Since May of 2008, Minnesota law has allowed you to transfer title to real estate you own to a beneficiary expressly stating that the deed is only effective upon your death. The use of a validly executed “transfer on death deed” (TODD) enables you to avoid the necessity of having your real estate probated upon your death but avoids problems which might arise by transferring outright while you are living. If you change your mind or decide to sell your property during your lifetime, however, you can revoke your TODD or simply record a new deed naming a different transferee.
The flexibility of the TODD makes it what I like to call, “The Best of Both Worlds.” TODDs are quick and easy to create and do not even need to be witnessed to be valid (they just need to be Notarized). TODDs must either filed or recorded in the office of the Register of Deeds or Registrar of Titles in the county in which the real estate is located before the death of the owner to accomplish the objective of avoiding probate upon the death of the owner.
Transfer on death deeds are used to convey real estate to one or more “grantee beneficiaries.” The grantee beneficiary can be either a person or an entity (i.e., such as a revocable living trust or a business). A transfer on death deed is specific to the piece of real estate that is described in the deed. This means that a TODD is needed for each piece of real estate that you own. This also means that if you record a TODD for real estate that you own now, and you buy additional real estate in the future, you would need to record new TODD(s) for the additional real estate.
Transfer on death deeds are used to convey real estate to one or more “grantee beneficiaries.” The grantee beneficiary can be either a person or an entity (i.e., such as a revocable living trust or a business). A transfer on death deed is specific to the piece of real estate that is described in the deed. This means that a TODD is needed for each piece of real estate that you own. This also means that if you record a TODD for real estate that you own now, and you buy additional real estate in the future, you would need to record new TODD(s) for the additional real estate.