Is there any way I can keep my home out of Probate at my death?

Answer 1

depends on the reason and what exactly you mean by probate.

Probate is not that bad.

Possibly by a joint tenancy with a right of survivorship. this may be a gift which may be taxable.

Answer 2

Sure, transfer it before you die.

Any property you own at the time of your death goes through probate. There are usually only two exceptions.

First, in many community property states, property owned by the spouses as community property automatically goes to the other spouse, bypassing probate. This is by no means universal, however, so check your local laws.

The other way, which is pretty much universal, is to have the property in joint ownership with rights of survivorship. What that means is that you own the property with someone else, and whoever dies first, the other person automatically gets it. That also bypasses probate.

Other than that, any property you own goes through probate on your death. You can have a will to make it simple, or set up trusts to work around that, but all of the ways to streamline the process involve legal paperwork.

Answer 3

Joint tenancy with right of survivorship, or put the property in a living trust. A trust involves legal paperwork, but you don't necessarily need an attorney. A good self-help book or a legal document assistant (LDA) can help you get the job done.

Answer 4

You can sign up for a reverse mortgage. You can gift your home to someone, but in most cases this will need to be done at least 5 years before your demise. If your intent was to will the home to someone, this is a good choice.

Answer 5

turn it to your kids with a living estate tenancy for you.