So to answer some of these questions really quick, the first thing that you want to do with a property that is owned by a trust is to make sure that you have access to the trust agreement. That trust agreement usually spells out who owns the trust, who gains ownership of the trust when the original trustee dies, passes away, becomes incapacitated, whatever. Usually that’s all spelled out in the trust agreement. That’s really the key thing that you need to have access to.
If you’re selling the property to us at Ocala Road Investments, we will want to see that trust agreement. And certainly anybody who’s buying property from you will need to see that trust agreement. Your title company, for example, will need to see that trust agreement so that you’re selling the property correctly.
The benefit of owning property in a trust and why people do it is so that you avoid having to go through the probate process. It negates the whole probate process, and it makes selling your land a lot easier. So if you have a trust, don’t get too freaked out about it. It’s usually not a big deal.
Where trusts can get complicated are when the trustee has passed away and the trust agreement spells out a complicated inheritance structure, for lack of a better phrase. It could say that some person you’ve never heard of becomes a co-trustee or has 50% ownership of the trust and then you have to go find that person. Usually though, if we’re talking about a standard family trust, it’s common sense. Usually the trustee will pass along ownership of the trust to their wife or their kids or something like that. So it’s usually fairly straightforward, but again, you want to check the trust agreement to make sure so that you understand how the trust is set up and who has control over the trust.
Now, sometimes I’ve gotten into situations – and this is rare but it does happen – where a property is co-owned. For example, half is owned by a trust and then the other half is owned by an individual. The individual has passed away, but the trustee for the trust is still there. In that situation, you do actually have to go through the probate process because there is an owner who has passed away and it’s not in a trust, they’re just an individual. In those situations, yes, you would have to go through probate. I have been through those situations.
But, just to recap here, trusts aren’t anything to get freaked out about. You just need to have access to the trust agreement. You need to make sure you know what the trust agreement is saying, and we can help you out with that. So if you’ve got property in a trust that you’re looking to sell, feel free to reach out to me and my team. We’re happy to help you out.
Owning property in a trust can be actually good news because you won’t have to go through the probate process. The trust agreement spells out what happens if the trustee has passed away, and it negates the probate process. However, if the trust owns that property jointly with someone else, an individual, you will probably have to go through probate. Either way, reach out to me and my team at OcalaRoad.com. Submit your property, or just reach out through our contact form and we’re happy to look things over and help you out, and get you a cash offer for your property.
So, thanks for watching this video. If you’ve got property in a trust, feel free to reach out to us. We look forward to working with you. Thanks for watching and have a great day.