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The Problems of Joint Ownership
April 2, 2011
Filed under: Living Trust,Power of Attorney — Christopher J. Berry | Estate & Elder Law Attorney @ 8:07 pm
Joint ownership can create all kinds of issues for Michigan property. Quite often in our Oakland County estate planning law office, we see clients who have added a son or daughter’s name to a piece of property and created joint ownership. Often times, our recomendation is that you should never add someone, jointly, to any piece of property unless they are your spouse.
There is a recent NY Times article that address this entitled Making Room for Mom and Dad. The article talks about when more than one generation lives together and how even in that situation, joint ownership could be a poor choice and create estate planning headaches.
Alternatives to joint ownership include Lady Bird Deeds, revocable living trusts, and powers of attorney. The right type of alternative would depend on the situation, that is why it is important to speak with a Michigan estate planning attorney before making any decisions that could have negative consequences.
Attorney Christopher J. Berry is a Metro Detroit estate planning and elder law lawyer who helps families, seniors, veterans and business owners with their important legal needs. Oakland County estate planning lawyer, Christopher Berry is a partner in the Bloomfield Hills law firm of Witzke Berry PLLC. Mr. Berry practices in the areas of estate planning, business, probate, veterans benefits & Medicaid planning.
