Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates, Los Angeles, California

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates, Los Angeles, California
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Showing posts with label form. Show all posts

Saturday, January 1, 2022

How to File Your Own Lady Bird Deed Real Estate by Mary Cummins Real Estate Appraiser Legal Expert

Lady Bird Deed, ladybird deed, enhanced life estate, revocable, real estate, trust, estate, deed, form, free, texas, vermont, west virginia, mary cummins, real estate appraiser
Lady Bird Deed, ladybird deed, enhanced life estate, revocable, real estate, trust, estate, deed, form, free, texas, vermont, west virginia, mary cummins, real estate appraiser

 

A "Lady Bird Deed" is also known as an "Enhanced Life Estate Deed." The deed allows the person owning the property, the life estate, to have full control over their property for life. They can terminate or change the deed at any time because it's revocable. The owner of the property has full continued power and authority over their assets without the involvement of the beneficiary. Without such a deed the owner would not be able to mortgage, sell the property or give it to someone else. 

In my experience the main purpose of such a deed is when a parent wants to leave their home to their child/children to avoid probate and eliminate transfer taxes. Prior to the Lady Bird Deed the transfer was irrevocable. That means you could never retract the deed if say your child mistreated you or became involved with elements such as drugs, gambling, debt, prison or a person, marriage you didn't feel was in their best interest. With the Lady Bird Deed you have full control of the property and can change your mind and take it back any time you like. 

The main estate and tax reasons to use a Lady Bird Deed are of course to avoid probate and taxes. The deed automatically transfers the property to the designated beneficiary upon death of the original owner avoiding probate. Because of the way assets are classified through the usage of a lady bird deed, anything left to a family member is termed an “incomplete gift” for tax purposes. This classification comes with two important benefits. "First, because of their incomplete status, these assets do not have any gift tax associated with them – there’s no need for the beneficiary to file a gift tax return. Second, the assets are included in the deceased family member’s estate when they pass. Because of this, the property qualifies as adjusted – essentially removing any appreciation that may have occurred while the original owner still retained the asset, which means the new owners will not have to pay as much in income taxes if they decide to sell the property." There are also benefits it you apply for Medicaid. A Lady Bird Deed does not have to be disclosed as a transfer. 

If you ever change your mind about the deed, you can file a revocation document or a new deed giving, selling the property to someone else.

Legal Terms Used in a Lady Bird Deed

ESTATE IN REMAINDER - The estate which is owned after the owner of the life estate dies. If you own the home and Lady Bird deed it to your son, your son owns the estate in remainder after you die.

GRANTOR - The Grantor is the owner of the property who is giving the estate in remainder.

GRANTEE - The Grantee is the owner receiving the property or estate in remainder. The Beneficiary.

LEGAL DESCRIPTION - The legal description is generally what is included in the deed that legally describes the property which is the land. It is generally tract # x lot # x. "Tract # 5745 lot 300." If there is more than one portion of a lot, if could be longer such as "MONTROSE TRACT AS PER BK 5 PG 170 OF MAPS SE 40 FT OF LOT 14 AND ALL OF LOT 13." Farm land is even longer and more complex. 

LIFE ESTATE - The estate which is owned during the life of the owner of the estate. If you own the property and lady bird deed it to your daughter, you own the life estate. 

PROPERTY ADDRESS - The United States Postal Service address of the property. Example, 123 Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90012. 

How to File a Lady Bird Deed

Go to this link and download the pdf. You can also just use the text below and make your own form.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o_ztG6MHl6vhDpkERU8VOfJSGhtr71sD/view?usp=sharing

Fill out the form. 

Get it notarized by a licensed notary. Be sure to bring your identification. They may charge you $5 or $10 to notarize it but your bank may do it for free.

File the form with the County recorder where the property is located. 

Text from the form.

*******

Lady Bird Deed 

This Deed is made on this day of _______________, 20__, between the 

Grantor ______________________________ 

of address __________________________________________________ and the  

Grantee Beneficiary ______________________________ 

of address _________________________________________________. 

For good and valuable consideration paid by the Grantee Beneficiary, the receipt of which is hereby 

acknowledged, the Grantor does transfer and convey the following described property to the Grantee 

Beneficiary effective on the Grantor's death: 

Property Address: ______________________________________________________________ 

Legal Description: ______________________________________________________________ 

 _____________________________________________________________________________ 

 _____________________________________________________________________________ 

The Grantor reserves a life estate for himself/herself during the Grantor's lifetime coupled with an 

unrestricted power to convey during the Grantor's lifetime, which includes the power to sell, gift, 

mortgage, lease and otherwise dispose of the property, and to retain the proceeds from the 

conveyance. 

