Individuals and Law Firms have access to asset search databases. A law firm often has a subscription to a database service. If a law firm wants to check out a case they will pay, on average between $150 to $375 for a public records asset search. Unless you’ve invested some effort in having your name removed from the title documents of the house you own, the rentals you own, or the land you might own, your real property assets will likely be found anywhere in the United States.

How Do I get My Name Off My Home Title?

There are a couple ways. All perfectly legal. All commonly done by skilled estate planning lawyers and experienced tax law attorneys. Attorney Jonathan Watts is both.

One way is a land trust ( a grantor Trust) whereby you separate the title holder from the beneficial use and enjoyment. If a trust holds only real estate, it can be referred to as a ‘land trust’. Land Trusts are valid and legal in all 50 states where a ‘land trust’ falls under Grantor Trusts. As of this web page writing, eight states memorialize the term ‘land trusts’ by legal statutes including: Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Montana, South Dakota and Virginia. Other examples of Grantor Trusts include: Land Trust, Personal Property Trust, Revocable or ‘Living’ Trusts (sometimes referred to as an “inter vivos” trust a trust created while you are alive).

A Land Trust is set up just to hold title. The name on the title (say: 476 Family Trust) is different than who gets to enjoy the ‘beneficial use’ of the real property. The beneficiaries of the Land Trust is specified in the Trust. If you already have a Living Trust, you are aware that the originator of the living trust is you, and the trustee and beneficiary(s) of the living trust are often you as well — until your demise where you specify a successor trustee. Similarly, the beneficiary of a ‘land trust’ can be you. As the beneficiary, you can choose to make the stated beneficiary publicly known, or choose to keep that private. Obviously, if our goal is to keep your name out of searchable public records, we will choose to keep that private.

If you’ve been told that asset protection by land trust will ‘freak out’ your mortgage lender such that they call your loan due and payable, you are misinformed. Mortgage lenders understand their clients live in a litigious world and land trust asset protections are commonly employed by savvy clients with tax law and estate planning representation and legal in all 50 states. There are some subtleties, and your want to pay attention to detail when changing any grand deed or title documents.

You might wonder. How private is this asset protection strategy? The whole idea in legal asset protection efforts is to shield your assets from plain view. Your mortgage company knows the facts. The IRS knows the facts. A court proceeding could uncover the facts. We are not assisting you in being sketchy nor devious. We are helping our clients take the best-practice, legal steps to shield their assets from those who seek out potential victims as well as preventing trolling law firms from including you as Defendant #32 in some legal action where the law frim and their plaintiff client(s) are searching for deep pocket defendants that might have been near an accident scene one random day.

Privacy Concerns from Patients, Clients, Employees & Stalkers

Moreover, if you are a celebrity, constantly chased by paparazzi, sports figure, politician, surgeon, judge, police officer, owner of a business, criminal law attorney, victim of domestic violence, therapist, or mental health professional, you have multiple reasons whereby you might want to keep your home address and other assets private.

Keeping your private life out of the searchable public records database is both legal and smart. Non celebrities and us ordinary people are but an unfortunate car accident away from your insurance policy coming up short and not covering the damages to where shielding your home and other assets form being targeted by a law firm with the goal of taking your assets from you. In the case of a possible Personal Injury accident case, much better if the law firm’s initial asset search does not show your vacation cabin and 4-plex rental property you worked your entire life to own for retirement. If you have a pro-active prudent desire to keep your name, addresses and assets PRIVATE, we can assist you in doing so legally and smoothly.

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