Does an Enhanced Life Estate Deed Protect Against Liens on the Property?
Full Question:
My elderly mother had an Enhanced Life Estate Deed placed on her homesteaded and only home in March 2008. In February 2009 a creditor judgment had a lien placed on her home. Is an ELED supposed to protect against lien attachment? If so, how would the court/county clerk have processed this? Will the lien remain attached to her home so that when her remainderman takes possession of the property upon her death (and outside of probate), that remainderman has to then satisfy this lien at some point in the future on what is now his/her home? If it was illegal for a lien to attach with an ELED in place, could my mother bring a lawsuit against the court/county that permitted this?
06/09/2009 |
Category: Real Property ยป Deeds |
State: Florida |
#16913
Answer:
An enhanced life estate deed does not prevent a judgment lien against the grantor from attaching to the property. Rather, it protects the property from the beneficiaries' creditors during the grantor's lifetime. The creditors cannot place a lien on the property because the beneficiaries have no interest during the grantor's lifetime. It may be used to avoid Medicaid liens, but not all liens in general. The lien will generally remain attached to the property until it is paid, and may be passed to the remaindermen when the grantor is deceased.
