This article is about whether a personal lien, like a lien for child support, can attach to real estate. This is important because property can be used as collateral for debt voluntarily or involuntarily. This means the owner of the property uses the property as collateral by having a lien placed on it. What is…
Continue reading ›Exceptions in a title report, also called a preliminary title report, make a potential buyer aware of issues with the property. Exceptions are important as they may limit what title insurance a buyer is eligible for and may prevent the sale of property altogether. What is a title report? A title report is used when…
Continue reading ›An Assembly bill applying to decedents’ estates was finalized on August 29, 2024. The bill will amend six sections of the Probate Code (Cal. Prob. Code § 13100-13101, 13150-13152, 13154) and repeal one section (Prob. Code § 13158). This is significant because it impacts how successors of decedents can manage a decedent’s real property. Specifically,…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain about the legal concept of a title defect. Finding defects in the title of a property is important because it indicates there is a problem with the property’s ownership. Title defects can prevent sale and present additional costs to owners and buyers. What is a title defect?…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain the term “color of title.” This is an important concept in real property disputes because it means some has apparent title to property based on a written instrument, but that title is actually defective. What is Required to Show Color of Title? Color of title gives the…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain “arm’s length transactions” in real estate in California. This concept is important because this type of transaction or sale for property may affect the deed or contract surrounding the transaction. It also affects property taxes and the value of a property at the time of sale. What…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain the ownership presumption in a probate dispute. This is because property ownership can cause disputes even after death, which must be resolved in the probate or civil courts. (Schlyen v. Schlyen (1954) 43 Cal.2d 361, 370–371.) Specifically, the understanding of how marriage affects ownership presumptions in probate…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explore the finer distinctions between deeds and contracts. In California law, a deed is one of the most powerful legal documents that any person will ever handle, but there is very little in the public domain available about them in order to understand them better. Moreover, unlike other…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain what a Qualified Personal Residence Trust (QPRT) is. A QPRT is an irrevocable trust which allows the creator, the grantor, to move a home out of their personal estate. This is done to give the home to a future beneficiary with gift tax savings. This is important…
Continue reading ›The purpose of this article is to explain what a Transfer on Death (TOD) Deed is. TOD Deeds are meant to allowing people, especially elderly people, to transfer their residential property. These deeds are meant make it easier and less expensive to transfer that property without needing a will or living trust that would go…
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