deed to a man she does not know. It is notarized with my moms signature, but not this mans signature only his is typed out. She states she wouldnever signa document like this. And because this guy is the one who filed bankrupcy so if she was able to sell, he would get half. Plese advise. Something doesn’t add up here.
Thank you. Megan
We are an escrow company and we handle the sale and purchase of real estate. Having been in this business for many, many years and having seen a lot of strange stuff, particularly since the mortgage meltdown in 2007, it sounds like you have a case of fraud! I think you need to first research out this ED Forrester and his company to determine what is their involvement in this. If there was a deed signed and notarized in May 2012 when she was not here, then someone drew up this deed, signed it and got a notary to perpetuate this fraud. Before you do anything, be sure you have a copy of this May 2012 grant deed to confirm that it was not her signature. You should also review documents that she did sign with this ED Forrester and copies of anything else that was recorded on the property, like the notice of default, notice of sale, etc. If the Lender says they got notification she was in bankruptcy then you need to ask them for the notice that they received regarding a filing of bankruptcy.
I suggest that you put your Lender on notice that there may have been fraud committed and then file a police report in the jurisdiction where the property is located. You might also call the police department and find out which district attorney’s office has jurisdiction where you can file a case of fraud. You may want to get legal advice from a good real estate attorney in this area.
Fraud is very much a specter in the mortgage/real estate industry and the fact that she does not live in her California home full time makes it much easier to perpetuate.
Again, I recommend that you get all the facts and proof together, call your Lender to put them on notice and call the local police department to see what they can recommend about taking it to the District Attorney’s office. Getting everything straightened out will take time and effort! You may need the services of a good real estate attorney in the area where the property is located.
My son and I reside in the my house in which I hold title to in Santa Clara County. My living trust that states that the house will go to my son upon my death. The house is mortgaged under my name only and he would like to assume financial responsibility asap. We have applied for a Non-Qualifying Assumption to add his name to the loan and the mortgage company is requesting a copy of a recorded deed reflecting title to the subject property in all parties names. The Assessors Office said that we would need to record a new deed with both our names and how we plan to hold title (we want joint tenants). To avoid a property tax assessment, we also need to cite the appropriate Prop. 58 language for the change in ownership. What code/language do we use? Also, will changing my current grant deed in which I only hold title affect my living trust? Thank you.
Here is the issue: A property can be owned by 2 individuals as “joint tenants”, but if it is a Trust and an individual, you can’t own it as “joint tenants”; you would have to own it as “tenants in common” with each entity having a certain percentage interest. The reason is that the Trust is an ongoing entity with no “expiration date” so there would be no “rights of survivorship” which is inherent under a joint tenancy ownership.
In a “tenants in common” situation the interest does not automatically go to the other entity if one party passes away. The individual entity would need to leave a will stating who inherits the ownership when the person passes away.
So your question as to taking title with you in the Trust and your son as an individual, both as “joint tenants” is not workable. This deserves your serious consideration and you should talk to an attorney about that.
In one scenario the Deed is drawn from your Trust as the Grantor to yourself and your son, as joint tenants as the Grantees. This means you would be taking it out of the Trust and putting it into your own names as individuals and then you can own it as “joint tenants”.
Or the Deed can be drawn from your Trust as the Grantor, granting it to “your Trust as to an undivided ___% interest and ___________, a Single Man, as to an undivided _______% interest, as tenants in common”. The part of it would stay under your Trust and the rest goes to your son. But it something happens to your son, there is no rights of survivorship in which your son’s portion automatically goes to your Trust without going through Probate.
The language to put on the Deed to avoid property tax re-assessment and payment of transfer tax is the same, as follows: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between parent and child, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911.” In a “Tenants in Common” situation the County Recorder and the Tax Collector MAY NOT approve the exemption from re-assessment because you have designated a particular undivided interest to be transferred.
Again, consult with your tax and financial counsel before you make the decision as to which way to go!
Hello,
I bought a home in 2006, worth 163K. I purchased it by myself, so at this point is is just me on the title. I have paid about 30K into the principal, so far and at this point I only owe 130K. I would like to refinance the home with my boyfriend and I was hoping that through the refinance we would both be on the mortgage and the title, so we would own it together. He is putting into the new loan the same amount of money, that I have paid so far. We are concerned that we would be liable for gift tax. Would we need to pay gift tax after the refinance?
Anytime you are adding/transferring/selling property or a part of it, there is always the possibility of “gift tax” or some sort of income tax. You will need to talk to your CPA about this. After all, you have declared taxes on it solely under your name for a while, and now you have granted 50% of it to someone else and he is putting money into this, you will have to account for this in your income tax return to be filed in the next year!
We are not allowed to give legal or financial advice so before you do anything, talk it over with a CPA to make sure you won’t get hit with taxes at the end of the year!
THIrtY years ago i ave my sister the money to buy ten acres . SHE told me i acre would automatically be mines so all through the years i have asked her for my acre and she will not even talk to me now. CAN i put a lien on the property?
Let me first qualify my answer to your question by stating that we are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
Your question is if you can put a lien the property because your sister did not give you one acre of land. You can put a judgment against her, but that means you have to first get an attorney and file a lawsuit against her. If you win the lawsuit you can put file a judgment against her and it would attach to anything she owns. You will need to get legal counsel on your question. Please do talk to an attorney!
I am in Oklahoma and widowed. My house is solely in my name. We have a Transfer on Death Deed I am considering leaving to my three adult children at my death. Should I just insert their names or should I put in words “Joint Tenants”?
We are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states like Oklahoma have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. Please contact a closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state for answers to your questions.
We live in California and have recently married – will I have to pay taxes if I have my wife’s name added to to the titles of the two houses I own, one in Sausalito and the other in Monrovia?
To add your spouse to your properties will not trigger the transfer tax nor re-assessment. Be sure you put the following verbiage on the Grant Deed – “This is a bonafide gift, addition of a spouse, and the Grantor received no consideration in return, R&T 11911”.
On the preliminary change of ownership form, check (A) in Part 1 on Page 1.
Hi im paying property taxes on a lot in san diego county. The property is in my sister’s name. I paid the mortgage interest and property tax. I want to claim this expense on my tax return. What can we do to legally allow me to claim this tax benefit without purchasing the property? Thanks
With regards to your question on how to claim tax benefits from payments made on a property which is not under your name, I am afraid I can’t answer the question! You would be best served by asking this question of your CPA or financial advisor. We are settlement agents and only handle the process of sale/purchase of properties and are not allowed to answer questions that may legal or financial consequences.
I am sorry we are unable to help!
Los Angeles County: Inherited property
Father-in-Law passed away without a will, but owned his home free and clear and had Prop 13 Tax rates.
We just finished probate and have a court order that distributes the estate in equal shares between my wife and brother-in-law.
“Property: 100% interest as tenants in common.”
Thus, we first need to transfer Title from my Father-in-law to my wife and brother-in-law.
In order to buy out my brother-in-law’s interest, I need the him to quit claim his deed over to me, so my wife and I can refinance the home and pull money out of the equity.
How can we do this correctly the first time to try to retain the Original Parent/Child Tax Reassessment exclusion?
After reading through many other posts/responses:
Could we have my brother-in-law quit claim his deed over to my wife and then as the sole owner- my wife could quit claim the deed from her as a married woman to her and myself wife and husband as joint tenants with rights of survivorship?
By ensuring to add the Exemption Clause – “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between wife and husband, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911.”
Wouldn’t this be exempt from transfer tax and re-assessment of property tax?
Would that route keep the Prop 13 Tax rates in place?
Hello, I didn’t realize you had left another question before I answered your first one.
To reiterate what you said in this second question, your brother in law would first transfer his share to his sister (your wife) as a bonafide gift – “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and the Grantor received no consideration, R&T 11911”.
Then your wife would transfer to herself and you as husband and wife -“This conveyance establishes community property interest and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911”
I think this should work, but again, let me emphasize that the exemption property tax re-assessment by the County Assessor’s office and the acceptance by the County Recorder of your exemption from payment of transfer tax on the deed are both subject to these governing bodies’ review. If they need more proof from you for your claim, they will contact you. It is not automatic just because the exemption was written in.
Hope this helps!
If we will ultimately refi the house and payout my brother-in-laws interest, is it applicable to use bonafide gift?
The dollar amount out of the equity and the date of payment are unknown until the appraisal and refinance are completed.
Based on your question, if you are paying your brother in law for his interest in your refinance, then the bonafide gift exemption won’t work, because you are actually paying him. You would need to do a general calculation of the equity amount if you don’t have the appraisal completed yet.
Hope this helps!
The parent to child exclusion works only when it is a transfer from parent to child. Your transfer from your brother in law to you for refinance will not qualify.
The only thing that I recommend is that you contact the County Tax Assessor’s office directly and ask them if this will work since your is a rather uncommon case. Here are a few numbers to the Assessor’s office that you might call – #(626) 258-6001, #(626) 962-6651, #(626) 350-4695. They are very helpful. Calling them directly would be my best answer to your question!
Hi Juliana,
Just wanted to let you know I read your book in one sitting and I really enjoyed it. It was simple to read and understand. You gave alot of great information. I mentioned it to my cousin and she went ahead and got herself a copy of the book.
I even have my dad reading it.
Thank you for puting this information into book form.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Fritz
Thank you so much for not only reading my book, recommending it and giving me back a response! It is very much appreciated.
My goal this year is to educate the general public regarding our escrow process, so that the consumers feel more in control when going into a transaction.
My half brother took over 40 acres of land on quick claim deed and on the quick claim deed it says only sell to siblings but now he signed it over to a none sibling .He signed his rights away can I now get a deed to the land since he signed his interest away. The first of the estate was Elick Tate then Loyed Tate signed quick claim on the land .The land was never to sold or bargain out of the siblings. The land lays in Newton County Arkansas .
We are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. You should ask your question to closing professionals and probably a closing attorneys or real estate attorney in your state.
my husband and I live in tennessee and have been married for 35 years. we own 11 acres of land that we purchased from his mother and when he had the deed made he did not put my name on it. My question is,if anything happens to my husband (he has 3 grown children) will the property go to me ?
I am so sorry, but I can’t answer your question! We are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. As you are in Tennessee you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
My apologies!
Hi, a few years ago, I leant my girlfriend money to buy her house. Since then I have leant her money for various things. We are now very serious in our relationship and she wants to add me to the title in joint tenants. Will we or I have to pay documentary transfer tax.
Thanks, Ted
You can do a deed from your girlfriend to herself and you as Joint Tenants and use the transfer tax exemption – “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911″. Since she will remain on the ownership, the County Recorder should accept this, and there will be no transfer tax to be paid nor will there be a re-assessment of property taxes.
We assumed the loan when we purchased our home. Mortgage is paid off, what is the procedure for securing the Title.
My answer below is predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different procedures that we cannot comment on
After you payoff the loan you should contact the Loan Servicing Department of your Lender and ask them who to talk to about getting a “Reconveyance” (lien release) for the loan. Every bank handles it slightly differently, but the normally within one month after payoff they will send this Reconveyance directly to the County Recorder for recordation. This will then eliminate this lien from your property. If they send this document to you directly without recording it, then you must do it yourself by contacting the County Recorder’s office where the property is located and send it in for recordation. Remember, the Reconveyance MUST be recorded (made of public record) so that there is no question in the future that the loan was paid off.
My wife is purchasing a home in CA. I’m not on the loan.
The escrow company is telling me:
“Due to the fact that you are married and not going on title with your wife, the state of california is a community interest state, therefore you must relinquish your rights by execution of interspousal deed.”
Why is this required?
Thanks!
Scott
As your escrow company stated, California is a community property state, so if she wants to own property under her own name, as a Married Woman as her Sole and Separate Property, then the spouse has to relinquish his interest. If he does not, then it would not be her sole and separate property and the spouse can go back and claim interest and invalidate the title insurance. In addition, any involuntary liens the spouse may have will automatically attach to her property, putting her new mortgage in jeopardy.
A deed was transferred over to me from my mother but it was not done through a title company or through escrow. In order for me to sell it now I am being told that I have to have my mother sign an affidavit because it is not “insured” or “backed” by a title company. Is this correct? It was been recorded with the assessors office and I currently show as the owner on the deed.
With respect to your question regarding having your mother sign an Affidavit of Uninsured Deed, yes, when a deed is done and property transferred without benefit of Title Insurance, she will need to sign an Affidavit when the property does go through sale or refinance. There has been so much real estate fraud in the years gone by that the Title Companies are requiring this Affidavit to be signed in order to ascertain that the original deed was signed by the Grantor of their own free will, before they will consider issuing title insurance.
my husband and i signed the deed to our house, but he was not present when i notarised it, is it still velid am in new york city
Let me first qualify my answer to your question by stating that we are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
I am sure that notarization of paperwork in New York is the same as in California. The person must sign the paperwork in the presence of the Notary Public who is doing the notarization. You and your husband may have signed it at different times with different notaries, but this does not invalidate the signatures. He does not have to be present when you sign the document in front of a notary public.
Nevertheless, I recommend that you contact a closing attorney in your state to get your questions competently answered!
I am sorry we could not help you further.
My grandmother passed away in 1985, family was told by another family member that my grandmother lost her home, in 2011, this same family member who stated to all other family and hiers, that my grandmother lost her home. He stated that he sold my grandmothers home so that the remaining hiers would not get the home. I went and searched property records, and there I fonnd a quit claim deed to a person my grandmother never knew, and its not my grandmothers authenic signature. My grandmother died of cancer, and was very ill. She could and would have never sold or given her home away. Is there anything I can do about it after so many years now. We never knew that this had happenend.
I was a little confused by your question. If your grandmother passed away in 1985, how could she have lost her home in 2011? And if she lost her home in 2011, how come there was a quitclaim deed in which she purportedly gave the property to someone else?
