Florida Quit Claim Deeds
Florida quit claim deeds are legal documents that transfer the title of real property from a grantor, the current owner, to someone else, a grantee. When grantors have legal titles that are considered valid and good, and that does not contain any encumbrances, a quit claim deed will transfer it. Quit claim deeds may be considered ineffective if the grantor does not have a valid title to the property. In Florida, a quit claim deed is usually used to transfer property to the grantor’s family, trust, or LLC. Our Florida Quit Claim deed lawyer can help with that.
Flat Fee: $375.00
Quit Claim Deeds vs. Warranty Deeds
Property owners can transfer their property using either a quit claim deed or a warranty deed. The difference between the two is that warranty deeds guarantee, or warranty, that the grantor already has a valid title to the property. A quit claim deed will not provide such a guarantee. This lack of a guarantee is the reason people typically use quit claim deeds to transfer property to their own LLC or a family member. When property is being transferred to non-relatives, a quit claim deed is usually not appropriate.
Filing a Florida Quit Claim Deed
To record, or file, a quit claim deed, you must first fill out a Florida quit claim deed form with the accurate information. You will typically need the names and addresses of the grantor and the grantee, as well as a homestead designation if the property is the residence of the grantor. The quit claim deed must then be taken to the comptroller’s office in the county where the real property is located. The office will then enter the deed into official public county records and you will receive the original.
Florida Quit Claim Deed Requirements
The Florida Statutes outline certain requirements for quit claim deeds. These are as follows:
- The grantor’s address, name and marital status
- The grantee’s address, name and marital status
- Name and address of person who prepared the deed
- The grantor’s signature (the grantee’s signature is not required)
- Two witness signatures
- A notary’s signature
Quit Claim Deeds and Mortgages
It is possible to use a Florida quit claim deed when you have an existing mortgage on the property. However, it is crucial to understand that the deed will not transfer the home loan. You will still be responsible to the original lender for paying the remaining balance on the mortgage, even after the property is transferred. Worse, if the lender discovers that you have transferred the property before paying the mortgage in full, they could require you to pay the entire loan amount immediately. If there is no escrow account and the grantee still makes mortgage payments, the lender is not likely to call the whole loan due.
We Can Help with Your Florida Quit Claim Deed
If you need to transfer property and think a Florida quit claim deed is appropriate, call us at My Florida Deed today. We will provide the form you need and help ensure the process is as quick and efficient as possible. Call us today at 321-379-7690 or fill out our online form to get the information you need.
Please answer all questions in the form below
Real estate deeds are recorded in the county where the property is located. It is extremely important to provide the county where the property is located, otherwise your deed will be legally void and completely ineffective. Some cities in Florida are located in more than one county, which can cause confusion. If you are not sure what county the subject property is located in, select “I’m not sure” on the pull-down menu and we will research the matter for you.
While it is not absolutely necessary for preparing your deed, knowing the physical address can help us properly locate and identify the property. If you don’t know the street address, you can leave this field blank.
It is helpful if you can upload a deed which was previously recorded for the subject property. If you don’t have a prior deed, don’t worry. We will locate one in public records.
This is important to know because all of the current owners (and sometimes their spouse) need to sign your new deed in the presence of two witnesses and a notary in order for you deed to be legally valid.
Because Florida homestead laws give ownership rights to spouses who are not on title of homestead property (primary residences), the spouse of an owner who is not on title will be required to execute the deed as well as the spouse who is a current owner.
Identifying the number of new owners is crucial to completing your new deed.
We need to know who the current owners are because we have to determine their marital status for purposes of preparing your new deed. If you don’t know this information, we can search public records to find it.
The marital status of each owner is important, because in some circumstances the spouse of an owner will be required to execute the deed even though he or she is not an owner of record on the subject property. Florida homestead laws give ownership rights to spouses who are not on title of homestead property (primary residences).
This is probably the most crucial information that our firm has no way of obtaining other than through information you provide. It is very important to provide the full legal name of each new owner of the property.
The marital status of the new owners is also crucial to properly preparing your new deed, especially if the property will be the primary residence (homestead) of any of the new owners.
Tenancy in Common – TIC Tenancy in common (TIC) is an arrangement where two or more people share ownership rights in a property or parcel of land. When a tenant in common dies, the property passes to that tenant's estate. Each independent owner may possess and control the property. The co-tenants may have a different share of ownership interests. For example, Mike and Sally may each own 25% of a property, while Ed owns the remaining 50%. While the percentage owned varies, no individual may claim ownership to any specific part of the property, only an unspecified percentage.
Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship – JTWROS A joint tenancy or joint tenancy with right of survivorship (JTWROS) is a type of concurrent estate in which co-owners have a right of survivorship, meaning that if one owner dies, that owner's interest in the property will pass to the surviving owner or owners by operation of law, without probate. The deceased owner's interest in the property simply evaporates and cannot be inherited by his or her heirs. Under this type of ownership, the last owner living owns all the property, and on his or her death the property will form part of their estate. Unlike a tenancy in common, where co-owners may have unequal interests in a property, joint co-owners have an equal share in the property.
Tenants by the Entirety - TBE Like a Joint Tenancy with Rights of Survivorship, the tenancy by the entirety (TBE) also encompasses a right of survivorship, however this form of ownership is only available in Florida to married couples. With properties that are owned as TBE, if one spouse dies, the entire interest passes to the surviving spouse without going through probate.
The date that the deed is signed by the current owners (Grantors) is the legally operative date of the deed. Under Florida law a deed does not need to be recorded in public record to be valid, however it is crucial to record the deed to put “the World” on notice of the transfer. If a subsequent party records an interest in real property in reliance on recorded documents in the public record, the new owners’ interest in the subject property could be adversely affected by a failure to timely record the new deed once it has been properly executed.
Please explain the issue with the deed that needs to be corrected with specificity. Give us as much information as you can about why the deed needs to be corrected, including the legal names of intended grantors or grantees, or why the legal description is incorrect (if applicable).
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