If you recently purchased a home in Florida which is your permanent residence, now is the time to file for your homestead tax exemption. March 1st is the application deadline for filing in order to receive the exemption for 2016.
I just received a call from a local realtor. She was understandably concerned because a purchase and sale transaction she was working on had stalled. The reason: the property was owned by an unmarried couple and one of the partners had recently died.
Bob and Suzy get divorced. Suzy has an adult child, Annie, from a prior relationship. As part of the marital settlement agreement, Bob is supposed to sign a deed conveying his interest in their homestead to Suzy. Suzy is supposed to get a new home loan in her individual name.
A commonly asked question is, “Should I own my homestead in my trust?” Generally, the answer is, “No.” This is not because of your ad valorem homestead exemption or even your Constitutional protection from the claims of creditors. It is not because we don’t want you to avoid probate.
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The Law Offices of Hoyt & Bryan is Central Florida’s leading estate planning and elder law firm and the only Florida law firm with two attorneys board certified in both Wills, Trusts and Estates as well as in Elder Law. We were founded in 1999 and our main office is located in the heart of historic Oviedo, Florida.
