Property Transfer – Thinking About Transferring Your Properties To Your Children?

• 3 August 2016
• Blog

An increasing number of people are transferring their properties to their children as a part of their estate plan. As house prices shoot up, increasing the total value of individuals’ net wealth, this is something that is of rising concern. People don’t want the taxman to take the majority of their assets once they pass away. With that being said, we are going to take a look at property transfer to children in further detail below.

The main reason why most parents are interested in real estate transfer is so that they can lower the amount of inheritance tax paid upon their death. International inheritance tax can be a complicated matter, which is why it is advisable to do all in your power to minimise the assets that are going to be subject to this. Additionally, there are those interested in transferring their property simply because they want to gift it to one of their kids. This is a more straightforward matter; you are giving your property to your children for them to treat it as their own.

But, what about when you need a real estate transfer but want to stay in control while you are still here? Needless to say, there are some risks involved, which you do need to be aware of. Firstly, you are going to be giving up control, and, therefore, trust is of paramount importance. Your child could sell the property without your permission, yet you won’t be able to sell it without theirs.

Moreover, you do need to consider outside parties. If your son or daughter was to get divorced, for example, then the ex-spouse would have a legitimate claim against their estate, and this would include your property. For this reason, it is important to consider the situation of your children with care, and to use the services of experts who can help you to enter a property transfer agreement whereby you are offered as much protection as possible.