My recommendation is that if you think there is fraud involved, please contact a real estate attorney right away. There are certain statutes of limitations, which means that lawsuits can be filed within a certain period of time after the fraud was discovered. I don’t know if you have exceeded this time period or not.
Other than the above recommendation I am sorry that we can not give you any other advice, as we are not real estate attorneys. Please do consult with one!
Hi
Me and my brother prepared a deed on a property that we both own but title is on his name only. New Deed transfers the title from his name to both of our names as joint tenants. Does it need to be recorded to be valid? we dont want to record right now since property values are on upswing and dont want to get reaccesed and raise property taxes.
we just want to have that document for our records. Does deed ever expire?
Your response will be greatly appreciated.
Paul
Paul
In response to your other question left on our website, the deed does not need to be recorded to be valid. However, not recording it means that your ownership is not made of public record and what if (1) the deed is lost, or (2) something happens to him, then you might have the burden of proof to his estate to show that you have ownership in this property. I understand that you have concerns regarding recording the deed at this time, but I think the pros far outweigh the cons. The agreement between your brother and you should be affirmed and made final for the record with the recordation of the deed.
Hi
My brother (david) and I bought the property in Sacramento California about 2 years ago. The title is on his(David’s) name only and there is no mortgage. when he purchased the property, it was shortsale transaction and shortsale was approved on his name since he was the one who first put in an offer for that property. I paid half of the purchase price. Now we want to add my name on title or deed. What is the best way so that we can avoid property tax reassesment, transfer taxes and any gift taxes(if any).
I contacted a esrow company and the escrow officer prepared a Grant Deed with following wording: This is a conveyance by reason of inter vivos gift or by reason of death of a person, that is outright to, or in trust
for the benefit of, a person or entity and is EXEMPT from the imposition of the Documentary Transfer Tax
pursuant to § 11911 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. David hereby grants David and Paul as tenants in common.
Is above clause correct?
My understanding is to avoid reassesment of property taxes we go as Joint tenants not as tenants in common. Also on preliminary change of ownership report what applies to us on Part 1 , Part 2 a.(can we go back to original purchase date?) and Part 2 b (What type of transfer – escrow co checked purchase).
Thank You
The transfer tax exemption clause I normally use is a little simpler than what the escrow officer you went to recommended. I use the following: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911″. As to the question regarding avoidance of reassessment, it is possible that granting it to you and your brother as Joint Tenants is better than tenants in common, in which each person has a designated percentage share of the property.
On the preliminary change of ownership form, you can handwrite at the bottom, after Part 1 “N”, a statement that “This is a conveyance to add a brother and there is not consideration involved”. On Page 2, I would mark “Gift” for the type of transfer and leave Part 3 blank, sign under the Certification portion at the bottom of the page.
Please note that the exemption from property tax re-assessment by the County Assessor’s office and the acceptance by the County Recorder of your exemption on the deed are both subject to these governing bodies’ review. If they need more proof from you for your claim, they will contact you. Or if you see that the property is being re-assessed, you may petition them to re-consider. It is not automatic just because the exemption was written in. The government agencies have the right to review each exemption request case.
Hi
I refinance the house mortgage 2011 by Viva escrow.
Both me and my husband names are on the deed.
Now we are divorcing and I am getting the house.
He lives in Taiwan so can you guys help me with the proper form for him to sign so his name would be off the deed?
I understand it also has to be notarized in AIT in Taipei then I can record it here right?
Hello and thank you for leaving a question on our website.
At this time we are not allowed to prepare accomodation deeds because of the liability involved. We carry Errors and Omission insurance and the insurance carrier does not insure our work unless a real escrow transaction is opened. Our governing agencies also frown on this practice.
If you need help with the preparation of the necessary documents, I can recommend either The Document Center – #(818)541-0901 or RecordMyDocs.com at #(714)482-2077. Explain what you need and they can help you, Once the document is prepared you can send it to Taiwan to be signed in the presence of a notary public at the AIT.
I am sorry we are unable to help you prepare the Deed for your ex-husband to sign. Please do give The Document Center or RecordMyDocs a call.
Have a good weekend!
I am a foriegn national purchasing a home in San Francisco. My intention is to transfer title to the home to my girlfriend (also a foriegn national). My purchase agreement states under buyer, ‘and/or assigns’. My question is at what point should I effect the transfer of either my rights under the contract or the property itself to avoid both expense and legal complications. Would the transfer title be subject to transfer tax?
From your question it looks like you have not finalized the purchase of the property yet. If this is correct, you need to alert your real estate agent as well as the escrow officer handling your transaction that you are substituting your girlfriend into the contract immediately so that the transaction closes with the correct name of the Buyer.There is no transfer tax that you have to pay when you substitute in your girlfriend on the contract, but you do need to get the Seller’s approval. I suggest that you talk to your real estate agent and your escrow officer right away.
Hello,
My sister and her partner helped me purchase a house, with my money for the down payment, because I could not qualify. She wants to add my name to the deed so that I can qualify for some repair assistance. Will there be a transfer tax?
Thank you,
Victoria
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on
Your sister and her partner can add your name on the property ownership by doing a deed from themselves to themselves and you. The clause you would use to qualify for transfer tax exemption would be “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911″.
However, it is up to the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor agencies to accept this exemption and allow there to be no transfer tax charged or property tax re-assessment. It is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can put this on the deed and see if the County Recorder and Tax Assessor decline your exemption.
My husband and I put a manufactured home on our daughter’s land. She has a home at one end of the 6 acres and we have ours at the other end. Our house is totally paid for, so we have no mortgage. We now want to move to another state and she wants to buy our house. What type of loan should she get?
I am sorry, we are an escrow company in California and we do transactions involving the sale of real property. Your question regarding what type of a loan your daughter should get to purchase your manufactured home would need to be asked of a loan officer. There are many types of loans out there but it does require a qualified loan officer to answer your questions.
I am sorry we are unable to help!
Hi
My ex husband deeded our property to me. The mortgage loan was still in his name. I was the owner of record, but no notice was given to me, in my name, and they foreclosed the property. Looking at the chain of title, i see they foreclosed as his sole and seperate property, but he didn’t own that property, I did. Even the tax bill was in my name. The lender wouldn’t even speak to me about it. Even after having written permission from my ex on file. Why didn’t they contact me as owner on record?
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
In California a foreclosing lending institution must give due notice to the owner of the property, by mail as well as by tacking a copy of the notice of pending foreclosure on the property itself. The foreclosing lender should have talked to you. If you feel the property has been foreclosed on incorrectly, without due notice being given to you, please contact a real estate attorney right away and see if he can help you. There have been many cases of incorrect foreclosures and if you have a case, then a real estate attorney can help you look into this matter.
When I bought my home 3 years ago, I was separated but not divorced from my first husband, so my grant deed reads “Kay Smith, a married woman as her sole and separate property”. I recently remarried; I need to change my name and add my husband’s name to the grant deed – how do I do that? I live in San Bernardino County.
Thank you!
In order to add your present husband to your property ownership you would do a deed from your present name, who acquired title as (your previous name) as a married woman to yourself (your new name) and your present husband, wife and husband as community property with rights of survivorship (or as joint tenants). So it would look like this: “Jane Doe, a married woman, who acquired title as Jane Smith, a married woman”, hereby grants to “Jane Doe and John Doe, wife and husband as joint tenants (or community property)”.
If you need help with the preparation of the necessary documents, I can recommend either The Document Center – #(818)541-0901 or RecordMyDocs.com at #(714)482-2077. Explain what you need and they can help you,
I am married and only i qualify for the loan. original deed my name, a married woman as her sole and separate property
New Grant Deed: Grants to my name and husbands name wife and husband as joint tenants with right of survivorship.
Grant Deed does state “for a valuable consideration of zero ($0.00), receipt of which is hereby acknowledged”.
The preliminary change of owership report was completed and on page two other transfer information box Gift was checked.
My question will I be assessed or charged gift or new tax?
Thank you
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
Your deed from yourself as a married woman to you and your husband wife and husband as joint tenants can be exempt from transfer tax and re-assessment of property tax. Please be sure you put the Exemption Clause – “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between wife and husband, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911″.”
Please mark the appropriate box on Part 1 #A on Page 1 of the preliminary change of ownership form.
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
Your deed from yourself as a married woman to you and your husband wife and husband as joint tenants can be exempt from transfer tax and re-assessment of property tax. Please be sure you put the Exemption Clause – “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between wife and husband, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911″.”
Please mark the appropriate box on Part 1 #A on Page 1 of the preliminary change of ownership form.
I am in the process of a quick deed transfer between my parents and I. From reading through your websites Q&A, The language I should use is “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between parents and children, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911.” However I bought a Quick Deed Form online and I am not clear as to exactly where this language should be placed. The form is locked in many places and does not allow much editing. Please advise.
Regards,
Anad
Hello, thank you for visiting our Viva Escrow website and leaving a question.
First, let me state that the transfer tax exemption is used in the State of California. If you are from another state, then this will not apply.
The transfer tax exemption clause: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between parents and children and ther is no consideration involved, R&T 11911″ is the correct one to use. This clause is usually inserted after the legal description on the middle of the form, before the signature lines. Some forms may not have enough space for editing. I suggest that your print the form and manually type it in. We also have forms available on our website. Here is the link to our forms site: . By the way, the form is a Quitclaim Deed.
Have a good day!
In California, is the name of the trustee required when transferring property into a trust. That is, can the name of the trust ONLY be listed as the grantee (i.e., “…hereby grants to Acme Living Trust udt 1/1/13″)? It was always my understanding that the name of the trustee was REQUIRED for recording (i.e., “…hereby grants to John Smith, Trustee of Acme Living Trust udt 1/1/13″)? Thanks. Nan
You are correct. The name of the Trustee should be placed in front of the name of the Trust when property is being granted to a Trust. The reason for that is simple: The Trust by itself cannot act; it requires the person who manages the Trust to sign for it and to act. Therefore, as the Trustee is that managing person, his name should appear on the vesting just like how you stated. Unfortunately, too many people don’t realize that so it’s common to find that the name of the Trustee was forgotten when the deed was prepared.
Two years prior to my marriage my husband purchased a vacation property in Big Bear Lake with his mother and sister as Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship. We have been married eight years and they are refinancing the property. I am being asked to sign a Quitclaim Deed and I’m not sure I want to. I understand that when one person passes the property then belongs to the two other joint tenants. But what if I don’t sign the quitclaim deed? would I have a right to the property if my husband were to pass? Divorce is not a factor as I signed a pre-nup stating I wouldn’t claim the cabin in case we were to divorce. Thank you for your help!
Linda
In order for the refinance to go through under your husband, sister and mother in law’s name, all the spouses who aren’t on title have to quitclaim their community property interest. If they own the property under joint tenancy then if he passes, his share does go directly to them. Given that the property was purchased before you were married and you did sign a pre-nup, it would seem that signing that Quitclaim Deed would not change the status of whatever interest you might have in the property, but I am not an attorney and this is not legal advice. No matter what you hear or read you shouldn’t sign such a document until you consult with an attorney who would has your best interests at heart.
Hello Ms Tu,
My partner and I are buying a house in the Bay Area (Alameda County.) We are using a program for first-time home buyers. We want to keep our names out of the public record. We want to use an alias on the Deed of Trust, is that possible & how can it be done?
Thank you.
You can’t keep your names out of the public record. Using an alias on the Deed or the Deed of Trust would invalidate it. The Deed has to be granted to a real person, not a fictitious one. In the future, when you are going to sell the property and grant it out, your name and signature has to be notarized. You can’t sign and show a government identification with an alias name.
On a Deed of Trust the Lender would approve the loan based on the person (or corporate entity) and their credit record and loan application, they won’t take a fictitious person or fictitious entity so an “alias” definitely won’t work.
Hello,
I read alot of questions and answers… I am still at a loss. I just need a simple answer and steps on how to accomplish it. I live in Orange County, Ca. I own my house which I bought for $340,000 in 1999. I would like to add my daugher to the title as a joint tenant.
Thank you.
Anna
You can do your own deed and preliminary change of ownership form, but I recommend that you use a third party to prepare the necessary documents. There is a cost, but you would not need to worry whether the documents were done correctly or not. You can contact The Document Center – #(818)541-0901 or RecordMyDocs.com at #(714)482-2077. Explain what you need and they can help you.
My dad wants to add me as a grantor on a piece of property. When he passes, does my stepmom own 50%. We are in California.
I don’t know how the property ownership shows right now, but let’s say your father owns the property under his name only. After he adds your name on then you would own it jointly with your father. However, because he is married, when he passes away, your step mother may claim part of his ownership under California community property laws. I always recommend that some sort of estate planning is made when there are real property assets involved, especially if there is a mixed family. There are many good estate planning attorneys out there who can give you good legal counsel.
I have a commercial mortgage; the name in the deed of trust does not match the payor in the Note. On the Note the name of the individual and the name of the business entity both were signed on the other hand in the D/T it was only in the name of the individual.
Questoin:
Does this mean I have a defective Note and Deed of Trust?
What is the legal implication and consequence of the Creditor in these scenario?
Let me first qualify my answer to your question by stating that we are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are for handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.Differe
The Deed of Trust secures the collateral on the property and reflects the name of the owner, which in your case, should be you as an individual. The Note is the “promise to pay” and sets out the terms of repayment. The Lender has your individual name on it which is necessary, but they added your business entity (which is probably the entity that operates in the commercial property?) as additional Payor to ensure repayment of the loan be the business entity also. This difference between the Note and Deed of Trust does not invalidate the loan.
I am unable to answer your question as to the legal implications for the Creditor/Lender as I am not an attorney. You will need to ask an attorney well versed in real estate law to answer that particular question.
