On September 1, 2015, Texas joined the growing number of states that allow owners of real estate to transfer property to their heirs outside the probate process using a Transfer on Death Deed. The deed works like a beneficiary designation on a bank account or an insurance policy by allowing you to name a primary and contingent beneficiary who will inherit your real property after you die. This is good news for many Texans with modest estates whose only probate asset is their home.

Below are a few things you need to know about TODD:

1. It is possible to name more than one beneficiary; however, each beneficiary will inherit the property in equal and undivided shares with no right of survivorship.

2. A TODD is completely revocable, during the life of the Grantor, in one of the following ways:

• By signing a new TODD that expressly revokes the prior one or specifies that the property should pass to someone else;
• By signing a separate document that expressly revokes the prior TODD. Note, however, a Grantor cannot revoke a TODD by making a contrary provision in a Will.
• Divorce automatically revokes the TODD.

3. An agent acting as a Power of Attorney cannot create a TODD.

4. Everyone still needs a Will because you may have probate assets other than your real property and there is always a possibility that beneficiaries you name in your Transfer on Death Deed will die before you or at the same time as you.

Ruais & Associates is here to answer your questions and provide you with all your Estate Planning needs. Give us a call today, for a FREE consultation.

McKinney, TX, April 18, 2015– For the second straight year, attorney Philip Ruais has been selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list. Each year, no more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor.
 
Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The result is a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of exceptional attorneys.
 
The Super Lawyers lists are published nationwide in Super Lawyers Magazines and in leading city and regional magazines and newspapers across the country. Super Lawyers Magazines also feature editorial profiles of attorneys who embody excellence in the practice of law. For more information about Super Lawyers, visit SuperLawyers.com.

If you would like more information about this, or any other topic, please contact Kevin Walsh at 214-572-2109 or email at [email protected].

McKinney, TX, October 6, 2014 – Attorney Philip Ruais and his law firm, Ruais & Associates PLLC, has been voted the best Law Firm / Attorney in McKinney, for 2014, by the readers of McKinney Magazine™ and visitors of McKinneyOnline.com.

“We would like to thank all who voted for us and thank you, our clients, for all the great relationships we have and truly value.”
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The McKinney Chamber of Commerce publishes McKinney Magazine™, the area’s premier lifestyle magazine. More than 47,000 copies of each issue are distributed to businesses and residents of McKinney and surrounding towns.McKinneyOnline.com is the digital complement, providing daily news updates and a robust community calendar.
 
This marks the second big award, in 2014, for Attorney Philip Ruais. Earlier this year, attorney Ruais was selected by Super Lawyers Magazines to the 2014 Rising Stars list.

If you would like more information about this, or any other topic, please contact Kevin Walsh at 214-572-2109 or email at [email protected].

McKinney, TX, April 17, 2014 – Attorney Philip Ruais has been selected to the 2014 Texas Rising
Stars list. Each year, no more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team at Super Lawyers to receive this honor.

Super Lawyers, a Thomson Reuters business, is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The annual selections are made using a patented multiphase process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers, an independent research evaluation of candidates and peer reviews by practice area. The result is a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of exceptional attorneys.
​
The Super Lawyers lists are published nationwide in Super Lawyers Magazines and in leading city and regional magazines and newspapers across the country. Super Lawyers Magazines also feature editorial profiles of attorneys who embody excellence in the practice of law. For more information about Super Lawyers, visit SuperLawyers.com.

If you would like more information about this, or any other topic, please contact Kevin Walsh at 214-572-2109 or email at [email protected].