​​​​​T​OD Deeds – Vlog September 2024

Hi, my name is Steve Bennett, and I am going to discuss a recent change in New York law that may impact your estate planning.  Many clients want to know the best way to transfer real property to their children or other beneficiaries.  There are many options including through your Last Will and Testament, via a life estate deed, through a trust, or by deed directly to your desired beneficiary.  Each of these methods have pros and cons associated with them.  This new law adds another option called a transfer on death deed, which allows a person to automatically transfer their real property to designated beneficiaries upon such person’s death without having to go through probate.  Essentially, a transfer on death deed works similar to a beneficiary designation on a life insurance policy or on a retirement account.  The property remains the property of the original owner during the owner’s life as the transfer does not take effect until the passing of the original owner.  The owner may revoke the transfer at any time or may change the recipient or beneficiary of that property prior to death.  If you are thinking about updating your estate plan, you may want to discuss with your estate planning attorney here at Evans Fox whether you should include a transfer on death deed in your plan.