Hello cindy5609,
As far as I can tell, you will not have a problem being able to have
your fiancee sign a quit claim deed (not "quick claim" but "quit
claim") to the title of the house. In fact, someone can sign a quit
claim deed to a house without even having ownership of it-- for
instance, in a divorce situation, if one of the spouses buys a new
house before the divorce is final, they may have the spouse sign a
quit claim deed to prevent the spouse from ever trying to get that
property. But, the spouse was never on the actual title of the house.
It can be done as a precaution, preventing the signer from ever trying
to lay claim to ownership of the house.
So, a quit claim deed by your ex-fiancee in her current name,
relinquishing any ownership rights to the house, possibly accompanied
by a notarized statement stating that she signed the mortgage papers
and the title as Janet Brown when she's actually legally Janet Morgan
and now gives up her title in the quit claim deed with her actual
name, should clear up any future claim she might make to the house,
along with letting you sell it in the future with a clear title. The
only possible thing that could happen is if she tries to come back at
some future point and say that she didn't file the quit claim on the
house-- but you can then show the courts that she did in fact file a
quit claim with her full legal name. You might be smart to consult
with a real estate attorney on this just in case an issue having to do
with your particular city or state may come up-- and keep in mind that
Google Answers is not allowed to provide legal advice substituting for
that of an attorney as the disclaimer at the bottom of the page says.
However, I foresee that you should not have a problem with a quit
claim deed like this.
But, I would recommend a different method if your fiancee agrees to
it, called a warranty deed.
Here is a definition of a warranty deed from About.com:
Warranty Deeds
http://homebuying.about.com/cs/realestateglossary/g/generalwarranty.htm
Within the warranty deed, "the grantor declares that he or she is the
owner of the property and has a right to sell it to you.
# The grantor guarantees that if the title ever fails he or she will
compensate the grantee (new owner) for any losses."
Signing of this document would ensure that you have your fiancee's
word in writing that she was the person who bought the house with you
and has clear title to the house, and that she will be held liable for
any title issues in the future (for example, if she came back and
tried to say that she didn't sign away the house because she never
signed with the right name.) This might protect your interests more
than a quit claim deed, although it is basically very similar.
Here is About.com's definition of a quit claim deed:
http://homebuying.about.com/cs/realestateglossary/g/quitclaim_deed.htm
"A quit claim deed is a type of deed where a grantor, a person who
owns an interest in a property, transfers all his interests to someone
else. The grantor offers no guarantees about the title to the
recipient, who is called the grantee.
A quit claim deed is often used to clear up problems with a title or
when someone wants to use a simple method to give up all interests in
a property."
So a warranty deed adds the guarantee that no one else will have claim
to the property and holds the signer liable for that. You could have
your fiancee sign either and either would relinquish her claims to the
property. Also, the warranty deed requires the signer to say that he
or she DOES have a right to that property, whereas a quit claim deed
does not require a submission, and as in the example of the divorcing
couple above, one does not have to have claim in a house in order to
relinquish their right to it. I recommend the warranty deed for these
reasons-- your fiancee would have to sign that she is the owner, even
though she signed the ownership papers under the wrong name, and that
she is giving up her rights to the property. This would give you added
guarantee that she couldn't come along later and say that she never
gave up her rights to the property.
Your fiancee may not be willing to do this, however. You can also have
a "Special Warranty Deed" which warrants the property only for the
time that the seller holds title. This could be a possible solution.
I also recommend that you get some professional assistance in the form
of an attorney familiar with real estate issues. A little money now
could save huge headaches later if the paperwork is not filled out
correctly.
From this thread on Google Groups:
Misc.legal.moderated--
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.legal.moderated/browse_frm/thread/76f1314ae27fac25/3150deef7bdc2e8a?lnk=st&q=quit+claim+deed&rnum=3&hl=en#3150deef7bdc2e8a
it seems that there is a significant "stamp tax" or transfer tax for
transferring property in Florida, so that is something that you'll be
responsible for as well.
Here in this thread is an example of a quit claim deed:
misc.legal--
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.legal/browse_frm/thread/850045f377ccfee7/8b57fec50b303195?lnk=st&q=quit+claim+deed&rnum=5&hl=en#8b57fec50b303195
Sources:
Google Groups search for "quit claim deed"
alt.divorce--
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.support.divorce/browse_frm/thread/4384d3bd6a9c6be5/4e64e6c5d125fc50?lnk=st&q=quit+claim+deed&rnum=2&hl=en#4e64e6c5d125fc50
http://groups.google.com/group/alt.support.divorce/msg/de795fbb57f53278?dmode=source&hl=en
misc.legal.moderated--
http://groups.google.com/group/misc.legal.moderated/browse_frm/thread/76f1314ae27fac25/3150deef7bdc2e8a?lnk=st&q=quit+claim+deed&rnum=3&hl=en#3150deef7bdc2e8a
Search terms:
warranty deed
quit claim deed (on Google Groups and Google)
If you need any additonal help or clarification, let me know and I'll
be glad to assist you.
--keystroke-ga |
Clarification of Answer by
keystroke-ga
on
18 Oct 2006 10:44 PDT
Hello cindy5609,
The quit claim deed and warranty deed can both apply with both names
on the mortgage and title. The quit claim deed will effectively get
her off the title (although you would have to be reissued a new title
and probably pay fees to do this) and if you pay her for her half of
the house, that is a sale and she would effectively be off the
mortgage. However, at this time you would have to refinance in your
own name. Here is a reference:
http://www.ojar.com/view_3813.htm
You wouldn't have to get her off the mortgage, but I don't see how she
would agree to not being off it, since she would be then liable for
the loan if you defaulted.
Best wishes,
--keystroke-ga
|
