How do I put my house into my living trust in Los Angeles County?

A living trust only controls what it owns. Our estate planning page calls funding the trust "the step people skip," and for most families the house is the asset that matters most. California law allows a trust in real property to be created by a written instrument conveying the property, signed by the owner (Probate Code section 15206), and a trust can be created by an owner's transfer of property to a trustee during life (section 15200). In practice, that instrument is a deed. This page walks through the deed, the county forms and fees, and the property tax rules, using the Registrar-Recorder's current pages and the Revenue and Taxation Code.

How does the transfer work in Los Angeles County, step by step?

1. Confirm the trust is signed and revocable. A California trust is revocable unless the trust instrument expressly makes it irrevocable (Probate Code section 15400). Have the trust's exact name, date and trustee names in front of you.
2. Get the current deed. You need the exact way title is held now, the legal description and the Assessor's Parcel Number, which the Registrar-Recorder requires on deeds (Government Code section 27297.6, as listed in its recording requirements). Copies of recorded documents can be requested from the Registrar-Recorder.
3. Prepare the new deed. The current owners grant the property to themselves, or to whoever the trust names, as trustees of the trust. The first page must leave a blank space of at least 2.5 inches at the top, with the left 3.5 inches used for the name and return address of the party requesting recording, and at least half an inch blank on each side.
4. Sign before a notary. Documents must carry original signatures and be properly acknowledged, and the notary seal must be legible for reproduction, according to the Registrar-Recorder's requirements.
5. Complete the Preliminary Change of Ownership Report. The form (BOE-502-A) is signed by the transferee. Part 1, item L1, asks whether this is a transfer to or from a revocable trust that the transferor can revoke and that is for the benefit of the transferor or the transferor's spouse or registered domestic partner.
6. State the tax and fee exemptions on the deed. Deeds usually say on the first page why no documentary transfer tax is due; the statutory transfer on death deed form in Probate Code section 5642 does it with a line citing Revenue and Taxation Code section 11930. Any exemption from the $75 Building Homes and Jobs Act fee must be declared on the face of the document or on a cover page, or the fee is charged.
7. Record it. You can book an in-person appointment up to three weeks ahead, or mail the documents with payment to the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, Document Analysis and Recording Section, P.O. Box 1250, Norwalk, CA 90651-1250. The original is mailed back after it is archived; a certified copy costs $6 for the first page and $3 for each additional page.
8. Keep the recorded deed with the trust. Your successor trustee will need both documents later, and the deed shows that the house is a trust asset.

What does recording a deed cost in Los Angeles County?

The Registrar-Recorder's fee page lists the following charges for a grant deed and a quitclaim deed. The fees are set by the Government Code sections shown, and the county examines each document and charges the fees that apply to it.

The Building Homes and Jobs Act fee does not apply to a document recorded in connection with a transfer subject to documentary transfer tax, or with a transfer of a residential dwelling to an owner-occupier (Government Code section 27388.1(a)(2)). The Registrar-Recorder says a valid exemption may be declared on the document or a cover page before it is deposited, and if none is declared, the fee is assessed.

Will moving the house into the trust raise my property taxes?

No reassessment should follow from the transfer itself. Revenue and Taxation Code section 62(d) says change in ownership does not include a transfer by the trustor, the trustor's spouse or registered domestic partner, or both, into a trust for so long as the transferor is the present beneficiary or the trust is revocable, or a transfer by the trustee of such a trust back to the trustor.

The ownership report still matters. The Registrar-Recorder's notice says all deeds, with listed exceptions such as easements and deeds of trust, must be accompanied by a Preliminary Change of Ownership Report when submitted for recording, and an extra $20 is charged if it is not. Section 480.3(c) adds that recording will not be refused if the fee is paid. The report itself states that it is not subject to public inspection.

The documentary transfer tax is a separate question. Section 11930 exempts a deed that transfers real property by reason of a gift during life or a death, "outright to, or in trust for the benefit of," any person. The countywide rate, when tax is due, is $1.10 per $1,000, and the Registrar-Recorder lists an added city tax only in Culver City, Los Angeles, Pomona, Redondo Beach and Santa Monica.

What changes the answer?

Whether the trust is revocable

The section 62(d) exclusion covers a trust that is revocable or in which the transferor is the present beneficiary. An irrevocable trust for other people is a different transfer, and the PCOR asks separately about transfers to an irrevocable trust for the creator or the creator's spouse (item L2).

Married couples and registered domestic partners

Section 62(d) reaches transfers by the trustor's spouse or registered domestic partner, and the PCOR's item L1 covers a trust for the benefit of the transferor or the transferor's spouse or registered domestic partner. When both spouses are on title, the new deed should come from both of them.

