Virginia Transfer on Death Deed

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   A Virginia transfer on death deed is a deed you put on record during your lifetime that passes a named piece of real property to your chosen beneficiary automatically at your death, keeping it clear of probate (Va. Code 64.2-621 and following, authorized by 64.2-624).

2. 2

   Because the deed is both revocable and nontestamentary, it leaves your ownership fully intact while you live. You can sell, mortgage, or cancel it as you wish, and the beneficiary has no interest until you die (Va. Code 64.2-625, 64.2-626).

3. 3

   The deed has to carry the elements and formalities of any recordable inter vivos deed, which means you sign it and have your signature acknowledged. No witnesses are required (Va. Code 64.2-628).

4. 4

   Virginia sets no numerical deadline, but the deed only works once it is recorded, before you die, in the land records held by the clerk of the circuit court for the locality where the property sits (Va. Code 64.2-628(3)). Recording during your lifetime is essential.

5. 5

   The deed must state that the beneficiary takes at your death, and here Virginia adds a signature rule of its own: when the property is jointly owned, every joint owner has to execute the deed for it to be effective (Va. Code 64.2-628).

6. 6

   Revocation in Virginia runs through the land records only. A later transfer on death deed, a separate revocation instrument, or a deed conveying the property, each recorded before you die, will undo it; a will and a revocatory act on the paper will not (Va. Code 64.2-630).

7. 7

   The beneficiary inherits the property still carrying every mortgage, lien, and claim attached to it at your death, so the deed by itself clears none of the debt secured against the land.

Virginia Requirements for Transfer on Death Deed

• Use a Properly Recordable Deed Form

  A Virginia transfer on death deed must contain the essential elements and formalities of a properly recordable inter vivos deed and must state that the transfer to the beneficiary occurs at the owner death (Va. Code 64.2-628).

• Legal Description and Parcel Number

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

• Name the Beneficiary and an Alternate

  The full legal name of the beneficiary who will receive the property at the owner death, and an alternate beneficiary if the first does not survive the owner. Va. Code 64.2-624 allows one or more beneficiaries, so naming a backup keeps the property out of probate if the first beneficiary dies first.

• Notarize the Signature

  The owner must sign the deed and have the signature acknowledged, because the deed needs the formalities of a properly recordable deed (Va. Code 64.2-628). Virginia does not require witnesses.

• All Joint Owners Must Sign

  For property owned by joint owners to be effective, the transfer on death deed must be executed by all of the joint owners (Va. Code 64.2-628). If any joint owner does not sign, the deed does not pass that ownership.

• Record With the Circuit Court Clerk Before Death

  The deed must be recorded before the owner dies in the land records of the clerk office of the circuit court where the property is located (Va. Code 64.2-628(3)). Virginia sets no fixed number of days, so record promptly after signing.

• Revoke Only by Recorded Instrument

  The deed can be revoked only by a later transfer on death deed, an instrument of revocation, or a deed conveying the property, recorded before the owner death (Va. Code 64.2-630). A will cannot revoke a Virginia transfer on death deed.

• Property Passes Subject to Existing Liens

  The beneficiary takes the property subject to any mortgages, liens, and claims that exist at the owner death. The deed passes only the property it describes and does not clear debts secured by the property.