Hello,
I live in Orange County. Our family ‘s property deed currently have my brother and sister’ names. We want to add my name (in addition to their names) on the deed, will this cause the property to be reassessed? Also, if we decide to remove just my brother, but still keep my sister, and then add my name to the deed, will this cause the property to be reassessed as well? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!
The County Tax Assessor has the right to re-assess the value of the property every time the ownership is transferred. However, if this is a transfer as a “gift” between siblings, whether putting on, taking off, or both, then you need to put the correct exemption verbiage on the Deed, stating that: “This conveyance is a bonafide gift and the grantor received no consideration in return, R&T 11911”. Submit it with the preliminary change of ownership form and write the same phrase on the bottom of page one, part 1, cross out part 2, 3, 4 on page 2 and sign.
It is up to the Assessor’s office to determine if the transfers will be excluded from re-assessment. If they do re-assess, you may have to petition them and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify.
You won’t actually know until you do the deeds and record them.
A friend is listed on the deed to his parents house. The mortgage is in his parents name and he is not listed on the mortgage. Can his parents take his name off the deed, by filling out a quit claim deed, and than put him back on the deed at a later date without any repercussions?
My answers below are predicated on the assumption that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations that we cannot comment on.
If your friend owns the property together with his parents, then a quitclaim deed can be used to take his name out. Your friend will need to sign this deed to relinquish his interest in the property.
In the future, the parents can add him back on again by using another Quitclaim Deed of Grant Deed.
There can always be repercussions. Any transfer of ownership can trigger the payment of documentary transfer tax by the County Tax Recorder and the re-assessment of property value by the County Tax Assessor’s office. Your friends need to make sure they claim the exemptions on both of the documents that they submit for the change – the Quitclaim Deed and the Preliminary Change of Ownership form.
In addition, all parties have to get their own legal and financial counsel to make sure there is no gift tax due and that there are no other legal issues to this transfer.
My step mother is putting me on a GRANT DEED with her name. My dad has passed 12 years ago. I live in South Carolina the land is in California . She has taking a note for all the money the house is worth $334,000. My step mother is from Japan ,she is leaving to go back to japan in two weeks to take care of her business for 4 months. I am the only child, my step mom has a niece who she is leaving everything to in Japan. She is 80 years old do you think she is trying to keep me from pro-testing the will by leaving me this big bill that I can not pay for. What should I do.Need help fast she has a lawyer who has to no something today where to add me and my husband name to it .
Thanks Kim
The only thing I can comment on is that if your stepmother puts you on the Grant Deed with her name then you would own part of that property and would be responsible for any debts on it together with her. You need to decide what the value of this property in California would be and whether it is worth being an owner of it. You said something about “she has taking a note for all the money the house is worth $334,000”. I am not sure what you mean by that.
As to the other question you have about your step mother leaving the rest of her assets to her niece that is not something I can answer.
If you have concerns about whether you are getting your fair share of your step mother’s assets, you need to contact an attorney and get your own legal counsel. I am afraid I am not able to help you with that!
Last year my mother sold her CA home which she had bought back in 1984. She cannot locate the old 1984 purchase documents to find out the price she paid for it, which she needs for tax purposes now. I have been trying to find something which would have that, but the closest I was able to get was I found a copy of the deed which has a transfer tax on it, and I could figure the price at $1.10 per thousand rule. However, on the deed where it gives the transfer tax there are two boxes: “Full Value” and “Equity”, and “Equity” is checked. When I calculate using the $1.10 rule it comes to less than what my mom remembers buying it for. Do you have any advise or suggestions on where we can get the actual price she paid for it back in 1984? The house was in Saratoga. Thanks for whatever help you can give.
The only way the general public would be able to figure out how much a property was sold for is by looking at the value stated on the Transfer Tax section of the Deed, like you did. Unfortunately, if they checked “full value less liens”, which means “equity”, that means she must have assumed the previous loan and therefore the tax calculation would only be on the equity amount that she purchased.
I am sorry to say that there is no other way to check the purchase value! The tax roll certainly won’t have it; it only has the County assessed value and that is normally not the purchase value. And besides, now that she sold it, the new value would appear, thereby wiping out the old value. Could she possibly have declared it somewhere on her income tax in the year she purchased it?
I am sorry, it seems there isn’t much that I can do to help, but if you want to give me the address of the property, I can see if I can find some other information that might give some more insight.
In 2008 I bought a home, BOA owns the note and my boyfriend
At the time was a real estate agent, just me as sole buyer on the
Deed/note. Well in 2010 we go out separate ways, we weren’t married
No children not common law nothing, but he still being in real estate
Wanted to rent out the house so he said, ” sign this document so I
Can rent out/sell the house or else I will do something to your new
Boyfriend and you”…I didn’t want any trouble I figured he would get
Renters make some money and sell the house like he said he would.
Well now I’m married, my husband keeps asking about this house I have
And sure enough BOA sends me a note of late payment for dec 2012
And jan 2012. My ex didn’t pay the note, he doesn’t respond to me and
Only just recently stated “I called the bank I’m selling the house”.. I can’t
Let this go into foreclosure and hit my credit, Boa only sees me on the note but
Come to find out title co showed me the paper he had me sign in 2010
Is a quitclaim/deed he prepared that gives him deed property ownership and
I never knew what it was?? I just want to sell this house but my real estate agent
Says she can’t as the county shows the ex as the owner, so my husband and I
Visited the property and there are renters there! He’s not even trying to sell it like
He said, needless to say I’m getting a lawyer but what right does the ex have and
I’m stuck financially..I’m just trying to find a way to sell it, what legal action is needed??
I am sorry to say that from what you have written, there are 2 things that went wrong. First of all, when you first purchased the property in 2008 you were the only person on the Deed and the loan, then the property was fully yours and that is a great position to be in. You should have looked into the document that you signed in 2010 before executing it because it has financial consequences for you. Secondly, once you executed that Quitclaim Deed in 2010 you relinquished all the interest you have in the property, BUT because you did not ask him to refinance and take you off the Bank of America loan at the same time, you ended up owing on the debt and having no claim on the asset securing this debt. This is a pretty bad situation to be in now.
If your ex-boyfriend does not sell the home and does not pay the mortgage, you will be stuck with the bad credit and a foreclosure mark against you. He can continue to collect on the rent until the foreclosure is complete, or, if he actually sells the property, who is to say he will give you any part of the proceeds? The real estate agent is correct. You don’t own the property anymore so you can’t collect on the rent and you can’t sell it.
I don’t have any advice that I can give you, except to talk to an attorney and see if he can see a way through this. Good luck!
Hello,
I’m glad you have a website where we can ask important estate questions. My question relates to a POA I have for my father who is 92 years old and is presently at a nursing facility due to a recent fall which broke his hip and required a operation.
He also had a mental assessment in this facility while going from a rehabiltative patient to know being switched over to a long term patient. He was evaluated by a psychology doctor to be mentality imcompetent.
Back in 2010 he had also fallen and sustained minor scrapes and bruises which landed him in the ER at the hospital. I live in Florida and at that time I recieved a call from a social worker who informed me of the incident and mentioned he felt my father seemed to not be mentally stable. The social worker stated that he should not be living alone any longer. He wanted to admit him to nursing facility at that time and I told him no, that I would fly into town and pick my dad up from the hospital.
When I went to get my dad at the hospital I did notice he was “not all there” and was worried about his care and future decisions I would have to make on his behalf. So after cleaning up his home and setting him up with meals on wheels for food assistant I also felt it was necessary to get a POA drafted.
So now I have decided to put his home up for sale before something happens to it unattended or Medi-Cal comes after it for “recovery” for all the anticipated medical bills which will accumalate from being a long term care patient at this nursing facility.
Can you help me with my situatation ?
Sincerely,
Luis Mir
Hello and thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
You said that a Power of Attorney was drafted. I think that if this Power of Attorney was drafted correctly (hopefully by an attorney), it should give you the ability to sign for your father for his medical care as well as to sell his property to pay for his living expenses. Hopefully this POA has also been recorded and made of public record.
I beleive that the first thing you need to do is get an experienced escrow officer a copy of the POA to see if there would be any problems using it. Since the POA is dated from 2010, it probably can still be used, particularly in conjunction with a Doctor’s letter stating as to the competency of your father.
My suggestion is to contact an escrow officer first and get them to look at it. If everything looks good, you can list the property for sale. If not, you may need to contact an attorney to see what is the next step to getting some sort of conservatorship to handle your father’s affairs.
I hope I have been able to give you some answers that you can start the process with!
My father divorced my mother four years ago.In the divorce papers it states my mother has survivor rights. He paid her for her part of the place and has since then had her sign off on the deed to the place and has made a new will leaving to be divided between all his children. Does she have any rights to this place after he passes??
I am not certain where the property in question is located but we are a settlement service (escrow) company in California and we deal only with properties in this state. Every state is different and community property laws are different. In addition, we are not attorneys and are not allowed to practice law. Your question is defintely a legal question.
That being said, just by looking at your question – (1) your parents worked out a divorce agreement and there is probably a divorce decree on file with the court, and (2) since your mother already received funds for her share of the property and signed a deed relinquishing any further interest, I would think that this property belongs solely to your father and upon his passing it would go to his heirs pursuant to his new will and your mother would have no further rights to claim.
As I said, this is just a personal opinion and should not be construed as legal advice. If you should have questions as to the legality of the original divorce decree, you should consult with legal counsel to have your questions answered!
Hi,
My husband did a favor for an ex-girlfriend and co-signed for a property for her. Then he grant deed the property to her in 2002. For some reason when I search the official records for the property, it shows a there was reconveyance in 2005 under his name and her name. If he had grant deed the property off to her in 2002, then is there any possibility that there are reconveyance documents under their names in 2005? Also, when I search the grant deed she gave me, the APN is for a different house. Could the APN be wrong?
thanks.
A reconveyance is a document that releases a lien. It could be that after your husband turned the ownership of the property back to his ex-girlfriend in 2002, she may have refinanced the property and paid off the old loan, which may have had both of their names on it. So a reconveyance was done to release that old lien. This is good for your husband, of course. Now he should be assured that he doesn’t owe under that loan.
As to the APN number, it could be that an incorrect one was typed on the deed, perhaps just a typographical error? You will need to search the property address under the county tax records and find the APN number that way. You can call the County Tax Assessor’s office and give them the address and see if they can give you the correct APN number.
I hope I answered your questions! Have a good weekend.
Hi. I currently own a property in los angeles county that I purchased for cash a few years ago. I want to transfer title to my LLC for liabilty purposes. The property is worth more than I payed for it. Would transferring the property via grant deed subject me to reassessment of value for my property taxes? I’m the only owner of the LLC. Thanks Joe
Any type of a transfer of ownership may subject you not only to the payment of Documentary Transfer Tax to the County Recorder’s office, but also may subject you to the re-assessment of the property tax by the County Tax Assessor.
However, the Revenue and Taxation Code does provide for an exemption of transfer tax if you type the correct exemption verbiage on the transfer Grant Deed. In your case, it would probably be: “The grantors and the grantees in this conveyance are comprised of the same parties who continue to hold the same proportionate interest in the property, R & T 11923 (d).”
You will also need to complete the preliminary change of ownership form, Mark item “L” of Part 1 on page 1, draw an “x” through Part 2 -4 of page 2 and then sign on the bottom of page 2. This will advise the County Assessor’s office that this is a change that should not be re-assessed.
Now, the government agencies have the right to disallow the exemption of transfer tax and exemption of re-assessment. If they do disallow it, be sure you contact them immediately and petition them to re-consider. You will probably need to show proof, like a copy of your LLC operating agreement which shows you as the sole owner of this entity.
I hope I answered your question! Have a good weekend!
Sorry I misspelled “coerced”. Again thank you.
Lisa
An elderly woman I know sold three lots in California and basically carried the loan herself. The buyer still owed her a large sum of money but coreced her into signing a full reconveyance by telling her he could not get a loan to build homes on the lots if the loan she carried was not shown as paid, and in turn would not be able to continue to pay her unless he could build/sell the homes. He assured her he would make payments to her until she was paid in full, but stopped roughly 1 year after the reconveyance was filed with the county. She has nothing in writing stating this but the copies of payments he made are dated after recording date. Is there any legal recourse she may have? Would a real estate attorney take this case, if she has a case, on a contingency basis? As stated above she is elderly and has no money to pay for an attorney.
I would greatly appreciate your input. Thank you.
Lisa
Ouch! There are so many unscrupulous people out there! If your friend did not ask the Buyer to sign a new Note and Trust Deed for her in exchange for her signature on a Reconveyance, she may be out of luck. If she got something in writing, even if it isn’t a new Note and Trust Deed from this person, promising that he would continue payments after the Reconveyance, it may help. Otherwise, I am afraid that her only chance would be through filing a lawsuit.
If she were to consult with an attorney he could probably use fraud and elderly abuse as the basis of the lawsuit. Unfortunately, I can’t say whether an attorney would be willing to take this on a contingency basis. It would probably depend on the strength of what your friend can provide him as proof of the promise to continue to pay, and it would also depend on how much money is involved.
I am so sorry, my answer is probably not what you would like to see, but legal counsel through an attorney would be her best next step.
i AM VERY CONFUSED 6 YEARS AGO i HAD SIGNED A QUITCLAIM DEED WITH A VERY GOOD FRIEND WHO WAS ILL. hONESTLY I DID NOT KNOW EXACTLY WHAT IT MEANT. i ONLY KNEW SHE WAS VERY ILL. i THOUGHT IT WAS TO TAKE CARE OF THE PROPERTY. SHE HAS SINCE PASSED AWAY AND RECENTLY IT WAS BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION. THE HOUSE HAS BEEN EMPTY NOW BUT THE TAXS ARE CURRENT. dOES THIS MEAN THAT I CAN LEGALY MOVE IN THE HOUSE. sHE HAS NO LIVING REALITIVES. wE NEVER FILED THE PAPER IN THE COURT. iS THER ANYTHING I CAN OR SHOULD DO?
