Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: a wife whose name is the only one on the title

If you acquire title to real property during your marriage, under the principals of community property, your husband would be entitled to half its value. You would have to make some arrangement to characterize the house as a gift to you and thereby remove it from the law of community property. My advice to you is to pay a couple hundred dollars to a Family Law Attorney for a consultation now and BEFORE you do the transfer; otherwise, you may have to spend several thousands of dollars in family court litigation later. You do not want to litigate in family court. Contact me anytime, and good luck.

Re: a wife whose name is the only one on the title

Sounds as though your brother is making a gift of the house to you. If it is truly a gift and you are not paying for it, either up-front with money or by some back-door means, it will be your separate property. When you take title to it, be sure the deed so reads, e.g. ".....to Jane Doe, Grantee, a married woman, as her sole and separate property" or words to that effect.

Gifts, inheritances, and the earnings of separate property become separate property of a married recipient, but to maintain and protect that status, the separate nature needs to be set forth on the deed or other instrument, and then you should avoid using community funds (including your earnings from salary and wages) to pay the mortgage or make major improvements. This could result in the community acquiring an interest in the otherwise separate property.

Making a gift of real property has substantial tax effects on the donor and donee. Property and income or gift tax consequences may be very unfavorable. Also, if your brother is doing this to hide assets from creditors, there can be severe repercussions for both of you. I suggest sitting down with a tax advisor, estate planner and/or a real estate attorney before attempting to carry out this gift. There may be better ways to accomplish your family purposes. Some kind of trust would be a possibility.