Does Dissolution of Marriage automatically effect Severance of Joint Tenancy in California?

[barnyardo]

Jurisdiction

California

Divorced and kept rental property together. I remarried this year and want to leave my share to new wife. Do I have to clear title with Notice of Severance, Transfer up death deed or whatever to effect my wishes. or did the dissolution automatically revert Title to Tenancy in Common?
Does Dissolution of Marriage automatically effect Severance of Joint Tenancy in California? Or do I need to do something to clear title to enable me to put my share into a Living Trust?

 

[army judge]

Divorced and kept rental property together. I remarried this year and want to leave my share to new wife. Do I have to clear title with Notice of Severance, Transfer up death deed or whatever to effect my wishes. or did the dissolution automatically revert Title to Tenancy in Common?
Does Dissolution of Marriage automatically effect Severance of Joint Tenancy in California? Or do I need to do something to clear title to enable me to put my share into a Living Trust?

If you and another person own property together, you don't own the property.

If you wish to pass your share of a property to another entity, you must outlive said entity, and are free to convey your interest in the property by will or living trust.

The answers you seek will not be found on the internet.

A person would need to read the current deed (maybe the original conveyance), the divorce decree, and establish other facts in order to accurately answer your query.

Bottom line, it is possible to convey ownership in real property upon one's death to another entity.

There are many ways to convey that interest.

 

[zddoodah]

Does Dissolution of Marriage automatically effect Severance of Joint Tenancy in California?

did the dissolution automatically revert Title to Tenancy in Common?

No.

Do I have to clear title with Notice of Severance, Transfer up death deed or whatever to effect my wishes.

"Transfer up death deed"? In order for your current wife to receive your interest in property you hold in joint tenancy with your ex-wife, you will need to destroy the joint tenancy. How best to effect that is something you ought to discuss with an estate planning attorney.

 

[barnyardo]

No.



"Transfer up death deed"? In order for your current wife to receive your interest in property you hold in joint tenancy with your ex-wife, you will need to destroy the joint tenancy. How best to effect that is something you ought to discuss with an estate planning attorney.

Hi there thanks for the reply. I think i figured it out with the help of a few including you. I need to destroy joint tenancy and establish tenants in common 50/50 share. Then transfer my share to Trust Fund. Only question now is....will it trigger a re-assessment with Alameda County. Benson Vs. Marin County 2013 219 CA4th 1445, it did, and the county prevailed on appeal. The plot thickens. Any ideas?

 

[barnyardo]

If you and another person own property together, you don't own the property.

If you wish to pass your share of a property to another entity, you must outlive said entity, and are free to convey your interest in the property by will or living trust.

The answers you seek will not be found on the internet.

A person would need to read the current deed (maybe the original conveyance), the divorce decree, and establish other facts in order to accurately answer your query.

Bottom line, it is possible to convey ownership in real property upon one's death to another entity.

There are many ways to convey that interest.

Hi there thanks for the reply. I think i figured it out with the help of a few including you. I need to destroy joint tenancy and establish tenants in common 50/50 share. Then transfer my share to Trust Fund. Only question now is....will it trigger a re-assessment with Alameda County. Benson Vs. Marin County 2013 219 CA4th 1445, it did and the county prevailed on appeal. The plot thickens. Any ideas?

 

[army judge]

Hi there thanks for the reply. I think i figured it out with the help of a few including you. I need to destroy joint tenancy and establish tenants in common 50/50 share. Then transfer my share to Trust Fund. Only question now is....will it trigger a re-assessment with Alameda County. Benson Vs. Marin County 2013 219 CA4th 1445, it did and the county prevailed on appeal. The plot thickens. Any ideas?

Think of it this way, mate.

If it does trigger higher taxes, your former spouse gets her share increased, too.

Have you considered gifting your share to she 1?

That eliminates any liability to pay taxes and she 1 is likely to get socked with several tax increases.

If you do this, she 1 is probably not going to get along with she 2.

Joint tenancies tend not to work that well.

The exception seems to be with spouses, while one awaits the other's death.

 

[barnyardo]

Think of it this way, mate.

If it does trigger higher taxes, your former spouse gets her share increased, too.

Have you considered gifting your share to she 1?

That eliminates any liability to pay taxes and she 1 is likely to get socked with several tax increases.

If you do this, she 1 is probably not going to get along with she 2.

Joint tenancies tend not to work that well.

The exception seems to be with spouses, while one awaits the other's death.

Sorry. the pretext to the whole story is...my ex and my current get along well. my ex is leaving her half to me if she dies anyway. I am leaving my half to my current wife, (which is fine with my ex) and if we both (me and the current wife) die , my ex gets it all. If i die first, my current wife gets my half and then if she dies before the ex, she leaves her half (she's got bucks of her own!) to my ex. Also i she dies i get hers and will leave the house to my ex. So we are one happy family.
problem is i don't want encumber anyone with unnecessary property taxes, as my ex and i are keeping the property as is (it's a 4 plex rental with income that benefits us both in retirement). In regards to board of equalization rules that the counties adhere to, we (my ex and i) are both original transferrors. so if it goes to my current wife after i die, it definitely gets reassessed I am told. thanks for your reply. you are right my current might not appreciate gifting to my ex.

 

[barnyardo]

Hi there thanks for the reply. I think i figured it out with the help of a few including you. I need to destroy joint tenancy and establish tenants in common 50/50 share. Then transfer my share to Trust Fund. Only question now is....will it trigger a re-assessment with Alameda County. Benson Vs. Marin County 2013 219 CA4th 1445, it did, and the county prevailed on appeal. The plot thickens. Any ideas?

some pretext to the whole story is...my ex and my current get along well. my ex is leaving her half to me if she dies anyway. I am leaving my half to my current wife, (which is fine with my ex) and if we both (me and the current wife) die , my ex gets it all. If i die first, my current wife gets my half and then if she dies before the ex, she leaves her half (she's got bucks of her own!) to my ex. Also i she dies i get hers and will leave the house to my ex. So we are one happy family.
problem is i don't want to encumber anyone with unnecessary property taxes, as my ex and i are keeping the property as is (it's a 4 plex rental with income that benefits us both in retirement, for that matter, my current also). In regards to board of equalization rules that the counties adhere to, we (my ex and i) are both original transferrors. so if it goes to my current wife after i die, it definitely gets reassessed I am told. my current might not appreciate gifting to my ex.

 

[zddoodah]

will it trigger a re-assessment with Alameda County.

I would not expect the destruction of a joint tenancy would trigger a reassessment. I am certain that transferring an interest into a revocable trust does not trigger a reassessment.

I haven't read and don't intend to read any case authority, so this is something you ought to discuss with an estate planning attorney.