A few Advantages of Homesteading Your Property

Living Trust

A trust is an arrangement in which one or more people manage or take care of property for someone else's benefit. A living trust is a trust that is created during your lifetime. In other words, while you are still alive, you transfer title to your property from your name to that of the trustee of the living trust. You can use the trust to gather your property under one document, so that the property is distributed efficiently after your death.

Public Notary

A Notary Public is an official of integrity appointed by state government —typically by the secretary of state — to serve the public as an impartial witness in performing a variety of official fraud-deterrent acts related to the signing of important documents. These official acts are called notarizations, or notarial acts. Notaries are publicly commissioned as “ministerial” officials, meaning that they are expected to follow written rules without the exercise of significant personal discretion, as would otherwise be the case with a "judicial" official.

Loan

Written or oral agreement for a temporary transfer of a property (usually cash) from its owner (the lender) to a borrower who promises to return it according to the terms of the agreement, usually with interest for its use. If the loan is repayable on the demand of the lender, it is called a demand loan. If repayable in equal monthly payments, it is an installment loan. If repayable in lump sum on the loan's maturity (expiration) date, it is a time loan. Banks further classify their loans into other categories such as consumer, commercial, and industrial loans, construction and mortgage loans, and secured and unsecured loans. Read more: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/loan.html

What Are the Advantages of Homesteading Your Property?

Homeowners have access to filing a homestead exemption. Basically, a homestead exemption allows you the homeowner to protect the value of your principal residence from creditors and property taxes. A homestead exemption can also protect a surviving spouse when the other homeowner dies.

Property Taxes

A homeowner’s understanding when it comes to homesteading their property most often has to do with the property-tax exemption. This advantage of homesteading pertains to protecting a portion of a home’s value from property taxes. A typical homesteading advantage is that it will exempt the first $25,000 to $75,000 of a home’s value from all property taxes. With a $50,000 homesteading exemption, you’ll only owe property taxes on the home’s remaining assessed value.

Forced Sale Immunity

With a homestead exemption, your home is shielded from a forced sale to satisfy creditors. The lender financing your automobile can’t force the sale of your home if you default on your auto loan. Homestead exemptions, however, don’t normally shield your home from forced sale in mortgage foreclosures or from defaulted property taxes.

Surviving Spouse Advantages

State homestead laws vary, but surviving spouses under homestead laws retain the homestead right to their homes for life. For surviving spouses, as long as they use and occupy the homesteaded property, they won’t lose homestead rights. Surviving spouses on homesteaded properties, though, must make any mortgage and other payments due in order to retain their homesteading rights.

Homestead Requirements

In order to declare a homestead on your home, it must be your principal residence. Your homestead exemption and its advantages last until you effectively abandon the homestead, too. Commonly, you abandon an old homestead when you declare another home your new homestead.

Durable Power of Attorney