Arizona Beneficiary Deeds – Another Statutory Estate Planning Tool

“There’s more than one way to skin a cat,” and there are an even greater number of ways to transfer an interest in property to your children or heirs. One of the more recent creations is the Arizona Beneficiary Deed. Fashioned by legislation in the state of Arizona, the beneficiary deed is a designation of your intended beneficiary for real property upon your death.

A beneficiary deed is a revocable grant of the owner’s interest in the property to be conveyed on the owner’s death. The deed is drafted and recorded during the grantor’s lifetime according to the rules in the statute; however, the transfer does not take effect and the designated beneficiary has no rights in the property until the death of the owner. If the beneficiary deed has been properly completed and recorded, the beneficiary would only need to record the death certificate to complete the transfer.

This method of transferring real property allows the beneficiaries to avoid the time and cost of probate while allowing the grantor the flexibility to revise her estate plan as needed. One of the biggest conveniences is that the beneficiary deed becomes public record and there is no need for the beneficiaries to locate the grantor’s will or trusts to accomplish the transfer.

The beneficiary deed by itself is far from a complete estate plan, but it is a tool to be used in certain circumstances to accomplish the grantor’s wishes in an effective and cost-efficient manner.

An experienced trust and estate planning attorney at Nielsen Law Group is available for a complimentary review of your estate plan, and to discuss your goals with the tools available to achieve them. You can schedule your initial consultation by calling (480) 888-7111 or submitting a web request here.