As people in Tennessee age, their focus in life changes. What they needed to be concerned about when they were younger and raising their children is no longer a concern. One of the ways their focus may shift is that people start thinking more about what will happen when they pass away. They may start thinking about how they will pass on their property to their children to try and make sure that their children are taken care of after they pass away.
As people go through the estate planning process, they will learn about the various options that are available and many hope to make the distribution process as easy as possible for their children. Many times, that means that they will try and set things up so their children can avoid the probate process and figuring out how to pass their house on to their children is an important step in avoiding that process.
Do’s and don’ts for passing a house onto children
There are different ways to pass a house onto children, but some are better than others. People should avoid simply adding just one child to the title of the house while they are still living. Doing this can create unintended problems and it forces parents to rely on their children to do the right things both while they are alive and after they pass away.
By being put on the title, a child could force a sale while the parents are still living or the child may not divide the house equally with their siblings after the parents pass away despite that being the parents’ wishes.
Other options may be better for people. People could sell the house to children instead of simply adding a child to the title. People could also gift the house to the children, but there are tax consequences that people need to be aware of before they do this.
Another option would be to put the house in certain irrevocable trusts, allowing the parents to continue living there for a period of time before the house transfers to the children. People could also transfer the property to a revocable trust instead. Using this type of trust gives people more control over the house while they are living and then transfers it to the children upon their death.
The estate planning process can be complicated and people in Tennessee have many options based on what they want to have happen with their property. Experienced attorneys understand these options and may be able to guide them through the process.