Why Would I Want to Avoid Probate?
Video Summary
Why would I want to avoid probate? The primary reason most folks want to avoid probate is the expense involved. Also, there is some delay as far as the distribution of the decedent’s assets if you have to go through a probate proceeding, and so the probate proceeding is designed to make sure that the creditors are paid and the property is distributed to beneficiaries designated by a Will or a Trust. So, there is ways to avoid probate by how you retitle your assets or possibly set up a Trust. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
How Can I Simplify Probate?
Video Summary
How can I simplify probate in Florida? Well, the best way to do it is to do estate planning and to avoid probate entirely, and that can be done on how you title your assets and designate beneficiaries. As far as your assets are concerned, the probate is the legal term, which refers to the legal process involved when someone passes away to have their assets transferred to the appropriate beneficiaries under a Will or if they don’t have a Will under the Florida statutes. That also is to protect the creditors, so the creditors can be paid. There are several forms of probate and there’s that depending on whether or not there’s creditors, and also depending on the value of the estate as to whether or not those can be utilized. But the best way to simplify probate is to avoid it entirely, which can be done through estate planning. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
How Long Do I Have to Contest a Will?
Video Summary
How long do I have to contest a Will? In Florida you have, I believe it’s four months from the date, the receipt of the notice of administration, I believe it’s for, it may be three months, but you have to file if you’re given that notice, even before the Will is admitted to probate. If you’ve given the notice before it’s admitted to probate, the time period is much shorter. It is either 20 or 30 days to contest the Will, so it’s all triggered by when you first received the notice. That as far as the will being admitted to probate or if it has been admitted to probate the notice of administration. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
I Bought Land That’s Now Landlocked Due to a Dispute Between Neighbors?
Video Summary
I bought land that’s now landlocked due to a dispute between neighbors to the south and the north walking the road on both sides. What can I do? Well, the first thing you need to do is contact a real estate attorney to check into this. Whenever you go to see the attorney, you need to take with you the closing documents that you received when you purchased the property to see if you have a title insurance policy. The title insurance policy guarantees you legal access to the property. The attorney would then review that and then he will need to determine if this easement as to whether or not it exists. And he’ll probably have to order title searches on both your neighbor’s property to the north and the south to see about getting a copy of this easement once he gets to see about the easement, the width, and its use and why it’s established.
And see if your property is the property that was intended to access or be an easement to for ingress and egress. And if it was, well, then you have a cause of action against the property owners who are blocking the easement if it was intended for your use. If however, you did not have an easement to your property and you had title insurance, you have a claim against their titled insurance company for them to see about gaining access for you. In the event that you don’t have titled insurance and you don’t have an easement, there are a couple of statu whereby you can file an action for a statutory way of necessity, and that’s where you would have to buy the property to the nearest route, to the nearest county or state road to gain access. It’s a little bit complicated as far as that’s concerned, but if you have any questions about it, you can give me a call at (727) 847-2288.
- Published in Real Estate, Videos
What Happens if Someone Doesn’t Claim Their Inheritance?
Video Summary
What happens if someone doesn’t claim their inheritance? Well, if it’s a stocks or money and bank accounts, anything such as that, then after a certain period of time, the company turns the property over to the state of Florida and it’s held in an account for unclaimed property under the person’s name who’s entitled to it, and I think it’s called the Treasure Hunt, but I’m not a 100% sure. But if it’s with that, if you Google Unclaimed Property Secretary of State of Florida, you’ll go to the website and list all the various names that their property there, and there’s any number of companies that try and contact folks to see about getting that for you for a fee. If it’s real property and they don’t ever take charge of it or receive it or have it probated and put in their name, then it is usually just lost for taxes. And so,after a certain number of years, the tax is not being paid, then it’ll be sold on a tax deed sale. That’s what happens if you don’t collect your inheritance. If you have any questions, give me a call at (727) 847-2288.