Colorado Transfer on Death Deed

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   In Colorado a transfer on death deed is called a beneficiary deed. It is a deed you record while alive that names a beneficiary to receive your real property automatically at your death, without probate (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-401 and following).

2. 2

   During your life the deed has no effect on your ownership. It does not transfer any ownership until your death, so you keep full control and can sell, mortgage, or revoke it.

3. 3

   To be valid the deed must be acknowledged before a notary (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-406). Colorado does not require any witnesses for a beneficiary deed.

4. 4

   You must record the deed prior to the death of the owner in the office of the clerk and recorder in the county where the real property is located (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-404(1)). There is no fixed deadline after signing, but the statutory form cautions that the deed must be recorded before the grantor death to be effective.

5. 5

   The deed is revocable during your life by recording a revocation before you die (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-405(1)). A later beneficiary deed revokes prior designations, the most recently executed deed or revocation recorded before death controls, and a will cannot revoke it (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-405).

6. 6

   The Colorado statutory form warns that executing the beneficiary deed may disqualify the grantor from being determined eligible for, or from receiving, Medicaid under Title 25.5, Colorado Revised Statutes.

7. 7

   The Colorado statutory form also warns that executing the beneficiary deed may not avoid probate. The beneficiary takes the property subject to any mortgages, liens, and claims that exist on it.

Colorado Requirements for Transfer on Death Deed

• Use the Colorado Statutory Beneficiary Deed Form

  Colorado calls this instrument a beneficiary deed and provides a statutory form the deed may follow (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-404). The deed must indicate that the transfer is effective on the death of the owner.

• Legal Description and Parcel Number

  The full legal description of the property from the current recorded deed, plus the street address and the parcel or schedule number. A street address alone is not enough to record the deed with the clerk and recorder.

• Name the Grantee-Beneficiary and a Successor

  The full legal name of the grantee-beneficiary who will receive the property at the owner death, and a successor if the first does not survive. Naming a successor keeps the property out of probate if the first grantee-beneficiary dies first.

• Notarize the Signature

  The owner must sign the deed and have the signature acknowledged before a notary (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-406). Without a valid acknowledgment the deed cannot be recorded and is not effective.

• No Witnesses Required

  Colorado does not require witnesses for a beneficiary deed. Acknowledgment before a notary is the execution formality, unlike some states that require two witnesses.

• Record With the Clerk and Recorder Before Death

  The deed must be recorded prior to the death of the owner in the office of the clerk and recorder in the county where the real property is located (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-404(1)). There is no fixed deadline after signing, so record it promptly.

• Revoke Only by Recorded Means

  A revocation must be recorded prior to death to be effective (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-405(1)). A later beneficiary deed revokes prior designations, the most recently executed deed or revocation recorded before death controls, and a will cannot revoke it (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-405).

• Know the Medicaid and Probate Warnings

  The Colorado statutory form warns that executing the deed may disqualify the grantor from Medicaid under Title 25.5, C.R.S., and that it may not avoid probate (Colo. Rev. Stat. 15-15-404). Confirm how the deed affects public benefits before you sign.