Change of name, real property, and durable power of attorney

[Thom02]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

I recently went through a change of name (not by marriage, but through court order to change my whole name). My old name is on a property deed. Without too much trouble or bother, I was wondering if I could set up a durable power of attorney (DPA) in my new name in order for a successor to take ownership of the property at the proper time, or would I need to change my name on the property deed in order to do this (use a DPA)?

While this may not be the same situation, I noticed the answer that a recently married person received and wondered if something similar might apply to this situation also. The person asked: "I own the property free and clear and do not want to add any other people to the deed. If I don't record the name change at this time, will it hang me up later when and if I try to sell the property?"

The answer she was given was: "It really is NOT necessary. When you sell someday, just notify the title company that you are now Jane Smith, formerly known as Jane Doe."

Thanks in advance for any replies.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[seniorjudge]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Arizona

I recently went through a change of name (not by marriage, but through court order to change my whole name). My old name is on a property deed. Without too much trouble or bother, I was wondering if I could set up a durable power of attorney (DPA) in my new name in order for a successor to take ownership of the property at the proper time, or would I need to change my name on the property deed in order to do this (use a DPA)?

While this may not be the same situation, I noticed the answer that a recently married person received and wondered if something similar might apply to this situation also. The person asked: "I own the property free and clear and do not want to add any other people to the deed. If I don't record the name change at this time, will it hang me up later when and if I try to sell the property?"

The answer she was given was: "It really is NOT necessary. When you sell someday, just notify the title company that you are now Jane Smith, formerly known as Jane Doe."

Thanks in advance for any replies.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

That advice was good and should work for you too.

BUT if you want to, make a new deed FROM Mary Smith [i.e., your NEW name] formerly known as Jane Doe [i.e., the exact name that you hold title in now] TO Mary Smith.

You could also record a certified copy of the court order changing your name (if it does not contain personal info such as social security number...some states allow that info to be blacked out on recorded docs).

In any event, you must use a lawyer; you can really mess up the title to your land if you do something wrong.

I am just giving you extremely general information.

 

[FlyingRon]

Call the real estate records office and ask. In our county they'll record the name change in their records without having to file a deed. They want a certified copy of the marriage license or court order.

 

[seniorjudge]

...
In our county they'll record the name change in their records without having to file a deed. ...

What records?

How do they know what name to change it to?

 

[FlyingRon]

[QUOTE=seniorjudge;2056588]What records?[/QUOTE]
Recorded land records

How do they know what name to change it to?

It's listed on the court order.
Here, you take your court order, they recorded it on the property indexing it by the tax number, property description, the old and new names. It's then right there recorded along with all the deeds, trust documents, and anything else that's been recorded.

 

[seniorjudge]

[QUOTE=seniorjudge;2056588]What records?

Recorded land records

It's listed on the court order.
Here, you take your court order, they recorded it on the property indexing it by the tax number, property description, the old and new names. It's then right there recorded along with all the deeds, trust documents, and anything else that's been recorded.[/QUOTE]

What do you mean by "they recorded it on the property"?

What you're describing sounds more like changing tax records; are you talking about changing real estate records?

In other words, if I find a deed for Mary Smith, it will still say Mary Smith after the name change is recorded.

In other words, I don't understand what you're telling me.

 

[Thom02]

I recently went through a change of name (not by marriage, but through court order to change my whole name). My old name is on a property deed. Without too much trouble or bother, I was wondering if I could set up a durable power of attorney (DPA) in my new name in order for a successor to take ownership of the property at the proper time, or would I need to change my name on the property deed in order to do this (use a DPA)?

That advice was good and should work for you too.

BUT if you want to, make a new deed FROM Mary Smith [i.e., your NEW name] formerly known as Jane Doe [i.e., the exact name that you hold title in now] TO Mary Smith.

You could also record a certified copy of the court order changing your name (if it does not contain personal info such as social security number...some states allow that info to be blacked out on recorded docs).

I am just giving you extremely general information.

Thank you for your reply, seniorjudge. I'm trying to make some sense, though, of your answer, as it does not address one aspect that I considered questionable.

Hypothetical scenario: If I left the old name on the deed not changed or amended, issued a durable power of attorney to the person of my choice using the new name, would that person encounter any trouble if they wanted to sell or take ownership of the property?

In other words, would there need to be some mention of a former and new name somewhere? Or could he use the certified copy of the court order (along with the DPA) to verify the name change at the time he either wanted to take ownership or sell the property.

The more I think about it, I like the possibilities of that second scenario I outlined above. It seems to cover my concerns. What do you think?

 

[FlyingRon]

What do you mean by "they recorded it on the property"

I mean they recorded it like they record any number of property specific items: deeds, deeds of trusts, trust documents, satisfactions, etc... There's a list of 20 or so document types and how they index them to the properties on our county's site.
The name change is one of them.

What you're describing sounds more like changing tax records; are you talking about changing real estate records?

I am talking about the real estate records. The DTA is a different entity.

In other words, if I find a deed for Mary Smith, it will still say Mary Smith after the name change is recorded.

If I go to the property description: 123 Shady Lane, you will find the deeds, the deeds of trust, satisfiactions, court order name changes, etc.... If I search on grantor MARY SMITH I'll find the name change and it's cross reference to 123 Shady Lane.

To make it simple enough for you to understand. They file the change of name as if it were a deed or any other land record.

 

[Thom02]

Thank you for your reply, seniorjudge. I'm trying to make some sense, though, of your answer, as it does not address one aspect that I considered questionable.

Hypothetical scenario: If I left the old name on the deed not changed or amended, issued a durable power of attorney to the person of my choice using the new name, would that person encounter any trouble if they wanted to sell or take ownership of the property?

In other words, would there need to be some mention of a former and new name somewhere? Or could he use the certified copy of the court order (along with the DPA) to verify the name change at the time he either wanted to take ownership or sell the property.

The more I think about it, I like the possibilities of that second scenario I outlined above. It seems to cover my concerns. What do you think?

Could someone please address the question posed above? Is that a viable option?

 

[FlyingRon]

I told you what to do. Call up the court house or whoever records land records and tell them that you have a court order for the name change and how they handle it. If they are unwilling to help, then call a real estate attorney and ask the same question.

In my county you can just record the court order. It might be necessary other places to make a deed or affidavit to reflect the change.