Estate planning covers a surprising amount of topics. It's safe to say that much of estate planning focuses on keeping things away from the probate court. To learn more about why this is so beneficial and how you can take simple actions to help fix these issues, read on.

Your Home and Your Assets

When it comes to most estates, real estate makes up a good portion of it. Not surprisingly, the probate court takes a keen interest in family homes because of that. Unfortunately, though, sending a family home through probate often ends up taking a lot of time, can be complex, and cost the estate extra money. Many states have specific and complicated probate rules dealing with real estate, but they practically do nothing to reassure the remaining family members during a time of great sadness and stress. For instance, family members often have to have professional appraisals performed on the property, and some states even require more than one. However, you don't have to do what the probate court wants you to do. You can control what happens to your family home after you pass away, and it's surprisingly easy to do so by using a life estate deed.

Life Estate Deeds Are Different

Probate rules allow a home to pass onto whoever is listed on the deed with the deceased. If the deceased has a living spouse, for instance, it just passes to them and it effectively skips probate entirely. If the deceased is unmarried, however, the home has to be part of probate unless the deed has other names listed on it. A life estate deed, however, is more than just the addition of names. Here are the facts you need to know about using a life estate deed:

• As long as the present owner of the home is alive, they cannot be removed from the deed or the home. That person is known as the life tenant on the deed.
• Only those over the age of 18 may be added to deeds.
• In many states, the rights of spouses are protected when it comes to owning a home after a death. You probably cannot exclude a lawful spouse from having at least partial ownership of the home.
• Once the death of the life tenant occurs, the home automatically goes to the remaining name or names on the deed. They are known as the remaindermen.

This type of deed makes the property transfer after a death nearly seamless and simple. Speak to an estate planning lawyer near you to find out more about this type of action.