CS for SB 1172 - Land Trusts Summary

• Creates section 689.073 establishing that recorded instruments designating a person or entity as "trustee" and conferring specific powers vest full legal and equitable title in the trustee to manage and dispose of real property held in trust.

• Prohibits the statute of uses and doctrine of merger from executing a land trust or vesting trust property in beneficiaries, even if the trustee has minimal duties or is the sole beneficiary.

• Allows beneficial interests in land trusts to be designated as either personal property or real property; if real property, security interests must be recorded in the county specified in the recorded instrument or where the trust property is located.

• Establishes that the trustee's legal and equitable title is separate and distinct from a beneficiary's beneficial interest, preventing liens or judgments against one interest from automatically attaching to the other.

• Eliminates the requirement for guardian ad litem appointment in foreclosure actions affecting land trust property and allows multiple ownership methods including tenants in common, joint tenants with right of survivorship, or tenants by the entireties.