BILL NUMBER: AB 1779	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Gatto

                        FEBRUARY 3, 2016

   An act to amend Sections 5608 and 5642 of, and to add Section 5629
to, the Probate Code, relating to nonprobate transfers.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1779, as introduced, Gatto. Nonprobate transfers: revocable
transfer on death deed.
   Existing law, until January 1, 2021, creates the revocable
transfer on death deed (revocable TOD deed), as defined, which allows
an owner of real property to transfer that property, upon death, to
a beneficiary without a probate proceeding, according to specified
rules. Existing law sets forth the statutory forms that must be used
by a transferor in the execution of a revocable TOD deed.
   This bill would clarify that a beneficiary of a revocable TOD deed
may include an entity, such as a trust. The bill would further
provide that a revocable TOD deed may be held in trust for a
beneficiary under specified circumstances. The bill would make
conforming changes to related provisions.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 5608 of the Probate Code is amended to read:
   5608.  "Beneficiary" means a person named in a revocable transfer
on death deed as transferee of the property.  A "beneficiary" may
include a legal entity, such as a trust. 
  SEC. 2.  Section 5629 is added to the Probate Code, to read:
   5629.  A transferor may specify that any property interest that is
transferred to a beneficiary by deed under these provisions may be
held in trust on behalf of the beneficiary by any other person
designated by the transferor, subject to specified conditions
established by the transferor, if any.
  SEC. 3.  Section 5642 of the Probate Code is amended to read:
   5642.  A revocable transfer on death deed shall be substantially
in the following form.
   (a) The first page of the form shall be substantially the
following:
    SIMPLE REVOCABLE TRANSFER ON DEATH (TOD) DEED
       (California Probate Code Section 5642)
Recording Requested By:
When Recorded Mail This Deed To
Name:
Address:
Assessor's Parcel Number:       Space Above For
Recorder's Use
This document is exempt from documentary transfer
tax under Rev. & Tax. Code a7 11930. This document
is exempt from preliminary change of ownership
report under Rev. & Tax. Code a7 480.3.
   IMPORTANT NOTICE: THIS DEED MUST BE RECORDED ON
  OR BEFORE 60 DAYS AFTER THE DATE IT IS SIGNED AND
                      NOTARIZED
Use this deed to transfer the residential
property described below directly to your named
beneficiaries when you die. YOU SHOULD CAREFULLY
READ ALL OF THE       INFORMATION ON THE OTHER
PAGES OF THIS FORM. You may wish to consult an
attorney before using this deed. It may have
results that you do not want. Provide only the
information asked for in the form. DO NOT INSERT
ANY OTHER INFORMATION OR INSTRUCTIONS. This form
MUST be RECORDED on or before 60 days after the
date it is signed and notarized or it will not be
effective.
                PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
Print the legal description of the residential
property affected by this deed:
__________________________________________________
                  BENEFICIARY(IES)
Print the FULL NAME(S) of the person(s) who will
receive the property on your       death (DO NOT
use general terms like ""my children'') and state
the RELATIONSHIP that each named person  has t  o
    r 
 entity 
 has to  you (spouse, son, daughter, friend, 
etc.): 
 trust, etc.) and, if the property will be held in 
 trust for that beneficiary or beneficiaries, the 
 circumstances under which the property will be 
 held in trust: 
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
__________________________________________________
                  TRANSFER ON DEATH
I transfer all of my interest in the described
property to the named beneficiary(ies) on my
death. I may revoke this deed. When recorded,
this deed revokes any TOD deed that I made before
signing this deed.
Sign and print your name below (your name should
exactly match the name shown on your title
documents):
_______________________________ Date _____________
NOTE: This deed only transfers MY ownership share
of the property. The deed does NOT transfer the
share of any co-owner of the property. Any co-
owner who wants to name a TOD beneficiary must
execute and RECORD a SEPARATE deed.
              ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF NOTARY
A notary public or other officer completing this
certificate verifies only the identity of the
individual who signed the document to which this
certificate is attached, and not the
truthfulness, accuracy, or validity of that
document.
State of California             )
County of _____________________ )
On ___________________________ before me, (here
insert name and title of the officer), personally
appeared ___________________________, who proved
to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence to be
the person(s) whose name(s) is/are subscribed to
the within instrument and acknowledged to me that
he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their
authorized capacity(ies), and that by
his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument the
person(s), or the entity upon behalf of which the
person(s) acted, executed the instrument.
I certify under PENALTY OF PERJURY under the laws
of the State of California that the foregoing
paragraph is true and correct.
WITNESS my hand and official seal.
Signature ___________________________ (Seal)


