A quitclaim deed may be used as part of an estate plan. It allows a person to transfer the rights he or she has in property to another person. A deed is a legal document and it must contain a description of the property, the names of the parties and the signature of the person transferring the property.
Quitclaim deed
A quitclaim deed does not offer any warranties that the owner has good title to the property. It conveys any interest the owner has when the deed is transferred. It is called a quitclaim deed because the owner stops his or her interest or claim to the property.
This process does not require the parties to exchange money for the property and instead is often used when the transferring party wants to give the property as a gift. Usually, the parties already have a prior relationship before the property is transferred, which is one of the reasons it may be beneficial to use in an estate plan.
Administrative requirements
It’s important that the quitclaim deed is notarized and filed correctly. In Ohio, the person transferring the property is not required to have individuals witness his or her signature on the quitclaim deed.
The person transferring the property must also record it by filing it in the property records office where the property is located. It must be recorded promptly. The deed becomes public record when it is recorded and is available to anyone completing a title search.
If a person would like to find out more information about how to include a quitclaim deed in an estate plan, an experienced attorney can help.