CURRENTS February 2019 | Page 13

Currents February 2019 By: Martin Zevin, P.A. Florida Trust also Works for Out of State Property Many of my snowbird clients own a home in Florida and another state. Some of them have their homestead in Florida; others declare their legal resi- dence in another state. In either case, a Florida Revocable Living Trust is very useful to avoid probate in both states. If you are a Florida resident, you can own your home- stead property via a Revocable Living Trust without losing your homestead exemption. In addi- tion, you are eliminating the need for probate when you pass away. You can also transfer real estate owned in any other state to your Florida Trust. Generally, a Florida lawyer will prepare the Revocable Living Trust and Quit Claim Deed to transfer the Florida property into the Trust. If you are a Florida resident, the lawyer will also pre- pare a new Florida Last Will and Testament called a Pourover Will. This provides for the transfer to your Trust upon your death of any other assets not in the Trust or which do not have beneficiaries already designated. It is a secu- rity blanket to cover any assets We Support Our Troops continued on page 14 > 13