A lady bird deed, also known as an enhanced life estate deed, is a deed used in Florida that enables real estate to transfer at the death of an owner to a beneficiary named in the deed. As an example, if grandma owns a house that she wants her only son to inherit, grandma could sign a lady bird deed that says she owns the property for life, and when she passes away, her son automatically inherits grandma’s house.
Primary Benefit – Lady bird deeds are an inexpensive way to appoint beneficiaries to inherit real estate and at the same time avoid probate.
How it works – The lady bird deed is prepared, the owner signs the deed, the deed is then recorded in the public record. The owner retains ownership of the property for the life of the owner. The owner may sell, use, and mortgage the property during the owner’s lifetime and no consent from the beneficiary is required. The owner may also cancel the lady bird deed or change the beneficiary at any time by signing a new deed.
Once the owner dies, the appointed beneficiary automatically inherits the property. To prove the beneficiary inherited the property, the beneficiary can provide the owner’s death certificate. For instance, if the beneficiary wanted to sell the property, the beneficiary would need to provide the closing agent the owner’s death certificate, which would be recorded at closing.