Texas Elder Law: Understanding Lady Bird Deeds

When looking for the best way to pass any type of real estate, including your home, on to your loved ones when the time comes, it is a good idea to consider a lady bird deed, also known as an enhanced life estate deed. Lady bird deeds are a great way to help your loved ones avoid the costs and difficulties of going through the probate process in order to get their inheritance. This particular type of deed, however, offers you a variety of other important benefits while you’re still alive.

Benefits of a Lady Bird Deed

Having a lady bird deed will provide you with a variety of great benefits that you can take advantage of for years before it is time for your home to pass on to your heirs. The following are some of the most important benefits:

  • Avoiding Probate – As mentioned above, lady bird deeds don’t need to go through the probate process.
  • Use the Property – Some types of deeds make it so you can’t use or profit from the property while you’re still living. Lady bird deeds, on the other hand, allow you to use the property in virtually any way you would like.
  • Sell the Property – Should you desire, you can still sell the property that was put into a lady bird deed. This option is taken off the table with many standard life estate deeds.
  • Avoid Gift Taxes – Gifting property to a loved one before your death often comes with a significant ‘gift tax’ that will need to be paid. Lady bird deeds help to avoid that expense entirely.

Protection from Loss of Medicaid Eligibility

One of the biggest advantages of a lady bird deed is that the property listed won’t be counted toward your available assets when it comes to qualifying for Medicaid. In most cases, it even means that the property can’t be sold in order to repay your Medicaid debt after you are gone. Should you ever require the services of a long term care facility, this advantage could help you to avoid having to sell your property to pay for the care until you qualify for Medicaid.

Get Help with Your Lady Bird Deed

If you think a lady bird deed might be right for you, or even if you just have a few questions you would like answered, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Amsberry Law. When you contact us we will go through all your options and help you to determine whether or not a lady bird deed is the right choice for you.

Attorney Russell Amsberry

Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry

Attorney Russell J.G. Amsberry founded the Amsberry Law Firm in 1995 with the goal of providing clients with exceptional, focused representation on their issues. His success as a legal advocate has been reflected in the numerous professional honors he has received, such as speaking engagements and inclusion in Scene in SA magazine’s listing of the best lawyers in San Antonio, a Distinguished rating from Martindale-Hubble, and an amazing rating from Avvo. [ Attorney Bio ]

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Amsberry Law Firm

The Amsberry Law Firm, founded in 1995, has helped thousands of clients overcome their unique legal challenges.

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