THE BENEFITS OF A LAND TRUSTAdded PrivacyWith a land trust, ownership becomes a private matter. County records will reflect Equity Holding Corporation as the titleholder in a trust capacity. Privacy and anonymity is one of the most important aspects of a Land Trust. No one can tell from the public record who the Beneficiary(s) are, except the Beneficiary(s), and the Trustee. When the title of the property is searched, all that is found out is the property is owned by a Land Trust, no one knows the Beneficiary(s) name.Limited LiabilityAs the beneficiary of the trust, you might avoid personal liability for a mortgage. In some cases, liability can be restricted to the actual property, which enables you to safeguard other assets.Professionals such as Physicians, Real Estate Brokers and commodity traders for instance, often establish land trust to help protect themselves from financial liabilities inherent to their professions. Legal EntityThe Land Trust is a legal entity therefore it can assume a loan, create seller carry back financing, etc. the Land Trust takes title to the property, the Trustee signs the note as Trustee. The Beneficiary(s) name does not appear anywhere on the document, therefore the Beneficiary(s) are not personally liable. When the Trustee signs the document " as Trustee " the Trustee is not liable.Beneficial Interest -- When the property is transferred, the "Beneficial Interest " is assigned, therefore nothing changes at the courthouse, and the Beneficiary(s) and the Trustee signs a document called “Assignment of Beneficial Interest”. In the Land Trust, the Beneficial Interest is not an interest in real estate, therefore a judgment against you personally, will not automatically attach to your properties allowing you to move your properties using the Land Trust procedures. Transferability of TitleHolding your properties in a Land Trust creates one of the greatest benefits, and that is to Easily Transfer your interest. A Beneficial Interest under the Land Trust is considered to be Personality, not Realty, therefore a Transfer of Interest need not be witnessed or notarized.Transfer of Beneficial Interest -- In most real estate transactions the closing can be very time complicated and time consuming. Not so with the transfer of a beneficial interest in a land trust. It is done as simply as transferring your stock certificates in your corporation - no closing costs, no documentary stamps or recording fees. Ownership FlexibilityWhen you hold properties in a Land Trust, it makes it easy to have multiple owners. In a Land Trust the only signature that is required is that of the Trustee.Limited LiabilityAs the beneficiary of the trust, you might avoid personal liability for a mortgage. In some cases, liability can be restricted to the actual property, which enables you to safeguard other assetsReduced Probate ExpenseThrough a land trust, you can arrange for real estate holdings to be distributed as requested to your heirs, avoiding the time consuming and costly complications that can arise from a probate proceedingReduce RiskJudgments and tax liens against a beneficiary do not attach to property in trust. Death, incapacity, and divorce of one of the owners will not necessarily affect the ability to sell, mortgage, or otherwise deal with the real estate. Also, one owner cannot compel the property to be partitioned among all ownersAdditional BenefitsBill Gatten, President of the North American Realty Services and founder of the Equity Holding Trust TM System has a list a list of additional benefits intrinsic to the Equity Holding Trust TM that you might find interesting. These benefits can be found on this web site at here or by clicking on Free Articles in the menu to the left. |