Hello and thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
Let me first qualify my answer to your question by stating that we are a settlement services/escrow company in California, and most of our transactions are handling properties in this state. Other states have different laws, rules, regulations and standards of practices that I cannot comment on. If you are from a state other than California, you should ask your question of closing professionals or closing attorneys in your state.
You said that 6 years ago you signed a Quitclaim Deed. Was this deed giving the property to you? Who signed the Deed? You also mentioned that this Deed was never filed with the Court. If the document was never filed in Court, then it hasn’t been recognized that the property is yours. You also said that the taxes are current. Who paid the taxes?
If the person has no living relatives then it is to be hoped that she left a will in which she designated who the property should go to. If no will was left then it would be up to the Court to decide who gets the property. If you have the original Deed, even if it was not filed, you may want to submit that to the Court or to the Estate of the deceased person. If someone has been paying taxes on it then there is a person who is responsible for the property, even if it is empty.
No matter what, you need to establish that you are the true owner of the property before you move in. Please contact a real estate or probate attorney and show him the Quitclaim Deed that was signed and he should be able to direct you from there.
I was given a deed from my grandmother to a property and she passed. My cousin was left everything in her wil that was made befor the purchase of the home and befor the time the deed was givin to me. Does my deed over rule the will if I nevdr filed the deed?
I am not sure if your property is in California or not, but the answer I am giving here applies to properties in California. Every state has their own laws, especially probate laws, so you are cautioned to take my answer in the correct context.
I have always cautioned my clients that even though a deed need not be recorded in order to be valid in California, recording it will make it of public record and thereby establishing your ownership of the property, especially if something were to happen to the person giving up the property. Your case is an example of this.
If the deed from your grandmother was not recorded but was given to you, you can make the claim that the asset is not part of your grandmother’s estate and should not go to your cousin or be a part of her will. However, there are many issues involved in establishing your claim and I would not be the person who can answer that for you. You should, first of all, show the deed from your grandmother to your cousin or whoever is handling your grandmother’s estate and if questions are raised, then you need to obtain your own legal counsel. If there are no questions, perhaps you should record that deed as soon as possible.
No matter what, you should contact an attorney in the state for which the property is located for legal advice.
My parents passed away leaving the home in a living trust to my son. (there grandson)Could you tell me what forms need to be recorded .Is there a form to be filled out to get a tax exception? The home is going to stay in the family.
Hello, thank you for leaving a question on our website.
First of all, I must caution you to please, please check with a Trust Attorney and a CPA before you do anything at all. When Trustees of a Trust pass away there are certain process that has to go through the Probate Code and certain appraisal values of the assets of the Trust has to be determined.
To transfer the property ownership from a Living Trust to your son, the Successor Trustee of the Trust would be the one who transfers the ownership. The Successor Trustee would complete a Grant Deed and the exemption would be that “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received no consideration in return, R&T 11911.”
You will probably need help in typing the Deed and the related documents. You can contact companies who do these deeds solely without entering into an escrow transaction. Here are 2 companies that may be able to help you: The Document Center at #(818) 541-0901 or Doc Star Services at #(855) 362-7827.
Again, please contact your Trust attorney and CPA first. It is very important that you get the right legal and financial counsel first or you may end up having to re-do documents and pay tax on the assets transferred.
I purchased a property on land contract with my fiance at the the time at the beginning of July. I put down all the money for the down payment, paid the summer taxes, paid all the payments so far, and put a ton of money into fixing the place which is still not inhabitable!!! He insisted on being on the deed. He’s listed as the buyer and I’m the co-owner and it is registered. A month ago I ended the relationship and have gotten an apartment. I want to be off the deed and cut my losses. Can I do the amendment and register it as long as he signs it and be done with it?
Thank you for leaving a question on our website.
First of all, I would like to ascertain where your property is located. We are in California and do transactions only in California. It sounds like you might be in another state when you stated “land contract”. We rarely do “land contracts” here in California. Every state has different laws, rules, and regulations about transferring ownership of property, so you might want to check with a closing attorney or closing agent in your state before you do anything.
If you are in California, you can do a Quitclaim Deed to transfer your interest to your ex-fiance, and “you will be done with it”. You will need to sign it and record it in the County Recorder’s office where the property is located. In addition, you will need to let your ex-fiance know that you are doing this and that he agrees.
If you need help in preparing all the transfer documents for a California property, I can recommend that you call The Document Center at #(818) 541-0901 or Doc Star Services at #(855) 362-7827 for help.
Correction: It was 3 yrs not 33 yrs later.
Can a person file a fradulent deed and then file an identical deed 33 yrs later by saying this last deed is the right one because the grantor really signed this deed though he admitted in a deposition that the grantor did not sign the first deed, that someone else forged it. Can the last deed be considered valid? This is in the state of Texas. Thx, Susan Slagle
Thank you for leaving your question on our website.
Unfortunately, we are a settlement service company in California and we handle only California transfer of property transactions. Every state has their different laws and regulations so I am afraid you will have to ask an attorney who does real estate transfers in your state to get an answer to your question, especially if there was a lawsuit and a fraudulent deed involved previously. I would think that just because the Grantor did not sign the previous deed 33 years ago does not mean he did not sign this new deed. The question then is whether it was the Grantor who signed this new deed and did he know what he was signing and was it of his own free will.
Again, you will need to ask an attorney in Texas regarding the legalities of this second deed and perhaps he will need to review all the background of the previous lawsuit and the circumstances leading to the signing of this new deed.
I am sorry I can’t help you more on this question but it is definitely a legal question and should be directed to an attorney for answering. Thank you for bringing the question up, though!
We live in NY. My mother in law, husband and I live in the same house owned by my mother in laws brother. The brother wants to give the house to me and my husband and wants his name off and our names on the deed. Would that be a transfer to the deed? Also, this is going to sound really silly, but hear it goes. My mother in law and my husband usually get into arguments, and my mother in law said that because of possible future arguments, that she is afraid of my husband asking her to leave and feels that her name should go on the deed as well to protect that from happening. Is there equal ownership if all three names are on the deed or is there an order of who comes first if all three names are on the deed. Is there a document that she signs stating that she comes first on the deed and when she’s gone (died) ownership of deed rolls over to me and my husband?
Re: Trust Transfer Grant Deed recorded in Orange County, California
There was a typo error for the tract number on the legal description that was recorded with the above instrument – an extra digit was typed in for the tract number. How do we correct this? Should the instrument be re-recorded with the appropriate verbiage added? (parcel number and property street address is correct)
Example: “This Trust Transfer Grant Deed is being rerecorded to correct the tract number from to XXXXX”
Would the instrument need to be re-executed by us as well as reacknowledsged? What else would need to be redone?
Thank you,
Trish B
The way to correct a typographical error on the legal description of the Grant Deed is as follows:
1. On the original deed that had the incorrect information on it, slash out the incorrect portion and type in the correction. Then, on the middle of the Deed, type in a statement that says “This deed is being re-recorded to correct the legal description”
2. The deed has to be re-signed and a notary has to attach a new notarial acknowledgement form
3. A new Preliminary change of ownership form to be signed by Grantees on bottom of page s (page 2 does not need to be completed; just sign on the bottom)
4. With the original corrected deed, along with all the previous attachments that was part of it, attach the new notary acknowledgment and he preliminary change of ownership form and send it to the County Recorder for recording.
Thank you!
Hi Juliana,
Property tax question.
To qualify for my home in 2002, my sister offered to cosign my loan, therefore she is listed on title as a joint tenant, Single Man and Single Woman. She’s never lived in the home with me nor paid into the mortgage.
Later in 2009, I refinanced, and everything went smoothly without a property tax reassessment.
In 2012, I refinanced again with lower rates and this time the lender said I had to quitclaim my sister off title. I foolishly didn’t think anything of it and did as they suggested, and proceeded with the quitclaim and refinance.
Shortly after the refi completed, I received a letter from the LA County Assessor’s Office stating there was a change in ownership and that my home was being reassessed at 2012 levels
At this point, is there anything I can do to reverse, reduce or correct the reassessment? My sister is more than willing to help in anyway.
Thank you!
Thank you for visiting our Viva Escrow website and leaving a question.
Ouch! Property tax reassessment is never a good thing. First of all, let me say that the Tax Assessor’s office has the right to reasses a property anytime there is an ownership transfer. Usually, when there is a quitclaim deed done between family members, an exemption in transfer tax and reassessment is requested with the proper wording on the Quitclaim Deed and the filing of the preliminary change of ownership form. I don’t know if your deed had the wording was done correctly, but even if so, the County still has the right to question the transfer.
Since the Assessor has already sent you a notification, I would suggest that you call them and talk to them to see if you can file an appeal to reverse the re-assessment as soon as possible. There is a time period that will allow you to file an appeal . They are actually very easy to get in touch with and are very helpful. I usually call the South El Monte office #(626) 258-6001. Your only recourse now is to explain to them the situation whereby the quitclaim was created and see if they can help. You can also go to their appeals site:
I am sorry I am unable to help you more on this, but hopefully the phone number and sites will help you start off.
Thank you Juliana,
Quick follow up question. I looked through my Borrower’s Copy and just noticed a form that says “Grant Deed” instead of Quit Claim that the Title Company used to record the change. I mentioned a Quit Claim in my original post because that was the word the rep at the title company used in our conversation. Could this have been the source of the problem? They used a Grant Deed instead of a Quit Claim?
Thank you.
The form, Quitclaim Deed vs Grant Deed, doesn’t matter. They both change ownerships and using either may subject you to re-assessment.
Good luck!
when i file my quit claim deed in lawrence county, pa do i need the original deed from the owner or not??
Thank you for visiting our website and for leaving a question about whether an original deed is required in order to file a quitclaim deed in Pennsylvania.
Much as I would like to I am unable to answer your question. My settlement services company is in California and we do not handle transactions in certain other states. Every state is different! Your best resources would be either a title insurance company or title agent or approved closing attorney who handles real estate transfer transactions in your state. Perhaps you can Google them or look them up in your local yellow pages.
Again, I am sorry I cannot help!
Under duress from my wife and an illegal bill collector, I filed a quitclaim deed to transfer ownership on our house to her. This happened in 2005 Buncombe county NC. My wife and I are separated now, she resides in the house. She is trying to refinance the mortgage in her name. There was an error on the quitclaim deed in the property description. It is in the wrong book, therefore the wrong property. Does this make the quit claim deed void? If not, how can I make it void? My intentions are to keep my name on the original deed. Thank you.
Thank you for visiting our website and leaving a question.
I have to let you know that we operate in the State of California and our settlement service practices and procedures pertains to this state. As it stands, every state has their own laws, rules and regulations and you will need to go to a settlement service professional in North Carolina to answer your question about the error on the quitclaim deed.
As to the voidability of the deed, I don’t think that having a wrong book number will void it, but signing under duress might. Please contact a real estate attorney in North Carolina to help you with this second question.
I am sorry that my help in answering your questions is limited, but I do wish you good luck!
Thank you.
Hello, My husband bought the home we live in Los Angeles County. He is solely on the mortgage but because we put our home in trust the title has that trust and my name on it. I own another property out of state and I am finding it difficult to refinance my home because of this title recording. Can I file the papers to quit claim the property to him so that my name will not remain on title and if so do I have to pay a transfer tax for doing this? Any suggestions for my options to get my name off of title?
Thank you in advance.
The purpose of putting your property under your Trust, which has your name on it, is to protect this asset in case something should happen to you and or your husband. I don’t think you should take the property out of the Trust and transfer to your husband in his name solely, just to satisfy a refinance lender for another out of state. It is not a good idea. I definitely think you need to get legal counsel on this matter.
It seems to me that there should be a reason why your refinance lender is requiring you to relinquish your ownership of this property in LA County, and I think you should work with them first before you do any change of ownership.
If you do have to do this then you can claim an exemption on the Grant Deed to take it out of the Trust and putting it under your husband’s name. The exemption would be “This conveyance transfers the Grantor’s interest out of their revocable living Trust, R&T 11911”. You would also mark J 1. on the preliminary change of ownership form.
Caution, if you do transfer the property out of the Trust I think you should consider transferring it back after your refinance is done, so that this asset is again protected.
Again, contact your Trust attorney before you do anything! We do not give legal or financial counsel and strongly recommend that you do so before you do anything.
Do I need to pay taxes if I quitclaim our house title to my wife due to divorce?
This is what I am going to put in the Exemption: R&T 11927
Thank you.. Oh by the way, I am not getting any money out of it…. other than the money I used for the downpayment…
Thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
I would not be able to answer the question regarding whether you will need to pay income taxes when you quitclaim your property to your wife due to a divorce. This is something you will definitely need to contact your CPA to confirm before you do the transfer, as he will do your income taxes at the end of the year.
However, I can acknowledge that the exemption you would put on the deed would be “This conveyance is in dissolution of marriage by one spouse to the other, R & T 11927.”
Is it better to change ownership on title and not be re-assessed for value?
Or is it better to just add on a name to title?
I want to add my sister to title.
Should I use quit claim deed?
or should I use grant deed?
please help.
thanks
Thank you for leaving a question on our website. My answers below are given in the context that the property is in the State of California only. Other states have different government regulations.
Changing ownership on title or adding a name to title are both a change of ownership of the property and therefore there is a possibility that the taxes will be re-assessed.
You can use either a Grant Deed of a Quitclaim Deed, although a grant deed is preferred. You are the Grantor and you and your sister will be the Grantees. This way it will confirm that you are still going to be an owner, but just adding your sister as co-owner.
