Using Asset Protection Planning to Protect Real Estate
Wed Sep 30, 2020 | Estate Planning | Share
For many people, the real estate they own is among their most valuable assets, if not the most valuable assets. As unpleasant as it may be to consider, your real estate holdings may be at risk In the event of unexpected financial difficulties or legal action. An experienced Boca Raton asset protection attorney can help you keep your home and other properties safe from creditors and other claimants.
Evaluate Your Risk
An asset protection attorney can help you by reviewing your real estate holding and evaluating the potential risk that you face. While you may keep your business and personal assets separate, you should make sure that no business liabilities can attach to the real estate you own personally. Also, you should consider the potential risks you face from lawsuits at each property you own. For example, if someone were to be injured at a rental property you own, you want to make sure that they can’t attach the rental property if they file a lawsuit against you.
Another way that a Boca Raton asset protection attorney can help is by reviewing your insurance coverage to make sure you are adequately protected. Policies that you purchased years ago may not offer the coverage you need today.
Protect Your Privacy
The internet is an incredibly powerful tool, but it has made it much more challenging to protect your privacy. Previously, someone would have to search the land records at the courthouse to find out who owned a particular property. Now real estate ownership information is available online with a few clicks of a mouse.
One of the first things potential claimants will do is an online property search. To avoid becoming a target, the first step is to place your real estate holdings into a trust. An estate planning attorney can create the trust for you. You then have to transfer the title into the name of the trust so that the property will no longer be listed in your name.
Protect The Value of Your Assets
The next thing you should consider is what you can do to protect the value of your real estate assets. One option is to create an LLC who is the beneficiary of the trust we discussed above. If done correctly, the property will be safe from creditors because it is owned by a legally-recognized and wholly separate entity.
Synchronize Your Asset Protection with Your Estate Plan
You should also consider working with a knowledgeable estate planning professional to ensure the steps you take are consistent with your estate planning goals. As your real estate holdings are likely to be among your most valuable assets, you want to make sure that they are not only protected but will also be available to your heirs and beneficiaries.
Contact a Boca Raton Asset Protection Attorney Today
With deep experience and a broad range of skills, Ellis Law Group will work with you to guard your real estate holdings against creditors and other claimants. To discuss your needs and how we can help, call us at 561-910-7500 or contact us online to schedule a consultation with a Boca Raton asset protection attorney today.