EXECUTED this day of _______________, 20__. 

Grantor Name: _________________________ 

Grantor Signature: ______________________

STATE OF _________________________ 

COUNTY OF _________________________ 

On this day, personally appeared before me, _________________________, to me known to be the 

person(s) described in and who executed the within instrument, and acknowledged that he/she signed 

the same as his/her voluntary act and deed, for the uses and purposes therein mentioned.

Witness my hand and official seal hereto affixed on this day of _______________, 20__. 

Notary's Public Signature: ______________________ 

*******

More information about the Lady Bird Deed here.

https://agrilife.org/texasaglaw/2019/11/22/enhanced-life-estate-deeds-aka-lady-bird-deeds/

Disclaimer: I am not an attorney. I am a licensed real estate broker, appraiser, expert with over 35 years of experience. I help people fill out basic real estate forms. If you need legal, estate or tax advice, please, contact a licensed attorney in your state. I'm in California. Lady Bird Deeds are recognized in Texas, Florida, Michigan, Vermont, and West Virginia.

Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate is a certified residential licensed appraiser in Los Angeles, California. Mary Cummins is licensed by the California Bureau of Real Estate appraisers and has over 35 years of experience.


Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary, Cummins, #marycummins #animaladvocates #losangeles #california #wildlife #wildliferehabilitation #wildliferehabilitator #realestate #realestateappraiser #realestateappraisal #lawsuit real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, certified, single family, condo, condominium, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, fha, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, brea insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, 1073, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls, historical appraisal, facebook, linkedin
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Thursday, August 29, 2019

1004P hybrid real estate appraisal report form analysis by Mary Cummins real estate appaiser

1004P appraisal form, report, 1004 p, mary cummins, real estate, appraisal, appraiser, los angeles, california, licensed, certified, cheap, affordable, 

UPDATE: 01/24/2021 1004P appraisals can now be used for more than just no cash out same bank refinances. Fannie Mae and others have agreed to accept bifurcated hybrid appraisals in some situations. 

01/02/2020 The original article was about the 1004P appraisal and the lender, investor, appraiser. I didn't talk about how it affects the homeowner trying to refinance. Obviously it can't be used for purchases as they are riskier.

Here's a good reason why a home owner should make sure they don't get a cheaper 1004P desktop appraisal. They can only be used for same bank refinance with no money out. If you want to take money out, use a different bank, get a second instead of refinancing the first, home is older, not in perfect condition, hasn't been sold on the MLS recently, large loan, hight LTV ratio, not the best credit, market is decreasing...you will need a regular 1004 appraisal. Lender charges borrower the same price for either one. Lender pockets more when they use a 1004P. Purpose of 1004P is so lender makes more money. It doesn't help the home owner who could end up having to pay for two appraisals. It also takes longer to have two appraisals. 

ORIGINAL: The 1004P hybrid appraisal report is a Fannie Mae real estate appraisal form and appraisal process. A licensed real estate agent or appraiser does the physical inspection of the subject property. Turns out that's not always the case today, 02/12/2022.  The AMC may send someone whom was only trained by a short prerecorded video online to do the inspection. They may not be a real estate expert, agent, appraiser or even someone who is at least licensed, bonded, insured or has passed a background check. You don't really want someone who hasn't passed a background check in your house, see article about home inspector and Elmo doll here. 

They measure/diagram the property, note materials/condition and take the photos of the subject to form their report. A licensed real estate appraiser takes that data, selects the appropriate comps and types up the finished appraisal. The appraisal clearly states that John Doe license # 12345 did the inspection, measured, took the photos and appraiser John Doe 2 license # 678910 completed the appraisal report.

When I first heard about the 1004P hybrid appraisal report I was skeptical for a few reasons. One, is a real estate agent qualified to inspect property for lending purposes? How would a real estate agent be able to recognize building and safety violations, be able to note condition of the home or even all of the materials? How well will they measure the home? Would it be legal gross living area or ANSI standardized measurements? Would their photos be good enough for the appraiser to see materials and condition? Two, how would one know if the inspection and photos are of the subject property? Three, can a proper appraisal be made using MLS comparable photos? That’s why I decided to research the 1004P.

Below is the actual 1004P appraisal form and the USPAP Compliance Addendum. As you can see the 1004P Appraiser’s Certification form states page five item 12 “I obtained the information, estimates, and opinions furnished by other parties and expressed in this appraisal report from reliable sources that I believe to be true and correct.” The USPAP Compliance Addendum clearly states who inspected the property, i.e. name, license number, E&O Insurance and who did not, i.e. the appraiser. The MLS photos used clearly have a stamp that says “CRMLS,” “TheMLS.”