You can request an exemption of transfer tax and re-assessment. In your case, you would need to put on the deed the following exemption clause: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and the Grantee received no consideration in return, R&T 11911.”
Then it is up to the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor to make a final determination whether they will accept your request for exemption. If they do, then you won’t need to pay transfer tax on the transfer and your property won’t be re-assessed. If they don’t accept this, then you need to petition them and give proof why the exemption is requested.
But before all that happens, please be sure you and your sister contact your financial counselors to make sure there are no income tax or gift tax consequences.
I hope I answered your questions. Happy New Year!
Hello my question is similar to another submission on 11/29/12:
My mother, my wife and I own a property as joint tenants in Riverside County. We have all been on title since purchasing the property in 1992. Not sure if it matters, but the property was purchased without financing and currently does not have any loans. My Mother now wants to gift her portion of the property to my wife and I (currently on deed).
1. Can I use a Quitclaim Deed to do this? or is a Grant Deed more appropriate?
2. Can I use R&T 11911, it being a transfer from a parent to a child & daughter-in-law?
3. Where exactly on the deed do I put this verbiage?
4. Is the City Tax also zero?
5. Is there any advantage/disadvantage having this note/form signed/notarized this year (2012) instead of next year due to the possible tax changes in 2013?
Thank you
Dave
Thank you for leaving your questions on our website. Here are my answers.
1. You can use a Grant Deed to transfer the ownership from your mother. I suggest that you do a Grant Deed from your mother, you and your wife as Grantor to you and your wife as Grantee.
2. and 3. You would type on the middle of the Grant Deed form, after the legal description, that “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between parent and child and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911.”
3. The City Tax is zero, but Riverside County has a Transfer Tax Exemption Affidavit that you need to complete and send it together with the Deed and the Preliminary Change of ownership form.
5. I wouldn’t be able to answer your question regarding whether you should sign it this year or next year as I don’t know your financial situations. Please contact your CPA to find out which is more advantageous for both of you.
My mother died in 2004, she left a will dividing the property between my sister and myself. My dad who was married to my mother had no legal rights to the property, she was the sole owner. In 2006 my sister and myself quitclaimed the property to my dad, as a results my dad in 2006 quitclaimed the property to my entire siblings. Later in 2006 county records show that their was an error in the attempted 2006 filing of the quitclaim deed and the deed was not filed correctly. I am not sure what the error was, however the error was was corrected on 9/24/12. In the year 2008 one of my sibling that was added by my father in 2006 got remarried. This is my question, since the county clearly shows that the first attempt to record the deed in 09/06 was incorrect and by 2008 my sister who was added to the quitclaim in 2006 had since remarried, should their have been a new quitclaim deed with her legal name when the deed is listed as corrected in 09/12. Also should we siblings have been contacted regarding any changes or corrections to the quitclaim deed.
Thank you for leaving a question regarding the re-recording of a deed on our website.
The deed that was recorded in 2006 and subsequently re-recorded in 2012 to correct an error does not need to have your sister’s new married name on it. When it was given in 2006 it was her correct name. If and when you sell the property then she would sign in her married name, followed by a statement that says: “who acquired title as” – her original name, and then that would be fine. If your sister wanted her new name to show then a new deed had to be done, your father would have had to re-sign. If it is done and recorded now, then I would leave it as it is so as to not complicate the chain of ownership of the property any further.
As to whether the siblings should have been contacted regarding changes, that would have been up to the person who had the deed re-recorded. If the error was a typographical mistake, as long as it did not change the content of the deed, then the correction and re-recording is for everyone’s benefit. It the content had to be changed then definitely, all the parties should have been made aware of the correction.
Does a deed of reconveyance need to be submitted by an escrow company or can I do it myself? Also, if it dates back and has not been submitted for filing previously, can it still be submitted and get filed with the Registrar Recorders Office? Finally, where can one obtain a copy that can be filled out by computer? Most forms are pdfs that can be printed but then you’d have to fill it out manually?
Thank you for leaving a question on our website. This may get a little complicated so I hope that it won’t be too difficult to follow the following.
The Deed of Reconveyance, or “Full Reconveyance” as we call it, can be obtained by submitting the original paid off loan paperwork to the Trustee company who will then issue the Full Reconveyance. This original Reconveyance is then sent to the Recorder’s office for recording. Once done, it makes it public that the original loan was paid in full.
You don’t need to use an escrow company to do the steps stated above, but you do need to contact the Trustee. This Trustee is named on the Note and the Deed of Trust. They will need the original Note and the original Deed of Trust. The Deed of Trust has to be signed by the Beneficiary on the back of the form where it states “Request for Full Reconveyance”. There is also a fee that the Trustee will charge.
As to your question regarding deeds of Reconveyances in pdf format, most of them are so, unless they are generated by the Trustee company. This particular form is not one that the general public usually generates by themselves. It’s generated by the Trustee and they have to know what they are doing.
However, if the Beneficiary of this loan that was paid off wants to generate his own form, then he needs to use a “Substitution of Trustee and Deed of Reconveyance” form. This is a two-function form in which the Beneficiary first substitutes the name of the Trustee to the name of the Beneficiary and then the Beneficiary, at the same time, signs the Reconveyance.
Finally, if you have a deed of Reconveyance that was issued but never filed with the Recorder’s office, I highly recommend that this be done quickly. You don’t want to lose this particular form and then have to re-do the process. What if the Beneficiary is no longer available to re-sign the documents?
I hope I answered all your questions! Happy New Year!
Hello,
My brother and I purchased a house in San Bernardino County together. We each invested $5000 as a down payment. We agreed that I would make all the mortgage payments and my brother would receive all the tax benefits for his investment of the $5000 down-payment. I on the other hand would receive the ownership of the house when the mortgage was paid off. I made every payment and the house is paid off and is free and clear of any loans. Can you tell me what would be the best way to transfer title. The house has increased in value over the term of the mortgage and at all possible I would prefer to avoid a tax reassessment. Can we do a simple “quit claim deed”. My brother and I have a great relationship and he has agreed to do whatever would be the best way to transfer title. Thank you.
BTW: Regarding my question above to transfer title, the deed is solely in my brother’s name i am not on the deed.
I believe you left 3 questions on our website regarding a quitclaim from your brother.
As mentioned in a previous question left on our website, ask your brother to do a quitclaim deed for all of his interest to you, and use the tax exemption verbiage: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and Grantor received not consideration, R&T 11911.”
Again, as mentioned previously whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption would be up to them. All we can do is recommend, but it is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept your exemption, then you may need to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can try it and then see what the County Recorder and Tax Assessor say.
So the first step is to go ahead and prepare the quitclaim deed and then ask your brother to sign, and once it is done, submit it for recording together with a fully completed preliminary change of ownership form.
Again, please see my answer to your previous questions from yesterday for companies that may be able to help you prepare the documents.
Hello,
We have a house in Alameda. My aunt and her husband are on the deed as well as us because of the mortgage. But we all agree we have ownership. Now that mortgage is paid off. We would like to clear up the title.
I’m reading about quitclaim deed. Is there anything else I need? Do I need a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report?Would there be any tax implication? Who would be able to help me with this? Do I need a real estate attorney or tiltle company?
Thank you so much!
If I may also ask, what exemption should I claim? Referring to http://www.saclaw.org/uploads/files/DocTransTax.pdf
Would it I use this? Confirming title in grantee(s) name(s): “This conveyance confirms title to the grantee(s) who continue(s) to hold the same interest acquired on Date _____, Document no._______, wherein $______ Documentary Transfer Tax was paid. R&T 11911?”
Thank you for leaving a question on our website.
The type of transfer tax exemption verbiage to be used depends on the reason behind the transfer that is contemplated. This exemption that you had a question on:
“This conveyance confirms title to the grantee(s) who continue(s) to hold the same interest acquired on Date _____, Document no._______, wherein $______ Documentary Transfer Tax was paid. R&T 11911”
is usually used when you are re-recording the Grant/Quitclaim Deed to correct a typographical error (property address, legal description, APN #) or something on the original that does not affect the name of the person who got the property.
So it really depends on why you are doing the ownership deed.
Should you wish give us further information, you can leave another question on our website.
You ask about you and your aunt having ownership of the property. To change the ownership in any way you can use a Quitclaim Deed or a Grant Deed – either is okay – and you will need to attach a preliminary change of ownership form to it.
There are exemptions from transfer tax and property tax re-assessment. You can go to our link to see which best fits your case:
You don’t need a title company or escrow company to do this, but I can recommend that you inquire with one of the following 2 companies who can do accommodation deeds for the public as this is not a real sale escrow: The Document Center – #(818)541-0901 or RecordMyDocs.com at #(714)482-2077. Explain what you need and they can help you.
As to tax implications, there can be a re-assessment of property tax if the County Recorder and the County Assessor’s office deems that you don’t qualify for the transfer tax exemption. You will then need to show them proof or petition them not to pay or re-assess.
We are not allowed to give legal or financial advise so we highly recommend that you and your aunt obtain your own independent legal and financial counsel before you do any changes in ownership. Then there will be no future surprises.
My mother passed away and my sister is the financial advisor. The house would be put In her name, and if she sells it the monies are to be divided between the three girls. My son, her nephew wants to buy it. A realator offered a low offer and said it’s not up to code. Can sshe gift it ti my son if everyone agrees without getting it up to code.
See my answer to your previous question left on “What makes a Deed good and valid”
Thank you.
My friend is a mental disabled person, on February,2010 he was suffering from a mental crisis his brother make him to sign a quit-claim-deed taking him out of the property. Now that he find it out he wants to cancel “revoke” the quit claim-deed. It is possible? Diagnosed with schisophrenia and the social security send his check to a representative payee do to the severity of his mental illness.
waiting for your response…….
this is in florida state
Thank you for pointing out that the property is in Florida. That may make a difference, but no matter what state in the nation, there are laws to protect the mentally incapacitated/disabled. I highly recommend that your friend seek legal counsel immediately if there was coercion and misrepresentation involved.
Thank you for leaving a question on our website.
With regards to a mentally disabled person signing a quitclaim deed, that is a deed that can be considered void. However, you can’t “revoke” the deed if it was already recorded at the County Recorder’s office (made of public record). To get the property back would require the brother to quitclaim it back to him. If the deed was not recorded, then the brother should return the original and it should be torn up so that it can no longer be used.
If the brother is unwilling to return the deed or sign a quitclaim back for whatever reason, then your friend should seek legal counsel immediately and perhaps the attorney can look over the issue and submit a request for a Court Order to return the property or to appoint a conservator to handle your friend’s business if he is unable to do so himself.
I bought my home in Riverside county using my best friend’s credit. I paid the downpayment and all payments. The loan is now paid in full and I would like to get the home in my name. Since no monies have changed hands….Should I use>> the bonafide gift and the grantor received nothing in return R&T 11911?<< or should I explain the transaction? I do have proof of everyting!!
The exemption that would be closest to your purpose would be the “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911”.
However, I do caution you that whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption would be up to them, especially if the Grantors and the Grantees cannot show an obvious familial relationship (parents to children, between siblings, etc). It would be up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them and provide proof that it should indeed be exempt. That’s when you would explain the transaction to them.
If the petition becomes too protracted or complicated, you might want to consider going ahead and paying the transfer tax, basing it on the amount on the original purchase price when your friend bought it for you. You can put that value on the preliminary change of ownership form and the property won’t be re-assessed to today’s value but to the value that you put on that form.
Please remember that Riverside County has an Affidavit that has to be completed along with the preliminary change of ownership form when asking for a transfer tax exemption.
I would like to transfer my name to my brother name do I have to pay the document transfer tax – the property is in Sacramento, CA.
When you do the Deed from you to your brother, you can put the transfer tax exemption on the deed that states: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between brother and sister, and there is no consideration involved, R&T 11911” .
Whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption would be up to them. All we can do is recommend how to do it, but it is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can try it and then see what the County Recorder and Tax Assessor say.
My mothers deed is in the name of myself and my brother. When it was recorded 12 years ago, my name was left off by mistake. What do we have to do to make sure the house is split evenly when we sell?
If your name is not on the ownership deed of the property but it is agreed that both you and our brother share the ownership then you will need to do a deed for your brother to sign, whereby he grants the property to himself and you, each as to one half the interest, and have this deed recorded to make it of public record. Once this is done then when you sell the property it will be evenly split between the 2 of you.
What is the new R&T vesting clause for the sole and separate property?
Thank you for your question regarding the Revenue and Taxation Code for transfer tax exemptions.
The clause you are looking for is “This conveyance establishes sole and separate property of a spouse, R&T 11911.”
You can look up these clauses on our website with this link or directly from the Los Angeles County Recorder’s office at and it would apply for all counties in the State of California.
Happy Holidays!
I bought a house 3 months ago (my first home) from an elderly man who was 5 yrs behind on his taxes and couldnt keep up the maintenance on the property. I don’t know much about title insurance or escrow procedures but now that I have decided this house is far more work than I bargained for (too many costly repairs and I cant afford the time or the money) but the issue here is I bought this home out of escrow and didn’t the title insurance. So I have someone interested in buying the home but they want to do it in escrow. Now the escrow is asking for an affidavit of uninsured deed to be filled out by the previous owner and I can’t find him! He has vanished from the face of the earth! I tried a private investigator but no luck! What can i do about this? I received a signed and notarized grant deed and a receipt for the consideration, I never thought to ask for a contact # or address. I met him through his neighbor who doesn’t know where to find him either.
”
The Affidavit of uninsured deed is a common form requirement from the title insurance company in cases where the previous transfer of ownership was not taken care of through a title company and no policy of title insurance is obtained. Title companies insure against fraud and so to protect their issuance of title insurance they need to minimize their risk of fraud. That is why they are asking you for the Affidavit. The amount of fraud that has gone on in the industry due to unscrupulous crooks is unbelievable.
