Why is it important to update your deed?
​The deed to your Hawaii real estate is your proof of ownership. When you get married and want to add your spouse to your property title, it is necessary to draft and record a new deed. This is the only way to make your spouse a part-owner of the property. Similarly, the only way to remove an ex-spouse (or ex-anyone for that matter) from the property title is to record a new deed.
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When you have children, or they reach the age of majority, you may want to add them to the title of your property as an estate planning / inheritance planning tool. There are legal consequences to this for both you and them, so it is important to fully understand this before recording such a deed.
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Finally, even if you don't add a new spouse to your property title, it may be advisable to update your name as it appears on the title. Doing this soon after taking or hyphenating your spouse's last name will save a lot of time and hassle in the future when you need to convey the title to someone else. Proving you are the same person who is the titled owner is exactly complicated, but after 10+ years it can be needlessly difficult. We've done name change deeds more than 30 years after the fact but we'd rather do it proactively for you now.
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In all of these cases, a quitclaim deed will meet most peoples' needs, but there are some cases that might necessitate a warranty or limited warranty deed.
