A Beneficiary Deed, in essence, is a “pay on death designation” for real property. It is very useful if you want to leave your house or other real estate to one or two persons upon our death. A Beneficiary Deed avoids probate without giving up any present ownership interest in the property like joint tenants with right of survivorship does.
The Beneficiary Deed is fully revocable. Where there are co-owners, the surviving owner can revoke the Beneficiary Deed.
The owner retains control. The owner does not need to consult the beneficiaries or be concerned about the beneficiaries’ creditors (unlike joint tenants).
The Beneficiary Deed is a great tool for people who have all other assets in accounts that have a “pay on death” designation of some type. The Beneficiary Deed is not a good tool if you want to leave your real property to more than two people, to minors or to adults with special needs receiving government assistance. In those instances, a trust should be used.