I have no good suggestions for you that you have probably not looked into already. All I can recommend is that you work with the Title Company directly or at least with the Escrow Company that you are using. Perhaps they can take this previous owner’s name and run it in the General Index of various counties in the area on the chance that he moved out of the county but is still within the area. But your private investigator probably did that already.
It is a difficult situation, but again, present your quandary to the Title Company directly. See what they are willing to do for you. Perhaps they are willing to consider you posting a bond of some sort?
I am sorry, this is one of those situations which we see from time to time and must deal with on a case by case basis. I try to caution the general public whenever I can to please, please, use an escrow/settlement agent when purchasing property. For the small additional cost, you can buy peace of mind!
Thank you Juliana, so much for your fast response to my question. I found the prior owner! After turning over every leaf in the region the sweet old guy was checked in at a retirement home 2 blocks away! A neighbor who started volunteering as an aid there, ran into him at their Sunday bingo night last evening, and he will be accompanying me to escrow in the morning to clear the whole thing up! I was worried for a moment there and I want to say thank you for giving me someone to whine to.. lol
I need to file a Quit Claim Deed in Ventura County. I have all the information I need to complete the form, including the amount of the Documentary Transfer Tax. But I can’t figure out how to fill in the tax portion of the form where it says “The undersigned grantor(s) declares(s) _____________”. What goes in the blank? I called the Recorder’s Office and they refused to provide any information. Also, the next line says “DOCUMENTARY TRANSFER TAX $”. I assume that I put the dollar amount of the transfer tax on this line following the $ sign…is that correct?
The County Recorder never wants to tell you how to fill out the Quitclaim Deed. It makes them liable in the event incorrect information is given.
You don’t need to put anything in the blank line “The undersigned grantor declares_______”. The declaration that you are making is about the Documentary Transfer Tax in the next line and whether the tax is computed on the full value or the value less liens.
Just put in the transfer tax amount after the $ sign on the next line after “documentary transfer tax”. The important part is the transfer tax amount and the actual body of the form in the middle.
I hope I answered your question. Happy Holidays!
I purchased a property in October of 2012. When I was in escrow I needed additional funds to close the deal. An investor said he could get me the additional funds but we would need to partner on the deal. He had me notorized a grant deed adding him onto the property on 10/16/2012. I didn’t end up needed his financing. So I closed the transaction through escrow on 10/19/2012. The deed I notorized on 10/16/2012 was not suppose to be recorded but destroyed because I didn’t need his money. He recorded the uninsured deed on 11/30/12 which put a cloud on title. My question is whether or not the deed is valid since I notorized it before I owned the property. His deed is an uninsured deed.
A deed is valid when it was signed in good faith and handed and accepted by the Grantees, even if it was signed before you owned the property. The issue here is that if the intent of the original transaction changed, the deed should have been handed back and destroyed. As that did not happen and in fact the deed was recorded, creates a couple of concerns that you will need to address: (1) the fact that the investor recorded the deed even though he did not lend you the money can be seen as a perpetuation of a fraud; (2) now that there is a cloud on your title, how do you remove it? It will require either the investor to voluntarily quitclaim his interest back to you, or it requires you to go through the legal system and possible get a Court Order that will clear your title. I am not an attorney and I do not give legal counsel. How to proceed will probably require you to get legal counsel if the investor won’t voluntarily give up his interest.
This is a terrible situation to find yourself in. I hope that it can be resolved expeditiously.
my boyfriend and I bought a house together. Now we are thinking about getting married. we are listed as a single man and a single women on the deed. Do we have to change the deed after we marry if the surviving spouse is to inherit?
Thank you for leaving your question on our website.
First of all, congratulations on your thoughts to getting married!
If you and your boyfriend now own the property as “Single Man and Single Woman as Joint Tenants“, then there is no need to change the deed after marriage. The joint tenancy will allow for rights of survivorship, which means that if one of you passes, the surviving person would get the whole property. Of course, you may do a deed anyway to formalize your new status as “Husband and Wife”.
If you now own the property as “Tenants in Common” with each party having a specified percentage interest, then you might want to consider deeding it to yourselves after marriage as “Husband and Wife as Community Property with Rights of Survivorship” to perfect your intent to pass the property to the surviving spouse.
If property is held in joint tenancy and one of the joint tenants dies, is the transfer to the surviving joint tenant subject to the documentary transfer tax and/or reassessment in California? Note: joint tenants are father and daughter.
When a Joint Tenant passes the surviving Joint Tenant normally files an “Affidavit of Death of Joint Tenant” and has this document recorded together with a Preliminary Change of Ownership form.
There is no payment of documentary transfer tax as it is not a Deed or a Quitclaim Deed that is being recorded. However, filing the Affidavit will trigger a re-assessment by the County Tax Assessor’s office. They will re-assess the property to its current market value.
Sorry, one more question, which box should I check off on Part I. transfer information on the preliminary change of ownership report for removal of my brother from home title?
thanks.
Please let me rephrase my question. How should I put it on the grant deed to avoid transfer tax by removing my brother from my home title since this is not a true purchase/sale transaction? Do I put in zero $ documentary transfer tax and city tax? Additionally, would there be any tax consequence from the removal?
I live in Alameda County and currently my home is under my brother’s and my name. I’m the sole borrower on the loan and now I wish to remove my brother from my home title. I read your response dated Oct. 30 from a person who wanted to remove his father from title and now know the precedures. I believe there is probably no county/transfer tax with change of ownership between parents & children. In my case, would there be city/county/transfer tax by removing my brother from home title?
Thank you for visiting our website and for leaving your 3 questions.
If you and your brother own the property and you wanted to remove his name, then you would create a deed in which your brother and you are the Grantor and you are the Grantee. You would both sign this deed. The exemption that you can put on it is that it is a “This is a bonafide gift, transfer between siblings, and the grantor received no consideration in return, R & T 11911”.
There should be no property tax re-assessment, but then this is a matter in which the Alameda County Tax Assessor would have to determine.
As to the preliminary change of ownership form, you really can’t check off any of the boxes on Part I. You would have to manually write in at the bottom behind that last paragraph that “this is a relinquishing of property interest between siblings and there is no consideration involved”.
Please note that the exemption from property tax re-assessment by the County Assessor’s office and the acceptance by the County Recorder of your exemption on the deed are both subject to these governing bodies’ review. If they need more proof from you for your claim, they will contact you. It is not automatic just because the exemption was written in.
I purchased a house in San Bernardino county in my uncle’s name and using his credit, thus only his name is on the loan and title. We would like to use an ENHANCED LIFE ESTATE DEED to transfer the property to me upon his death and avoid probate. Is this type of deed subject to the documentary tax? If not which exemption language will be appropriate?
Thank you for leaving a question on Life Estates on our website.
I am not sure what an “Enhanced Life Estate Deed” would be. I have not heard this term before.
A Deed for a Life Estate is usually signed by your uncle (the Grantor) to himself as to his life, and to you as to the remainder (the Grantees). If there is no consideration involved then there is no transfer tax. The exemption would be “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11931”.
As this is an unusual type of transfer, please be sure that before you do this Deed process you have checked with your uncle and your legal and financial counsel.
I have a parent that is on my deed of my house and i am on the deed. I just found out that I am not on the loan when i should have been. What are my rights? Do I really have to supply them with a key?
Signed Controled by my mother
Being an owner of the property does not always mean you are also the borrower on the loan secured on the property. For instance, maybe when the loan was taken out you didn’t go on as co-borrower because of a credit issue. Or another scenario would be that the other owner, in this case, your parent, purchased the home first and took out the loan, and then put your name as co- owner of the house but both of you did not refinance so that you would both have responsibility for a new loan under both of your names.
If your name is on the ownership of the property, then you are the owner and would conceivably have all the rights that an owner would have even if your name is not on the loan. If your mother is a co-owner of the property then she would have the same rights that you have, including that of getting a key, living on the property, etc unless there is an agreement between you and her regarding your roles in this ownership.
You probably need to ascertain first how did you get joint ownership and not joint liability for the loan and then determine what roles both of you should play regarding the property.
I hope I answered your question.
Hello:
My mother and I own a property as joint tenants in Riverside County. I want to give her the property…
1. Can I use a Quitclaim Deed to do this?
2. Can I use R&T 11911, it being a transfer from child to parent?
3. Where exactly on the deed do I put this verbiage?
4. Is the City Tax also zero?
Thank you
Thank you for your question left on our Viva Escrow website.
1. To transfer the property to your mother you can use the Quitclaim Deed.
2. You can use the R&T11911 and state that it is a transfer from child to parent
3. You would put this verbiage below the legal description and property address and above the signature portion
4. The City Tax and County Tax are both zero but you will need to complete a Riverside County Transfer Tax Affidavit: http://www.riversideacr.com/forms/521P-AS4EX0%20DTT%20Affidavit.pdf
Hello I want to donate some vacant land to my local church but I want to make it as simple as possible. How can I donate this parcel without hiring anyone to do the paper work? The back taxes are piling up and I want to get rid of this asap plus my church canl use it for storage. What forms must I sign or fill out to give to my Pastor? What are the steps I have to do?
Thank you for leaving your question on our website.
Donating a piece of land to your church is a wonderful idea, but it may not be that simple. There may be tax and other consequences, not only for you, but also for the church. A deed is valid only if it is delivered by the Grantor (you) and accepted by the Grantee (church). The Grantee must be fully aware of the condition of the title to the land that it is taking over.
Before anything is done you and the church should seek legal and tax counsel. You and the church should also give the donation a dollar amount. The actual transfer should be done through an escrow and a title report obtained. This will protect all the parties involved. I cannot emphasize how important it is that both parties follow the steps that I have stated and make sure that all the laws and rules conforming to the transfer of real estate are met.
My husband’s name is on the California title of his widowed father’s mobile home (and/or). My husband wants to remove his own name from the title (no exchange of money and/or other value). How does one do this and where does he start? He wants to leave the mobile home in his father’s name only. Is this as simple as it seems to remove his name or are there catches? Thank you.
Thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
With reference to your question on the transfer of mobilehome ownership, it depends on whether the mobilehome is attached to a foundation now or not and whether the mobilehome is in a mobilehome park or sitting on a land that is owned by the owner.
If the mobilehome is attached to a foundation, then it is permanently attached to the land and is treated as a single family home. You will use a Grant Deed.
If the mobilehome is NOT attached to the land then you will need to go either to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to transfer the ownership or you should go the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to transfer.
We recommend that you go to this following link and look through them for transfer of ownership between family members: http://www.hcd.ca.gov/codes/forms/index.html
Thank you.
Hi,
I leave in Alameda County and currently my home is under my name and my father’s name. Mortgage with Bank of America is under my name only.
My father wants his name to be removed from the Home Title.
1) Can you please guide me which form I would need to fill out in Alameda County – Newark, CA city to remove my Father names from the Home Title?
2) Would it be a complicated process to do such a thing?
Thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
To remove a person from ownership of the property, like your father, for instance, you would use the Grant Deed form. It doesn’t matter where the property is in California, whether Alameda County or Los Angeles County.
The forms for the Grant Deed can be found on our website. Go to “Resources” and the “Forms” drop down. Here is the direct link: http://www.vivaescrow.com/wp-content/themes/thesis_18/custom/pdf/GRANTDEED.pdf. You will also need to complete the preliminary change of ownership form: http://www.vivaescrow.com/wp-content/themes/thesis_18/custom/pdf/PCOR%20-%202011%20version.pdf
Preparing the deed does require some knowledge and if not done correctly, it could become an issue. If you are unsure of how to do this I recommend that you contact this company – “The Document Center” at #(800)592-2323 and let them know what you need. They can get it typed up for you correctly for a fee and you can also ask them the process of getting it recorded at the Alameda County Recorder’s office. We are not able to do it for you because we are not allowed to type accomodation deeds.
I hope we were able to answer your question. Again, thank you for visiting our website.
Hi Juliana,
My wife and I own a home under a LLC title. Both of us are the only members of the LLC. Now, I plan to sign a quit claim deed to transfer my interest of this property to my wife so she will be the only person who holds the title in this LLC. First, do you know what specific paper works that Alameda county will want from me? Also, will Alameda county assess a transfer tax for this? Last, what would be the correct Revenue and Taxation code to put on the Quit Claim Deed? Thanks so much for your response.
Myron
Thank you for leaving a question on Viva Escrow’s website. I think your question calls for a two-fold answer:
First, if your home is under an LLC with you and your wife as members, to transfer the interest to your wife you need to draw up an amendment to your operating agreement of the LLC. You don’t do a quitclaim deed because the LLC name will stay the same. The transfer of the interest in the LLC can be handled as an internal paperwork and should not affect the ownership of the property in your LLC. Before you do any of this I highly recommend you talk to your CPA or legal counsel. There was a reason why you put your home ownership under an LLC and you want to think twice before you change anything in that entity.
Secondly, Alameda County, or any County for that matter, will re-assess property taxes and assess a Transfer Tax when there is a transfer of ownership. They allow certain exemptions and it must be stipulated on the body of the deed what exemption is being claimed. Please see our link to these exemption verbiages: http://www.vivaescrow.com/for-your-convenience/faq/documentary-transfer-tax-exemptions. Alameda County does not have an additional “Affidavit” that is required to be completed in order to claim such and exemption.
Back to your original question, you don’t need to do a transfer deed if you are changing your interest in the LLC and the actual name of the LLC does not change.
I hope we have answered your question!
Hello,
My friend owns a home in L.A. County and wants to add me and my brother as joint tenants. I understand that we need to file a grant deed with the county clerk, but I have some questions:
(1) How should we fill in the grantor/grantee sections on the deed?
(2) Do all of us (both grantor and grantees) need to sign the deed?
(3) Do all of us (both grantor and grantees) each need to file a separate “preliminary change of ownership” form?