   (b) Subsequent pages of a form executed under this section shall
be in substantially the following form:
    COMMON QUESTIONS ABOUT THE USE OF THIS FORM
WHAT DOES THE TOD DEED DO? When you die, the
identified property will transfer to your named
beneficiary without probate. The TOD deed has
no effect until you die. You can revoke it at
any time.
CAN I USE THIS DEED TO TRANSFER BUSINESS
PROPERTY? This deed can only be used to
transfer (1) a parcel of property that contains
one to four residential dwelling units, (2) a
condominium unit, or (3) a parcel of
agricultural land of 40 acres or less, which
contains a single-family residence.
HOW DO I USE THE TOD DEED? Complete this form.
Have it       notarized. RECORD the form in the
county where the property is located. The form
MUST be recorded on or before 60 days after the
date you sign it or the deed has no effect.
IS THE ""LEGAL DESCRIPTION'' OF THE PROPERTY
NECESSARY? Yes.
HOW DO I FIND THE ""LEGAL DESCRIPTION'' OF THE
PROPERTY? This information may be on the deed
you received when you became an owner of the
property. This information may also be
available in the office of the county recorder
for the county where the property is located.
If you are not absolutely sure, consult an
attorney.
HOW DO I ""RECORD'' THE FORM? Take the
completed and notarized form to the county
recorder for the county in which the property
is located. Follow the instructions given by
the county recorder to make the form part of
the official property records.
WHAT IF I SHARE OWNERSHIP OF THE PROPERTY? This
form only       transfers YOUR share of the
property. If a co-owner also wants to name a
TOD beneficiary, that co-owner must complete
and RECORD a separate form.
CAN I REVOKE THE TOD DEED IF I CHANGE MY MIND?
Yes. You may revoke the TOD deed at any time.
No one, including your beneficiary, can prevent
you from revoking the deed.
HOW DO I REVOKE THE TOD DEED? There are three
ways to revoke a recorded TOD deed: (1)
Complete, have notarized, and RECORD a
revocation form. (2) Create, have notarized,
and RECORD a new TOD deed. (3) Sell or give
away the property, or transfer it to a trust,
before your death and RECORD the deed. A TOD
deed can only affect property that you own when
you die. A TOD deed cannot be revoked by will.
CAN I REVOKE A TOD DEED BY CREATING A NEW
DOCUMENT THAT DISPOSES OF THE PROPERTY (FOR
EXAMPLE, BY CREATING A NEW TOD DEED OR BY
ASSIGNING THE PROPERTY TO A TRUST)? Yes, but
only if the       new document is RECORDED. To
avoid any doubt, you may wish to RECORD a TOD
deed revocation form before creating the new
instrument. A TOD deed cannot be revoked by
will, or by purporting to leave the subject
property to anyone via will.
IF I SELL OR GIVE AWAY THE PROPERTY DESCRIBED
IN A TOD DEED, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I DIE? If the
deed or other document used to transfer your
property is RECORDED before your death, the TOD
deed will have no effect. If the transfer
document is not RECORDED before your death, the
TOD deed will take effect.
I AM BEING PRESSURED TO COMPLETE THIS FORM.
WHAT SHOULD I DO? Do NOT complete this form
unless you freely choose to do so. If you are
being pressured to dispose of your property in
a way that you do not want, you may want to
alert a family member, friend, the district
attorney, or a senior service agency.
DO I NEED TO TELL MY BENEFICIARY ABOUT THE TOD
DEED?       No. But secrecy can cause later
complications and might make it easier for
others to commit fraud.
WHAT DOES MY BENEFICIARY NEED TO DO WHEN I DIE?
Your beneficiary must RECORD evidence of your
death (Prob. Code a7 210), and file a change in
ownership notice (Rev. & Tax. Code a7 480). If
you received Medi-Cal benefits, your
beneficiary must notify the State Department of
Health Care Services of your death and provide
a copy of your death certificate (Prob. Code a7
215).
WHAT IF I NAME MORE THAN ONE BENEFICIARY? Your
beneficiaries will become co-owners in equal
shares as tenants in common. If you want a
different result, you should not use this form.
HOW DO I NAME BENEFICIARIES? You MUST name your
beneficiaries individually, using each
 beneficiary's FULL name or name of the entity. 
 beneficiary's FULL name.  You MAY NOT use 
general terms to
describe 
 general terms to describe  beneficiaries, such
 as ""my
children.'' For 
 as ""my children.'' For  each beneficiary that
 you name, you
should 
 you name, you should briefly state that 
 briefly state that  person's relationship to you 
(for example,
my 
 (for example, my  spouse, my son, my daughter,  my
friend, etc.).
  my friend, my trust, etc.). 
WHAT IF A BENEFICIARY DIES BEFORE I DO? If all
beneficiaries die before you, the TOD deed has
no effect. If a beneficiary dies before you,
but other beneficiaries survive you, the share
of the deceased beneficiary will be divided
equally between the surviving beneficiaries. If
that is not the result you want, you should not
use the TOD deed.
WHAT IS THE EFFECT OF A TOD DEED ON PROPERTY
THAT I OWN AS JOINT TENANCY OR COMMUNITY
PROPERTY WITH RIGHT OF SURVIVORSHIP? If you are
the first joint tenant or spouse to       die,
the deed is VOID and has no effect. The
property transfers to your joint tenant or
surviving spouse and not according to this
deed. If you are the last joint tenant or
spouse to die, the deed takes effect and
controls the ownership of your property when
you die. If you do not want these results, do
not use this form. The deed does NOT transfer
the share of a co-owner of the property. Any co-
owner who wants to name a TOD beneficiary must
complete and RECORD a SEPARATE deed.
CAN I ADD OTHER CONDITIONS ON THE FORM? No. If
you do, your beneficiary may need to go to
 court to clear title. 
 court to clear title. However, you may indicate 
 whether you will be transferring your property 
 to a beneficiary to be held in trust for that 
 person pursuant to Section 5629 of the Probate 
 Code. 
IS PROPERTY TRANSFERRED BY THE TOD DEED SUBJECT
TO MY DEBTS?       Yes.
DOES THE TOD DEED HELP ME TO AVOID GIFT AND
ESTATE TAXES? No.
HOW DOES THE TOD DEED AFFECT PROPERTY TAXES?
The TOD deed has no effect on your property
taxes until your death. At that time, property
tax law applies as it would to any other change
of ownership.
DOES THE TOD DEED AFFECT MY ELIGIBILITY FOR
MEDI-CAL? No.
AFTER MY DEATH, WILL MY HOME BE LIABLE FOR
REIMBURSEMENT OF THE STATE FOR MEDI-CAL
EXPENDITURES? Your home may be liable for
reimbursement. If you have questions, you
should consult an attorney.