Estate Planning: Ohio Transfer on Death Designation Affidavits

An effective estate planning tool is the Transfer on Death Designation Affidavit (“TOD Affidavit”).  If you own real estate, you can use a TOD Affidavit to name who or whom you want your property to go to upon your death. There are several benefits to using a TOD Affidavit:

1. You retain ownership of the property and can revoke or file a new TOD Affidavit at any time before your death.
2. Your beneficiary (or beneficiaries) avoid the time and expense of probating the property. If your current deed to the property is not joint and survivor (goes to the survivor upon death of the other owner) or placed in a Trust, then the property will have to go through probate.
3. The process to transfer the property to the beneficiaries is simple. A new Affidavit is created and recorded along with the death certificate. That is all it takes to transfer the property. Contrast this fast and streamlined procedure with probate which can take weeks or months.

 
This information is intended to provide broad, general information about the law and is not intended to be legal advice. Before applying this information to a specific legal problem, readers are urged to seek advice from a licensed attorney. For further information, please contact Jesse Bowman at the law office of Alexander, Wagner & Kinman (513) 228-1100 or Jesse@AWKLegal.com.