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12Cpcr4YUWTc88ehXFfIHxRe9mvGxVCng/view?usp=sharing
I decided that I should do a sample 1004P report. I’m not posting that report as I have a horrible cyber stalker who loves to forge documents. I had to add a hidden seal to all my docs for that reason.
This is what I’ve learned from doing an actual 1004P report.

The inspection report, sketch, measurements and photos give the appraiser enough information to satisfactorily complete the appraisal report as long as there aren't hard to see major issues with the home. I’ve found the inspectors take way more pics than necessary. They take a few pics per room instead of just one. They take up close pics of the materials. The photos are large and detailed so you can zoom in if there are any doubts. Of course the appraiser is assuming the photos are true and correct representations of the actual home. 

The measurements don’t always equal the tax roll due to unpermitted additions or mistakes e.g. adding area of stairs. Same happens when I inspect. I only include the legal permitted gross living area, bed/bath in my report anyway.

The materials in the written inspection report aren’t always correct but it doesn’t matter. An agent wrote “wood siding” when it’s actually “shingle siding” which I can clearly see in the pic. I report what I see in the pic. The underwriter can see the material in the pic anyway in case the agent or appraiser made a mistake.

The inspection report and photos give enough information to see if they are of the subject or not. So far all 1004P have been ordered for homes which sold recently on the MLS. You have MLS photos, data, public tax data, permit data to compare to the inspection photos and report to verify. This is true for all cases unless the current owner did a full remodel. Then I check with permits. If I were to do a drive-by appraisal or exterior only appraisal, I don’t get to inspect the interior or receive any interior photos. The 1004P gives a lot more data than regular exterior only inspections though not as much as a full inspection appraisal.

MLS comparable photos can be sufficient if they match Google street view photos. So far I haven’t come across MLS pics that don’t match Google street view doing 1004P. I have seen other MLS photos where they photoshop dirt into grass, cut out high tension power lines or just use an architect rendering program photo. If I were to see that, I would use Google street view photo instead and note it in the report. In a regular report we are only taking street view pics of the comps anyway as of the date of our appraisal and not the date of the sale of the comp. We don’t know if interior photos are real or not as it is.

After my analysis I believe that 1004P appraisals are good enough to use for lending purposes in certain situations. Those situations would be easy appraisals of newer average tract homes and condos that have sold more recently on the MLS. They would also be inspected by a licensed real estate appraiser, agent, broker who is insured and had a full background check. I don’t think they should be used for more difficult assignments where there would be more lender risk. Those assignments would be large custom homes, homes in C4 condition or worse, homes with any unusual conditions, some view homes, luxury quality homes or very old homes i.e. 80 years plus. I believe those homes and properties should be appraised by a licensed real estate appraiser who has personally physically inspected the property.

One thing appraisers should consider is that they are fully liable for the report no matter what. It doesn't matter who did the inspection and took the photos. It doesn't matter that the report states someone else inspected the property. By signing the report you are stating you had sufficient information to complete a credible appraisal. Per USPAP "If the appraiser does not have sufficient information to complete a credible appraisal, they must refuse the assignment." You can't rely on the inspector, their measurements or photos. You will be legally liable if they made a mistake or committed fraud. 

If you don't feel the inspector or the MLS comps have provided accurate enough information, you must do your own research. You may have to look at all permits for the subject and comps, property history, all previous MLS listings ... to try to verify something. The inspector may have missed obvious signs of major problems with the property. Maybe you can't see the issues in the photos but you would have seen it during an inspection because of your years of training and experience. Those issues could be major uneven floors, one room at a higher level than adjoining room, holes in rear yard, damp smelling basement, burned smelling attic... I could see people perpetrating fraud via one of these appraisals just like they do with drivebys, regular desktops, AVMs and waivers. 

Here's a 2019 article by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) titled "Illinois Board Issues Warning on Hybrid Appraisals" about liability and abiding by USPAP. They feel hybrid appraisals could be a violation of USPAP because an unlicensed person is providing "significant appraisal assistance." Illinois believes it's a violation of USPAP if the inspector provides the measurements, room count, condition, quality ... to the appraiser.

The Appraisal Foundation (TAF) stated that a hybrid appraisal in and of itself is not a violation of USPAP. They stated it's okay for another party to provide the inspection information if it is only known facts but the Appraiser is liable for that data. If the inspector provides condition, quality "opinions," they need to be a licensed appraiser. If the Appraiser doesn't feel the data provided is credible, the Appraiser must obtain the data in another acceptable manner or withdraw from the assignment. 

Every state has their own license requirements beyond the federal regulations. It will be up to the states to determine if hybrid appraisals are a violation of state regulations as they control and enforce licenses. 


Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the
Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game and the USDA. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.


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