Uploaded byMichael Belgeri
Contract Models for Land Trusts
This document discusses various legal and financial documents and topics related to trusts and property management. It includes contract models, trustee workload, partnership agreements, promissory notes, guarantees, assignments, authorizations, deeds, appointments, and the fiduciary relationship between trustees and property owners.
Contract Models for Land Trusts
- 1. Contract Analysis Workshop Contract Models
- 4. Trustee Workload CO-VENTURE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS PARTNERSHIP AMENDMENTS TO TRUST CHANGE AGENT PROPERTY MANAGEMENT PROMISSORY NOT ASSIGMENT OF PURCHASE GUARANTEE ASSIGNMENT OF SALES CONDITIONAL ASSIGNMENT AUTHORIZATION OF PURCHASE SECURITY AGREEMENT AUTHORIZATION OF SALES FINANCIAL STATEMENT AUTHORIZATION TO SIGN STAMP RETURN AUTHORIZATION TO DISPURSE PARTICIPATION CERT. WARANTY DEED TO SUCCESSOR AFFIDAVIT OF STATUS APPOINT MENT ASSIGNMENT OF APPOINTMENT OF OWNER MORTGAGE REPRESENTATION OF OWNER A CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP QUIT CLAIM DEED DIRECTION TO THE TRUSTEE FIDUCIARY RELATIONSHIP DIRECTION TO THE TRUSTEE
Editor's Notes
- #2 The responsibility of writing a contract is ominous because it is law making. A contract that you write for yourself and which another person agrees to is a matter of personal law. In a person’s life, the occasion inevitably presents itself to write a contract just to be sure of an agreement between you and another party. The occasion can be a marriage, an automobile purchase, a tax return or the creation of a business. In this case we focus on the discussion of the documentation used in the creation of a Florida Land Trust.A Land Trust Agreement is, in part, one such occasion. This workshop is not intended to make any of you lawyers. It is intended to give you a better understanding of the documentation that arises under the conversion of property into a Land Trust. My Name is Michael Belgeri, I am the course presenter for this on-line workshop
- #3 Let’s clear the table of ‘myths’ surrounding the term Trust with a simple statement of fact. A Trust is nothing more than a Contract. A Contract is nothing more than an agreement between two parties. Vested interests, Mis-understanding, emotion, disagreement, the government, courts and lawyers make a Trust, a Contract or a written agreement complex.The vested interest of a feudal system monarch in 1536 gave stimulus to the modern Land Trust with the institution of the Statute of Uses; railroad barons in Chicago lobbied the birth of the Illinois land trust in 1899 to over throw the Statute of Uses and then Disney attorney’s did it again for us in 1963. But even with over 500 years of Land Trust Privacy and Protection today’s Realtor’s and Attorneys seem to overlook the strength of this form of ownership. We’ve put together a trio of Land Trust Contracts, one written by a professional Trustee, one written for a professional investor and one written for a Florida County. Each of the three contribute a level of protection to the agreement we call the Extended Florida Land Trust Agreement.This document is based on 500 years of law and we are looking at three different versions; kind of reminds us of FARBAR 8, 9, 10 issues doesn’t it.
- #4 A contract should be divided into three parts: Who, What and Common Ground Statements of agreement. Recitals are the “What”; the common ground information are the rules agreed to by the parties. The State Bar of Michigan’s education provider, ICLE says it this way.Recitals (from Section 16.19):"Traditionally, recitals start with a 'Whereas.' However, the trend toward the use of plain English has led many drafters to delete this archaic word and simply use a heading called 'Recitals' or an introductory statement, such as: 'This contract is made with reference to the following facts."'Boilerplate (from Section 16.37):"The peripheral or 'general' clauses that are found near the end of an agreement are often referred to as 'boilerplate' clauses. Unfortunately, these clauses are often given little thought. The drafter should not blindly include the 'standard boilerplate' without considering whether each clause helps or hurts the client's position."In the three versions of the Land trust we’re going to include these two areas and the ICLE’s viewpoint in our analysis and modifications. First the 10 commandments of Contracts:
- #5 While a Land Trust is created for the Beneficiary’s interests, the work of the Trustee requires expression, itemization and understanding because it is the Trustee who, as alter ego for the beneficiary’s interests, will, in the end, be the executor of the Trust, signing over the deed, notifying the owners of legal issues etc. The powers of the trustee are vested by the beneficiaries through what are known in the contract as the ‘Recitals.’ The contract’s recitals require an audit trail of documentation between beneficiaries and the trustee. Here we have listed examples of the documentation that may come into play during the lifetime of the Trust.