A mortgage on the house

Federal law limits due-on-sale clauses for homes with fewer than five dwelling units: a lender may not exercise its option on a transfer into an inter vivos trust in which the borrower is and remains a beneficiary and that does not transfer rights of occupancy (12 U.S.C. 1701j-3(d)(8), federal).

An existing transfer on death deed

The statutory transfer on death deed form explains that a recorded transfer of the property to a trust before death revokes an earlier transfer on death deed for that property, and that a TOD deed affects only property you own when you die. If you have one, decide which tool you want; our comparison of a transfer on death deed and a living trust walks through the differences.

Property outside Los Angeles County

Each deed is recorded in the county where the property sits; the Registrar-Recorder accepts only property located in Los Angeles County (Civil Code section 1169, as listed in its requirements).

What happens after the owner dies

When property passes by reason of death through a trust, the trustee files a change in ownership statement with the recorder or assessor within 150 days after the death (Revenue and Taxation Code section 480(b)). The successor trustee also owes a notice to beneficiaries and heirs; see what notice the trustee must send and the 120-day contest deadline.

A worked example

For example, imagine a hypothetical married couple in Glendale who signed a revocable living trust last year but never changed the deed. Title to their house on a recorded tract still reads in their names as community property. They live in the house and have a mortgage.

They pull a copy of their current deed to get the legal description and parcel number, prepare a one-page grant deed from themselves to themselves as trustees of their trust, and sign it before a notary. They fill out the PCOR, answering yes to item L1, and the deed states the reason no documentary transfer tax is due. As an illustration of the county's listed fees only: a one-page grant deed carries the $15 base fee, the $7 fraud notification fee and the $2 covenant fee, or $24, plus the $75 Building Homes and Jobs Act fee unless a valid exemption is declared, and $20 more if the PCOR is left out. They mail the package to the Norwalk address with payment.

Their property tax base should not change because of section 62(d), and their loan stays in place. Whether the rest of their plan works still depends on the trust's terms and on what else they own, which this example does not decide.

Common mistakes when deeding a house into a trust

• Signing the trust and stopping there. If the deed is never recorded, the house is still in your name and can end up in probate, where its gross value drives the fees described in how much probate costs in California.
• Recording without the PCOR. The county charges $20 extra, and the Assessor loses the explanation for why no reassessment applies.
• Copying the street address instead of the legal description. Use the legal description from the existing deed; the APN is required on deeds as well.
• Paying the wrong way. The Registrar-Recorder does not accept e-checks, temporary checks or most foreign checks, and sends such a request back for a new payment.
• Forgetting an exemption statement. Without a declared exemption, the $75 Building Homes and Jobs Act fee is assessed.
• Ignoring an old TOD deed or joint tenancy. Know how each instrument interacts before you record anything new.

What to do this week

1. Find your signed trust and note its exact name, date and trustees.
2. Get a copy of your current recorded deed and confirm how title is held.
3. Download the PCOR from the Registrar-Recorder and read Part 1, item L.
4. Check whether your property is in one of the five cities with an added city transfer tax.
5. Decide whether to record in person by appointment or by mail, and prepare payment.
6. List your other accounts and property that should also go into the trust or name it as beneficiary; if the estate is modest, compare California's small estate limits.
7. If someone else will prepare the deed, read our questions to ask before hiring an attorney first.
8. Make sure your power of attorney lets your agent deal with trusts if you become unable to; see advance health care directive or power of attorney.

Frequently asked questions

Does the deed have to be notarized?

Yes. The Registrar-Recorder requires documents to be properly acknowledged unless exempt, citing Government Code section 27287 and Civil Code section 1189, and it requires original signatures.

Do I need a grant deed or a quitclaim deed?

The county records both and lists slightly different fees for each, as the table above shows. Which form fits depends on how title is held and what your trust and lender expect, which is worth confirming before you sign.

Can I record by mail?

Yes. The Registrar-Recorder accepts mailed documents at P.O. Box 1250, Norwalk, CA 90651-1250, reviews them, collects the fees and taxes, and mails the original back after archiving it. Payment is by check or money order payable to the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.

Is the PCOR a public record?

No. The form states that it is not subject to public inspection. The deed itself becomes part of the public record once recorded.

Can my agent under a power of attorney fund my trust for me?

Only if the power of attorney says so. Probate Code section 4264 says an agent may create, modify, revoke or fund a trust, or make gifts in trust, only if the document expressly grants that authority.

What if someone challenges the trust after I die?

Trust contests are court cases with short deadlines. If you are served with papers in any civil matter, our page on how long you have to respond to a lawsuit in California explains the first deadline.

How can Glendale Law help?

We prepare trusts and the deeds that fund them, and we review existing plans to confirm the house actually made it into the trust. Our attorney Avo Nalbandian handles wills and trusts for Glendale families. Call (818) 244-9000 or request a consultation.