(4) Are there any other forms that we need to fill out?
(5) Would this grant deed trigger a property tax reassessment/reappraisal?
(6) Are there any other tax consequences that we should know about?
Thank you very much for your help.
Thank you for leaving your questions on Viva Escrow’s website. Here are the answers:
1. The Grantor is the person who now owns the property, and his name should be typed exactly the way it shows on his present ownership deed. The Grantees would be your friend plus you and your brother. You will need to insert your titles behind your names (single man, married man, etc) and the vesting for all 3 of you – are you taking title all as “Joint Tenants” or will it be Tenants in Common. If you have questions on vesting I recommend you obtain legal and financial counsel.
2. Only the Grantor has to sign the Deed.
3. Only one preliminary change of ownership form has to be filed per Deed.
4. No other forms, just the Deed and the preliminary change of ownership form.
5. Yes, the recording of this deed may trigger a property tax reassessment by the County Tax Assessor’s office.
6. There could be other tax and financial consequences depending on why your friend is adding you on title. Again, please consult with a tax and legal counsel before you take this step.
I hope we answered your questions! Thank you!
My husband and I are currently on title for our home in Orange County but I would like to add my sister, who is married, to title. What is the language that I should have on the grant deed to complete this addition. Will I need to complete any other forms? Since I am only adding her to title, would the Documentary Transfer Tax be $0. Thank you.
Thank you for leaving a question on Viva Escrow’s website.
With reference to your adding your sister to the title to your home, the closest exemption verbiage you could use is the “This is a bonafide gift and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T, 11911”. You would put you and your husband’s name as Grantor, then as Grantee, you put you and your husband’s name and add your sister’s name. Don’t forget to put your vesting, ie, are you taking title as “Joint Tenants” or “Tenants in Common” each with undivided interests. Please note that how you take title and vesting has significant tax and legal consequences so be sure you talk to your legal or financial counsel first.
Whether or not the County Recorder and the County Tax Assessor will accept this exemption would be up to them. All we can do is recommend how to do it, but it is up to the government agencies to make the final decision. If they do not accept, then you will have to petition them. There is never any guarantee that they will accept that it is a “gift” and they may require some sort of proof that you qualify. You can try it and then see what the County Recorder and Tax Assessor say.
My best advice is that if you have any questions, you should bring them up directly with the government agencies. Our answers here are given from 30 years experience in the escrow field, but ultimately, we are not the government agencies!
By the way, besides the Deed you will need to do a Preliminary Change of Ownership form.
Thank you. I hope I answered your questions!
My husband and I have purchased a flat in mohali. My husband had taken a loan from hdfc bank is rs 23, 000, 00 and home loan insurance is rs 99986. Therefore, total loan amount is rs 2399986. The cost of a flat is rs 3125000. Now I am working in bsnl deptt and my husband is in private sector. Now I want to get covering approval for purchase of a flat from my deptt because property is in my name. We have arranged balance amount rs 825000 from our own savings in which my savings are around rs 550000, arranged from relative’s rs 160000 and my husband has closed his policy of rs 149000 in last year. Now, my deptt is raising a question that I am not depending on my husband therefore he cannot contribute to me in purchasing a property. They are saying that I have submitted an affidavit of rs 2550000 from my husband in which they will mention that they have given me an interest free loan. However, my question is that my husband has already taken a loan from bank then how can they give me such kind of affidavit to me
Thank you for leaving a question on our company’s website regarding getting an Affidavit for the purchase of your flat in Mohali.
I am sorry I can’t answer your question. Our company only handles the purchase/sale of properties in California, U.S.A. and we have no idea what type of an Affidavit you will require! Forms and practices for the purchase of properties differ considerably, not only in the U.S., but certainly throughout the world.
We are surprised that we have gotten inquiries all the way from India. The power of technology and the Internet is amazing!
Again, thank you for your inquiry and I hope that you get an answer to your question closer to home.
I was selling property to this lady and she owes me 17000 dollars for it. She changed the contract won’t give it to me and she went to a notary and had them sign a paper while I wasn’t there that she only was buying a portion of the land and she changed the deed now its in her name. She practically stole my land and I need to know how I can get it back. The original agreement was to sell all six acres not just two but now she owns two acres of my land and she hasn’t even paid me in full yet.
Thank you for leaving a question on Viva Escrow’s website.
The question that you left is not clear. If you feel you have been defrauded by this person then what you need to do is get legal counsel. Talk this over with an attorney, present all your paperwork and facts, and let the attorney advise you as to what to do. I am sorry, as a settlement agent we are not allowed to give legal advice. In addition, it sounds like there is much more to the story than what you mentioned on your questions so without the correct facts we definitely would not be able to help.
When a wife is currently the sole owner showing on Title to their residence property, what is the proper form language to Quitclaim to her husband for proper California community property rights? Ex: Sally Smith, a married woman, or wife, hereby remise, release and quitclaims 50% interest to her spouse John Smith, a married man, or husband ….. or as joint tenant … or ??
Thank you for leaving a question on our Viva Escrow website.
Based on the very brief inquiry you had left, when the wife is the current sole owner and she is quitclaiming all her interest to her husband then the deed would show as follows:
“Sally Smith a Married Woman and spouse of Grantee herein hereby remise, release and quitclaims to John Smith a Married Man as his sole and separate property…”
If the wife is adding the husband and she will remain as one of the owners, then:
“Sally Smith a Married Woman hereby remise, release and quitclaims to John Smith and Sally Smith, husband and wife as Joint Tenants…..”
It is important to ascertain the following: (1) how she shows on title now will determine how she will grant out, and (2) how the ownership should be in the future should be reflected correctly, ie – only the husband? both parties as husband and wife? Husband and wife as community property? Or as Joint Tenants?
Title and vesting can be quite complicated and we caution our clients to be sure and seek legal and financial counsel before signing any deed, especially with California’s community property laws.
I hope I was able to answer your question to some extent.
If I want to re-finance my house and change title (it is my separate property now) to community property (I recently married) will that constitute a change of ownership resulting in associated transfer taxes?
Thank you for your questions left on Viva Escrow’s website.
If you are changing your title from “married and separate” to “community property”, but not the actual interest that you own, you would not need to pay transfer tax. You could use several exemptions, depending on how the final title will vest. For instance, “This conveyance changes the manner in which title is held, R&T, 11911”. Or you could use “This conveyance confirms a community property interest, R&T 11911” if you are adding your new spouse on to the title.
As you are doing a refinance, your escrow officer should be able to help you with the Deed and the transfer tax exemptions.
I hope I answered your question!
Dear Viva Escrow! My client inherited a home and his wife is buying a one-half interest in the home. Do any exemptions from transfer tax apply? Thank you.
Thank you for leaving a question on Viva Escrow’s website.
If your client’s wife is actually purchasing one-half interest in the property then there is no exemption that would qualify. However, they can pay less by showing on the deed that it is a purchase of just one half interest. If there are liens on it and the liens will remain, they can calculate the value of that one-half, subtract one-half of the amount of liens left, and then calculate the transfer tax on that net amount. The preliminary change of ownership form should also reflect the one-half interest so that the assessment of property taxes on the interest sold is calculated correctly.
Thank you. I hope I answered your question!
I filed a Ch. 7 bankruptcy on a Riverside County investment property; it was discharged in the summer of 2011. It was for a first and second mortgage (same property). Council, however, didn’t tell me that the mere filing of a Ch. 7 does not automatically result in a transfer of title to the mortgager(s). I need to file a quit Claim, so I can also avoid an impending foreclosure. Do I list each mortgager on the same quit claim form? The first mortgage is in my name, but the second mortgage is in mine and my wife’s name. Should we just list both mortgagees, and then both sign the form without further distinguishing aforementioned? Does a Ch. 7 filing fall under any of the “exemption” categories for transfer tax purposes? In other words, is the consideration, the amount of the forgiven debt, (even though it is “tax exempt” under a Ch. 7 filing – for IRS purposes, at least), exempt? Do I need to fill out any other forms? Should I also prepare notarized quitclaims for myself, or just make copies of the original notarized documents with their seals; one set for me, and the originals for the mortgagers? Thanks in advance.
Thank you for leaving your question on Viva Escrow’s website.
After reading through your questions I believe I understand that you have to do a Deed In Lieu of Foreclosure back to the first Lender. This is what I can answer for you:
If the property ownership is in both you and your wife’s name, then you both have to sign the Deed.
The actual Deed requires an “Estoppel Affidavit” (see attached) to be attached to the Deed. You would state on the Deed to see attached Deed in Lieu Estoppel Affidavit and no you would not need to type a Transfer Tax Exemption
Normally the Lender provides the paperwork for the Deed in Lieu. I suggest that you call the Loan Servicing Department and let them know and they will transfer you to the correct department. I don’t know if the second mortgage is the same lender or not or how that is handled. I would think you need to let the second lender know that you are doing this deed.
I am sorry, I can’t answer some of your questions, but hopefully I have given you enough information that you can ask for correct answers from both of your lenders. We don’t handle Deed In Lieu documents through our escrow transaction.
Hello,
We are planning to move to a retirement community soon. Rather than try to sell our free & clear home, our daughter wants to acquire it from us. She is willing to buy it, and I wonder if there is a way to do this as a blood-line transfer under Prop 58, or if we must treat it as a conventional arms length transaction, requiring a full blown escrow? There is a substantial HOA transfer fee at stake, as well as the cost of a huge set of CC&Rs (which we already have) and similar costs that to me are unnecessary and avoidable.
Thanks in advance.
Gene
Thank you for leaving a question on Viva Escrow’s website.
You can do a simple deed to your daughter and ask for an exemption from transfer tax under “bonafide gift, transfer between parent to child, with no consideration”. But since there is consideration involved you could do a deed and pay transfer tax on the amount being sold. All this can be done without going through escrow. However, there could be future issues with regards to income taxes declaration.
Doing a conventional arms length transfer, going through an escrow, is always preferred for your income tax purposes as well as your daughter’s. It’s clean and clear cut and does not raise any future red flags with the IRS or Franchise Tax Board. What you could try, and you need to discuss this with your Escrow Officer, is to state in the escrow transaction that the HOA transfer would be done outside of the transaction, and then you would go to the HOA management people and tell them that this is a transfer between parents and children and not a sale to an outsider. Maybe they would consider that and not charge you anything. But that would be up to them.
The persons best able to advise you on whether you should do a bonafide sale of your property or just a deed transfer would be your respective financial counsel – your CPAs. They will be the persons who will do your income tax returns at the end of the year for both you and your daughter. I sincerely recommend that you follow their advice.
Thank you and I hope it works out!
In Merced County title companies handle both Title/Escrow services, but they are not willing to draft a Grant Deed adding a spouse or parent or child on title when there in no Sale/Purchase transaction taken place. Does Viva escrow provide the drafting of the grant deed for a fee in these cases and email the form ready to be notarized?
Thank you for leaving a question on our website.
Like most Title Companies and Escrow Companies throughout California, we can’t prepare “Accomodation documents/deeds” because of the liability involved. We carry Errors and Omission insurance, and the insurance carrier does not insure our work unless a real escrow transaction was opened. Our governing agencies also frown on this practice.
I can recommend you to a company which perhaps can help you. The company is called the “Document Center” and you can reach them at #(800)592-2323 and I think they have a website: http://www.thedoccenter.com. We have many consumers who ask us the same thing and we have had to regretfully turn down their request, but we have recommended that they call the Document Center. They are not a company that is governed by the Department of Corporations or Department of Insurance and so they don’t have the limitations that we have. It also doesn’t matter what part of the state you or your property is located.
I hope this works for you!
I am trying to close an escrow in Marina, CA and one of the beneficiaries on the second can’t be located. Last know address was in China but lost the trail. Is there a way to close without her?
Thank you for leaving a question on our website.
Regarding the beneficiary who is presently MIA, you didn’t provide any other information, but I am assuming that the other beneficiaries don’t know where this person is either? It’s all an investigative process and you might need to ask for help from the other beneficiary is available. Perhaps he/she can ask friends and family to try and locate the lost beneficiary. That’s the route I would first pursue. If she really can’t be found then a Lost Beneficiary Bond would have to be purchased to cover.
If there is an amount to payoff on this loan then the issue might be a little more complicated because you really do need the other beneficiary to give you an address to which the payoff funds can be forwarded to.
This may not be the answer that you are hoping for, but it does look to be a difficult situation!
Thank you Juliana,
We have her last known address in China. I sent a registered letter that someone signed for but so far, no response.
Hi,
Can you tell me whether an Exemption from Documentary Transfer Tax for a gift of property from a parent to an adult child falls under Revenue & Tax code 11930 or 11911?. This is in Alameda county. I’ve found that the websites of some counties in California list the Exemption as falling under 11911, and others under 11930, but can’t find anything specific to Alameda. I’ve also seen different examples of the wording of the Declaration for Exemption. Can you tell me what the proper wording should be?
Thanks so much!
Thank you for your question on Viva Escrow’s website.
We normally use the: “This is a bonafide gift, transfer from parent to child, and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T 11911” for verbiage on a transfer between parent and child.
The Revenue and Taxation code is the same for all counties of the state, whether in Alameda or not.
Thanks for the concise explanation.
The saving tips with the exemption on the deed is great. What does “R&T, 11911″ mean?
POCR: Which of the three H boxes should be checked?
POCR: What is the difference between the Y box of D and the above H box?
I checked with the county recorder and was told that the transfer tax will be $330. This concerns me because of the logic behind it – A 100% of ownership is assigned to, while 0% is owned by, the so-signer in reality.
What can I do to declare the co-signer’s 0% ownership to prevent the following potential issues:
1) A higher property tax base after quitclaim – I heard that enough evidence from (1040) will help.
