Gray, GA Estate Planning Law Firms & Lawyers

Why would you want to leave a life estate to your caregiver, and a remainder interest to your son? That's usually a red flag. That aside, and assuming that you have a legitimate and genuinely felt reason for wanting to reward your caregiver (I assume this is intended to take effect after your death and not during your lifetime), there are usually much better ways to do it than by giving the caretaker a life estate on your house. A life estate to be created at death would need to be provided for by either your Will or a trust you created during your lifetime (either a revocable trust or an irrevocable trust). You would need to ensure that you were the sole owner of 100% of the house during your lifetime, or that it was 100% owned by the Trustee of the trust, depending on the overall plan. The Executor or Trustee, after your death and after the estate or trust was properly administered, would then need to execute a deed which describes the life estate to be held by your caregiver and the remainder interest to be held by your son. Under a life estate, the caregiver would be responsible for 100% of the costs associated with owning the house: insurance, property taxes, maintenance, and repairs. Your son, as remainder interest holder, could sue the caregiver if the caregiver allowed the property to fall into disrepair or deliberately did things to damage the value of the property. The caregiver would not be able to borrow against the house - this could mean that the caregiver is unable to access the equity value of the house if needed to make repairs, and can be a problem. Upon the caregiver's death, your son (or any contingent remainder beneficiaries) would automatically become owner of 100% of the house. A life estate can be given somewhat more flexibility, but that just creates other issues. Disputes, and possibly even litigation, are almost certain to occur. A better way to reward a caregiver, if desired, is to have your estate plan provide a cash bequest for that person. If the house must be sold to fund the bequest, it can be. If your son really wants to own the house, he could even purchase the house from the estate if needed. Your son could then receive the rest of the assets (assuming he's the only other beneficiary). This way both get something soon after your death, your caregiver can use the cash bequest to buy a house, if desired, or for other purposes, without being locked into your house, and your son does not have to wait until the caregiver dies to receive the benefits of his interest in the house. You really should consult an experienced estate planning attorney for help in determining what you want to provide under your estate planning documents. Even if you decide to stick with a life estate, creating that interest properly, with a minimal number of problems, takes good legal work. It's not a do-it-yourself project.  

This isn't a question that I can answer, but here are a few factors: Georgia has a (small) income tax; Florida doesn't. Georgia's probate system is much easier and less expensive to deal with than Florida's, and in many cases (not all), Georgia residents end up being able to less complicated estate planning as a result. Georgia has more mountains and hills; Florida has more beaches. Florida tends to be warmer all year round; Georgia has more of the seasonal changes. Florida has a lot of trouble right now with invasive foreign species such as pythons and tarantulas that are taking over the native wildlife; Georgia has some problem with that but not as much. Both states have alligators, although Florida has more of them. If I were trying to decide where I wanted to make my home, I'd pick Georgia. But then, I'm biased; I'm a native. And I like hills and mountains better than the beach.

Probate probably won't apply but your aunt needs to go to court and get back into her house. If there is a probate the sons would initiate it and you would put in a creditor's claim with the estate for the rent and utilities.