2) A fake capital gain for my loan co-signer. If I assign anything other than 0% ownership to the co-signer for quitclaim, will I have a solid ground to convince IRS of my 100% property ownership?
My husband and I bought a house long time ago with a co-borrower (cosigner) for the loan. The cosigner has no stake in the property ownership; he is on the title of the grant deed without a specified type of ownership and % split of ownership .
Assuming – a loan balance of 100K, a property market value of $400K, and transfer tax rate of 0.11%.
If the co-borrower quits claim, what is (1) the base of the documentary transfer tax, and (2) the transfer tax using the above information?
Thanks.
Maggie
Thank you for posting a question on our site.
Based on your figures, you would pay transfer tax on the equity value of the property, which is $300,000. The tax would be $330.00. However, since the transfer is only of a partial interest, you would only pay that percentage that you would assign to the co-signer who will be quitclaiming.
You might want to try by-passing the payment of transfer tax by doing the following: Put the following exemption on your deed: “This is a bonafide gift, terminating a security interest of a co-signer, and the Grantor received nothing in return, R&T, 11911”. Then on the Preliminary change of ownership form, “x” the H box.
I am not saying this will work every time, but you can try and see if the County Recorder and County Assessor will accept this. If they don’t then you will need to pay the transfer tax and base that on whatever percentage you assign to the co-signor.
We hope this has been helpful to you!
My Mom died and her property is in a living trust. The properties are in San Francsisco and I need to dsitrbute the property to my sister and my self. To make this happen I understand I need to get notarized grant deeds, a “Preliminary Change of Ownership” form, a “Transfer Tax Affidavit” and a Claim for “Reassesment Exclusion between Parent and Child” and send these forms to the recorders office. Is there anything else that needs to be sent in? Do I need to send a copy of the trust?
Thank you for your question left on the Viva Escrow website.
If your mother has passed and an Affidavit of Death of Trustee was not done, that would also have to be done and a copy of an original certified copy of the Death Certificate attached to that. This will also need a Preliminary Change of Ownership (PCOR) form. The documents you need to provide would be:
Affidavit of Death of Trustee (with PCOR and certified copy of Death Certificate attached)
Deed signed by Successor Trustee of Trust to the Beneficiaries (you and your sister) (with PCOR attached)
San Francisco Transfer Tax Affidavit
Reassessment Exclusion claim form # BOE-58-AH
Copy of original Declaration of Trust attached to establish the succession in the Trust.
Hope this answers your question and has been helpful to you!
Signed contract in June 2011 to purchase home, was told there were liens.. state..IRS..child support..medical..State Farm Ins.. Was told escrow “should” close within 90 days due to the liens will take time. It has been ONE year and we arent any closer in closing escrow. Homeowner is a divored women with husband name removed from house.. soul owner but all the liens are her ex’s liens and wife was abandon..he is no where to be found.. Sellers realtor said she will be negotiating all demands and liens down before closing escrow.. she states there isnt enough funds to pay all off to close escrow..but every week we are told something different in her game plan in getting this escrow closed for us to have our home. Sellers realtor states she is on phone for hours a day with IRS/State to get liens lowered. Other that had demands have expired. Now we are told a year later, sellers realtor is going to go before a judge to get grounds on abandement and that liens arent sellers but ex’s liens.. isnt there a way around this all??? I have paid a lawyer $500.00 to write letter demanding escrow to close per contract. Realtor office lawyer stated back we needed to be patient. BUT there ISNT anything beening done to show they are getting closer with a plan in getting escrow closed. This is a nightmare and feel as buyers we have NO RIGHTS.. Broker hasnt done anything to over look this situation either. Been told sellers realtor has been not doing much due to her husband is ill.. so much said.. but nothing getting done.. very fraustrated.. and it is scray too.. houses are going up.. and we wont be able to buy soon since we wont be able to afford a home all because we hoping something will happen with all their promises. ERR.. from a upset buyer.. please help if possiable… cant afford to ask our lawyer to do anything new for us either..
Thank you for your comment left on our Viva Escrow website regarding your frustrations on a transaction that has gone on a year with no end in sight. I can only sympathize! What a terrible quandary to fall into! This is obviously a Short Sale transaction and although we have handled Short Sale transactions that can last a year or longer, we do know how helpless a Buyer can feel. I really have no good advice for you except to hang in there if you really do want the house. But I do suggest that you look around for other possible properties because it really is not fair to you to keep on hanging in there. All these debts and liens of the ex-spouse of the Seller does attach to the property that he owned at the time, even though he may no longer be on title now. I can’t comment on anything else, not having the background on your transaction. My only recommendation is for you to look around and see if there is anything else that would be more suitable.
Good luck!
Is there excise tax or transafer tax on a quit claim deed for channging out of a trust to an individual?
Thank you for your question on our site.
In California, there is documentary transfer tax on changes of ownership, as per our Revenue and Taxation Code. However, in a transfer from a Trust to an individual, or vice versa, if the individual is the Trustee or Successor Trustee of the Trust then it would be exempt and on the Deed, the proper exemption language should be typed in. See our list of exemptions on our website at http://www.vivaescrow.com/for-your-convenience/faq/documentary-transfer-tax-exemptions.
my ex husband sold HIS house after our divorce. he had not paid spousal support and was in comtempt from may 10th – he closed on his house may 11th. the title company want me to sign indemnity claus to release money to me. does this mean the title company gave him clear title? (i did not do a lien) are they witholding his money til I sign and can you put a lien on a home that has closed ?
Thank you for leaving a comment on our website.
Your question is a little complicated, as I don’t know the background of what happened in your divorce and no background on what transpired on the sale of the home, I am afraid I would not be giving you the right answers. However, I can say this:.
You won’t be able to put a lien on the property if that transaction is closed. Under most circumstances the Title Company will usually not let the transaction close unless they can give clear title to the new owner. Perhaps they are holding your funds pending your signature on their indemnity document, and once you do sign and get the funds, then title will be clear.
Again, without the full background on everything, I can only answer in generalities. I do recommend that you talk to the title company and/or the escrow company involved in this transaction to get better answers to your questions.
Man and wife are both recipients of property, a house and lot, and both are listed on the deed, i.e. – To John Doe and Jane Doe. Husband John Doe is incapacitated and a son of the couple holds John Doe’s general POA. Wife and mother Jane Doe wants to sell the property without the signature of the POA son, for personal reasons. Using the deed as is, can the sale of property be accomplished without the POA signature? Can the deed be revised to show Jane Doe as sole owner so the sale can be accomplished without the POA signature?
Dear Michael,
Thank you for your question on our website.
Once the property ownership deed has been recorded at the County Recorder’s office, the public records will show the property as the joint property of both husband and wife. At that time, to sell the property will require signatures of both parties, and if the husband is incapacitated, then the son with the power of attorney will need to sign.
If, by chance, the deed has not been recorded at the County Recorder’s office, you can ask the Grantor if he is willing to re-sign a new deed to show Jane Doe as sole Grantee/future owner. However, if the property is in California, under our community property laws, Jane’s husband will need to sign a Quitclaim Deed to acknowledge his relinquishing of any interest he may have in order for her to sell the property and give clear title to a Buyer. No matter what you won’t be able to not involve the husband or his representative.
Let us know if you have further questions. Thank you!
I hold a note on property “A”. The homeowner of property “A” is going to sell me the property for the full amount of the note. What form do I need to get his name off the note??
Mr. Evanko,
Thank you for your question. It sounds like you have a “Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure” scenario, in which instead of payment on the Note, the Owner/Borrower returns the property to the Beneficiary in lieu of the Beneficiary foreclosing on it. This type of a transaction is a little different from a standard sale/purchase. The Owner, will need to give you a Grant Deed with certain language type in for the “Deed in Lieu” part. You, as the Beneficiary, will need to issue a Reconveyance to eliminate the loan (and “get his name off the Note”) assuming that the Note is secured by a Deed of Trust on the property.
In situations like yours you need to determine if the Owner owes another loan that you have to take care of once you have the property or if there are other liens and judgments that affect the property . I highly recommend that an escrow transaction be opened and a policy of title insurance be purchased in order to protect your interests in the property. You won’t know what has transpired on the property without a thorough search of the chain of title.
Please do give us a call if you have further questions and if you need to open a transaction.
Again, thank you for your question. It is a very good one!
To Whom it May Concern,
I would like to know if the company handles vacation ownership/timeshare sales and closing escrow.
Please advise. Thank you!
Mr. Wong, thank you for checking out our website and leaving your question. Unfortunately, we do not handle timeshare sales, and I actually don’t know an Escrow Officer who has experience in it. I can ask around, though. Usually, there are certain companies who sell timeshares and they have their particular escrow companies who help them with their transactions. Let me know if I can be of further help.
Hi,
It has been a year since I purchase a house through your escrow company. I would like to add my wife’s name to the property title. Someone pointed to me that an escrow company will be able to do that. Could you tell me how? Thank you.
Thank you for posting your question and using our escrow services. Adding your wife to the ownership of your home is just a matter of preparing and signing a Grant Deed. You can prepare it yourself by accessing the Grant Deed form on our website under “Forms” http://www.vivaescrow.com/wp-content/themes/thesis_18/custom/pdf/GRANTDEED.pdf . Use your present deed as the starting point, with you as the “Grantor” and you and your wife as the “Grantee”. Call us directly at (626) 744-1684, and we will walk you through this! – Juliana
Juliana,
The loan amount is $200K so the title insurance would be around $400?
Thanks
Albert,
After asking around we have a title company who can charge you as follows:
Title insurance $450.00
Sub Escrow $25.00
Wire fee $30.00
Recording fee $65 flat fee (no matter how many pages)
Thanks for your question.
I am refinancing my single family house in Arcadia. How much do you charge for escrow & settlement services? Could you give me a quote on title insurance also?
Thanks
Dear Albert,
Thank you for your interest in our escrow services. Here are the fees that are normally charged in a refinance transaction:
Escrow fee – $550.00 (for loan amount up to $800,000)
Notary fee – $80 to $179 (the higher cost is if you require a mobile notary)
Handling Payoff/Demand fee $50.00 (if there are any loans to payoff)
Drawing Documents $50.00 (if any extra documents are needed)
Messenger/FedEx fee $80.00 (for transmitting of loan documents)
Wire of net proceeds – $35.00 (if you require net proceeds to be wired to you at closing)
Recording fees – $120.00
Title Insurance premium – based on the new loan amount.
Example – for $500,000 loan – $935.00, for $800,000 – $1,210.00
Title sub-escrow fee – $125.00
Title wire fee – $30.00
Please call us (626) 584-9999 directly or post if you have any further questions. The Escrow fee and Title Insurance premium may vary a little from company to company, but you will find that it is “SERVICE” that is important and we have a reputation for good service in this community.
To Whom It May Concern: I’m interested in learning how to do Escrows, and would like to know if you train and/or hiring. I have a current/valid California Real Estate License. Thank you.
Hello Sonique,
Thank you for posting your questions.
There are 2 ways to get escrow training, on the job training and training classes by The Escrow Training Institute http://escrow-eti.com/index.htm.
Currently, we don’t have any opening for escrow related position. http://escrowboard.net/ is a great site to search escrow related jobs.
You can also learn a lot from the information posted on our site. Please use the same “ask your qeustions” link http://www.vivaescrow.com/ask-your-questions if you do have escrow related questions and we’d be happy to answer them.
Best regards,
Ken Ma, Operations Manager
Hi,
I am in the process of purchasing a short sale property, and our closing date is in two days. I found out yesterday, this will be delayed due to a tax lien on the property. I have fulfilled all my responsibilities, and my lender is ready to fund the loan. I am definitely not the expert, which is why I am here, but I think there is some negligence on somebody’s part. The problem is, my lock will expire in one day, which was planned to match that of the escrow closing date. Ironically enough, the escrow company was leaning on my buying agent, and my lender to make sure everything is turned in on time, as there would be no extensions granted. now I am in limbo, and risk paying either more points on a loan, and I don’t know what else. What recourse do I have as a buyer? I believe my buying agent is doing everything she can.
Hello Brian,
Thank you for leaving a question on our website. With reference to your short sale transaction, my recommendation is that you immediately check with your loan agent as to how much an extension to your loan will cost and if there are any other fees. Add this additional cost in to your present cost and purchase price. Is the end result still within the parameters of what you feel the property is worth? If so, extend your commitment. If not, then request a cancellation with funds to be returned to you. The Short Sale Addendum that is normally attached to a Short Sale Purchase Contract should give you protection in case escrow can’t close due to situations like this.
You mentioned that there will be no extensions? If the Short Sale Lender will not agree to an extension then the issue of the tax lien that came up has to be resolved. Who will pay? Will the Short Sale lender be willing to pay the amount? Are you going to be asked to pay this tax lien? All this needs to be considered. This tax lien may have been filed recently and not picked up by the Title Company until just now. In a short sale transaction the liens against the Seller and the property can be very fluid due to the situation the Seller finds himself in, therefore, finding a tax lien at the last moment is not that unusual. It is unfortunate, but not unusual. Purchasing on a short sale basis is not easy. The ultimate question you need to ask is: Is the property and the amount you are paying worth your time, effort and cost?
Hopefully I was able to give you some scenarios. I would be more than happy to talk to you in person if you have further questions. With regards, Juliana Tu, Escrow Manager.
What counties in California now require a Documentary Transfer Tax Affidavit?
Dear Ruth,
Thank you for posting a question on our website.
With reference to the counties that require Transfer Tax Affidavits, they are as follows at this time:
El Dorado, Merced, Riverside, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Solano
Mind you, this may change as other counties pick up on this idea. We have just posted the list with weblinks to the county sites as well as other information we garnered on our website under: http://www.vivaescrow.com/for-your-convenience/faq/transfer-tax-affidavits, for your convenience!
Regards, Juliana Tu, Escrow Manager